The culture of the Yellow River is endless

In order to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the premiere of the "Yellow River Cantata", the eternal Yellow River Cantata - the 2024 "Five Continents Sing the Yellow River in unison" series of activities was recently launched at Hukou Waterfall of the Yellow River. It is spring, and the Hukou Waterfall of the Yellow River is majestic, and the waves are rolling. At the performance site, compatriots from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and overseas Chinese sang the "Yellow River Cantata" together, and the chorus, recitation, performance, and the sound of the Yellow River waves were intertwined, as if "the Yellow River is roaring". On April 13, 1939, the "Yellow River Cantata" premiered in the auditorium of Yan'an Shaanbei Public School. At a time when the Chinese nation is dying and dying, a song called "Yellow River Cantata" is like a clarion call, expressing the strong and unyielding fighting spirit of the Chinese people and singing the cohesion and centripetal force of the nation.

For thousands of years, the surging Yellow River, together with the Yangtze River, has nurtured the Chinese nation and nurtured Chinese civilization. As early as ancient times, the legend of the two emperors of Yan and Huang was born here. In the history of more than 5,000 years of civilization on the mainland, the Yellow River Basin has been the political, economic and cultural center of the country for more than 3,000 years, giving birth to Hehuang culture, Heluo culture, Guan Chinese, Qilu culture, etc., distributing Zhengzhou, Xi'an, Luoyang, Kaifeng and other ancient capitals, giving birth to the "Four Great Inventions" and classic works such as "Book of Poetry", "Lao Tzu" and "Shiji". The Yellow River, galloping forward, has shaped the national character of the Chinese nation with indomitable majestic momentum, and is an important foundation for the Chinese nation to strengthen its cultural self-confidence.

It is a river that nourishes the culture of the nation

"The Classic of Mountains and Seas: The Great Wilderness of the West" cloud: "Beyond the Northwest Sea, in the corner of the Great Wilderness, there are mountains that do not match, and the name is not Zhou's negative son, and there are two yellow beasts guarding it. "Buzhou Mountain is in the northwest of Kunlun Mountain, and according to legend, it is the only path in the human world that can reach the heavenly realm. Legend has it that Gonggong was angry and touched the Zhou Mountain, so the sky fell to the northwest and the earth fell to the southeast, and all the great rivers flowed to the east. This myth gave rise to another beautiful myth, that is, Nuwa mends the sky. These myths embody the simple beliefs and majestic imagination of the ancient ancestors, and behind them are the cultural genes of the Chinese national community.

"The Classic of Mountains and Seas, the Book of the Sea", "Historical Records: Xia Benji", "Shangshu Yushu", as well as "Mencius", "Lü's Spring and Autumn", "Zhuangzi" and other early classic documents, all have records about Dayu's water control. The Yellow River rushes, flows to the junction of Shanxi, Shaanxi, Henan provinces, meets the mountain block, so Yu led the people to split the mountