Qilian Mountain landform landscape Wang Jianping
In the history of world civilization, the Hexi Corridor in Gansu, China, is a corridor with rich historical and cultural relics and far-reaching influence, a corridor for long-term exchanges and coexistence of multi-ethnic cultures, and a corridor connecting the four regions and playing a long-lasting role in integration. Since ancient times, the Hexi Corridor has been a place of communication and integration between the farming culture of the Central Plains, the nomadic culture of the north, the oasis culture of the Western Regions and other cultures. For thousands of years, the Hexi Corridor has staged a series of turbulent and ups and downs of history, which has had a profound impact on the development of human civilization.
The artery connecting the four domains
Located in northwest China, the Hexi Corridor is named after the corridor-like shape west of the Yellow River, which refers to the long and narrow passage between the Qilian Mountains (the southern mountains of the corridor) and the northern mountains of the corridor (Mamanshan Mountain, Heli Mountain, Longshou Mountain) in a southeast-northwest trend. The reason why it can become an important channel for multicultural exchanges and mutual learning is determined by its unique geographical location. The Hexi Corridor is adjacent to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the south, the Mongolian Plateau to the north, the Loess Plateau to the east, and the Tarim Basin to the west.
The Hexi Corridor stretches from Gulang Gorge on the west side of Wusheling in the east to Xingxing Gorge at the junction of Gansu and Singapore in the west, with a length of more than 900 kilometers from east to west, and a width of several kilometers from north to south to more than 100 kilometers. The Hexi Corridor is high in the south and low in the north, and is divided into four major landform units: the Qilian Mountains in the south, the plains in the central corridor, and the low mountains and hills and deserts in the north. The Hexi Corridor is located in the arid region of the hinterland of Eurasia, which belongs to the temperate continental climate, including three types: alpine and semi-arid zone, temperate arid zone, and warm temperate arid zone, with scarce precipitation, dry climate, frequent wind and sand, and drastic changes in cold and heat. From east to west, annual precipitation gradually decreases from 200 mm in Wuwei to about 50 mm in Dunhuang, and annual evaporation increases from 1,400 mm to 2,000 mm. The melt water of the Qilian Mountains has formed three inland water systems, the Shiyang River, the Heihe River and the Shule River, in the hinterland of the corridor. Thanks to the irrigation and nourishment of these three major water systems, the Hexi Corridor has formed three oasis areas of Wuwei, Zhangye-Jiuquan, and Yumen-Dunhuang-Guazhou, which have become fertile places suitable for agriculture and animal husbandry and veritable holes. In the ancient historical books, there is a saying that "Hexi is rich", "the livestock of Liangzhou is the world", and "the world is rich and there is no one as good as Longyou".
The geographical environment of the Hexi Corridor determines its unique location characteristics and geographical advantages, and the majestic plaque inscriptions on the bell and drum towers in Jiuquan, Zhangye and other places fully demonstrate the strategic position and unique charm of the Hexi Corridor. For example, Jiuquan has "East Yinghuayue", "West Dayiwu", "South Wangqilian", "North Desert", etc., Zhangye has "Shengjiao Sida" and so on. Another example is the Jiayu Pass of the Ming Dynasty as "the first Xiongguan in the world", its east gate is called "Guanghua", and the outside is called "Chaozong"; The west gate is said to be "soft and far" inside, and it is said to be "huiji" outside. The Hexi Corridor connects the Central Plains and the Western Regions from east to west, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Mongolian Plateau from north to south, and connects the four regions, which is a place where farming culture and nomadic culture interact. Because of this, the Hexi Corridor has become a corridor for political exchanges, economic and trade, mutual learning among civilizations, and a corridor for ethnic integration, and plays an important role as a bridge in the exchange of civilizations.
Dunhuang Hecang City Ruins Zhang Xiaoliang
A passage for ethnic blending
The characteristics of the geographical environment determine that the Hexi Corridor will inevitably become a unique stage for ethnic exchanges and blending. Historically, due to its special geographical location, the Hexi Corridor was a necessary passage for the migration of many ethnic groups. Mr. Fei Xiaotong called the Hexi Corridor and its adjacent areas the Northwest Ethnic Corridor, and the German scholar Ferdinand von Richthofen called it "the highway of ethnic exchanges". As a major national channel, dozens of ethnic groups have multiplied here in history, such as Wusun, Yueshi, Xiongnu, Xianbei, Tubo, Tuyuhun, Hui (Falcon), Dangxiang, Mongolian, Hui and Han. In the process of integration and development, they gradually formed a pluralistic and integrated pattern of "you have me, I have you, and you are tightly embraced like pomegranate seeds", and the Hexi Corridor has become a place where "Huayi meets".
Two thousand years ago, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Zhang Qian to "hollow out" the Western Regions and conquer the Xiongnu, and successively set up four counties of Jiuquan, Zhangye, Dunhuang and Wuwei in the Hexi Corridor, immigrated to Tuntian, built the Great Wall, established a post system, and controlled this important corridor in a new mode. In the struggle between the Han and Hungarian sides for the Hexi Corridor, the Han Dynasty "listed the four counties in Hexi", not only to "cut off the right arm of the Xiongnu and isolate the Nanqiang and Yueshi" militarily, but also to "open the jade gate and open the Western Regions", and to "currency Qianghu" in terms of economy and culture. Only when the Hexi Corridor is unimpeded can its function as a channel connecting the four regions be fully utilized. Among them, the stability and strength of the Central Plains Dynasty was the primary political condition for ensuring connectivity. As Tang Taizong said: "To make China uneasy, why did the tributary envoys from the southern and western regions also come?" Since Zhang Qian's "hollowing out", the status of the Hexi Corridor has been rapidly improved, and it has become a national corridor for the Central Plains Dynasty to conduct foreign exchanges by land. Ethnologist Gu Bao believes: "After the establishment of the four counties in Hexi, the emergence of this new agricultural area has connected the two ancient agricultural areas, namely the Central Plains agricultural area with the agricultural area south of the Tianshan Mountains, and then with the ancient agricultural area west of the Green Mountains, so that a large area of agricultural areas is connected, which provides a safe and reliable channel for economic and cultural exchanges between the East and the West." ”
During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Central Plains was turbulent, and the minority regimes were divided into the northwest, and the role of the Hexi Corridor as a channel was weakened. After the establishment of the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was committed to changing this situation, personally conquering Tuyuhun, and successively set up four counties in today's Qinghai and Xinjiang, namely Xihai, Heyuan, Shanshan, and Jimo, which strengthened the security of the Hexi Corridor and restored the communication between the Central Plains and the Western Regions. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty summoned the Gaochang king Lu Boya and the leaders of the Western Regions in Zhangye, further strengthened the control of the Western Regions, and made special contributions to the re-prosperity of the Silk Road in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
As decisive as Zhang Qian's "hollowing" of the Western Regions, there is also the Liangzhou Alliance. The Liangzhou Huimeng has given full play to the integration role of the Hexi Corridor, which is a feat in the history of ethnic integration in ancient China. Under the effective administrative jurisdiction of the Yuan Dynasty, the exchanges between Tibet and the rest of the motherland were unimpeded through the post system, and the Hexi Corridor was integrated into the process of national construction in a larger political arena and historical space with a new attitude. Historian Cai Meibiao argues: "The formal integration of Tibet into China's territory in the Yuan Dynasty is like a ripe melon, which is the inevitable destination of the historical itinerary for more than 600 years, and is also the common requirement of the development interests of the Tibetan people and all ethnic groups. ”
After Zhu Yuanzhang overthrew the Yuan Dynasty, in the face of a new political pattern, he imitated the model of the Han Dynasty in governing the northwest, and actively passed through the Hexi Corridor, trying to use the Hexi Corridor to block the connection between the Mongolian Plateau and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, but this practice was constantly challenged by the Mongolian tribes. After the tribute, the Ming Dynasty gradually changed this practice, setting up mutual markets in Biandukou and Zhuanglangwei, allowing the Mongols to travel to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau through the Hexi Corridor, so that the two plateaus became increasingly connected.
After the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, it continued to explore effective methods for managing the two plateaus, and realized the transition from indirect management to direct management. On the basis of the Yuan and Ming dynasties, the Qing Dynasty maximized the role of the Hexi Corridor as a "mortise", and after more than a century of integration, it finally incorporated the vast territory adjacent to the Hexi Corridor into its administrative jurisdiction, and the two major ethnic groups of agriculture and nomadism were truly integrated, and the Loess Plateau, the Mongolian Plateau, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Tarim Basin were truly connected. Historian Li Dalong believes: "From the Three Kingdoms to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, from the Five Dynasties to the Yuan Dynasty, from the Ming to the Qing Dynasty, we can clearly see the trajectory of the development of political power annexation in China. The leading factor behind this is the inheritance and development of the idea of 'great unification' by the two major ethnic groups, agrarian and nomadic. Therefore, the ancients believed that "if you want to protect Qinlong, you must consolidate the west of the river; If you want to consolidate the west of the river, you must reject the Western Regions." Only when the role of the Hexi Corridor as a "channel" and "crossroads" connecting the four regions can be fully brought into play, can the complete form of the "great unification" state in ancient China truly emerge.
Wu Wei, the main peak of Qilian Mountain, Snow Mountain Group
A corridor where culture meets
The special geographical location makes the Hexi Corridor an important part of the ancient Silk Road as early as the opening of Sino-Western exchanges. The Hexi Corridor is an important gateway for ancient China to open to the west, and it is a typical example of a deep understanding of human exchange and integration. Through the Hexi Corridor, we can further understand the difficult process, strong driving force and brilliant achievements of human civilization exchanges.
The reason why Zhang Qian's passage to the Western Regions is called "hollowing out" is that this unprecedented feat officially opened the official exchanges and direct trade between the Central Plains and the Western Regions through the Hexi Corridor. After that, the Han Dynasty provided a solid material guarantee for the passing envoys by defending the smooth and safe roads, enhanced the political mutual trust between the Han Dynasty and the Western Regions, and made the Hexi Corridor the safest, busiest and most convenient land passage in the long river of cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries. The Han, Tang, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties set up a complete post station system in the Hexi Corridor to ensure the normal operation of the Silk Road with huge financial investment. The Bamboo Slips unearthed from the Hanging Springs Site, a World Cultural Heritage Site in Dunhuang City, truly record the great efforts made by the Han Dynasty to maintain the smooth flow and security of the Silk Road. British scholar Peter Francopan argues: "The Hexi Corridor leads to the Pamir Plateau in the west, and to the west of the plateau is a whole new world. China opened the door to a transcontinental communication route – the 'Silk Road' was born. "Bowang Hou Zhang Qian's heroic spirit of defying difficulties and dangers, pioneering and enterprising, has been inherited by later generations, and generation after generation of messengers and travelers have struggled to move forward in the sound of camel bells, communicating with each other, learning from each other, and becoming a powerful driving force for the continuous promotion of human civilization and progress. As Chen Cheng, a famous envoy from Ji'an, Jiangxi Province, who sent an envoy to the Western Regions through the Hexi Corridor in the early Ming Dynasty, said: "The expedition is not far away, and thousands of miles come to the Western Regions." Bowang was sealed early, and Su Qing returned to China. Men are ambitious, and young people should work hard. ”
Yangguan, Yumen Pass and Jiayuguan in the Hexi Corridor, as world-famous traffic fortresses, are important nodes of the golden section of the ancient Silk Road, and together with the surrounding fortifications such as the city pavilion and the border wall fortress, they constitute a powerful guarantee system, maintaining the safety and smooth flow of the Silk Road, so that the east-west trade exchanges and multicultural exchanges continue to be integrated. Ji Xianlin believes that there are only four cultural systems in the world with a long history, a vast area, a self-contained system, and far-reaching influence: "China, India, Greece, and Islam, there is no fifth; And there is only one place where these four cultural systems converge, that is, Dunhuang and Xinjiang in China, and there is no second one. "The Dunhuang culture represented by the Mogao Grottoes has lasted for nearly 2,000 years, and is a bright pearl in the long river of world civilization, the crystallization of the exchange and integration of Chinese civilization and other ethnic civilizations, and a model of continuous integration of human civilization. Dunhuang culture highlights the spiritual qualities of cultural tolerance, cultural integration, cultural coexistence and cultural innovation, as well as the cultural self-confidence of the Chinese nation to learn from others, and deeply interprets the Silk Road spirit of "peace and cooperation, openness and inclusiveness, mutual learning and mutual benefit".
For the important position and unique role of the Hexi Corridor, the academic community uses the concepts of "strategic fulcrum", "multiple mutual construction", "mutual embeddedness" and "tenon" to interpret and explain, and there are different names such as "national corridor", "cultural corridor", "ethnic corridor", "transportation corridor", "strategic artery", "transition zone", "crossroads", "oasis bridge", "connector" and "golden road section". The above different statements all point to the "through" nature of the Hexi Corridor. "Tong" is not only the location characteristics and unique advantages of the Hexi Corridor, but also the unique phenomenon of the Hexi Corridor in the historical field. The soul of the ancient Silk Road is "Tong", and the contemporary "Belt and Road" initiative also pursues "Tong". The Belt and Road Initiative is rooted in the historical soil of the Silk Road, and based on the "connectivity" of the ancient Silk Road, we can more deeply understand the importance of "policy coordination, infrastructure connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and people-to-people bonds".
Hexi picture scroll, looking at the ancient and modern; The rhythm of the corridor echoes inside and outside. In history and reality, the Hexi Corridor is showing its grand plan and playing a colorful movement for the "soft connection" of ethnic integration and multicultural integration with its unique geographical advantages.
Tian Shu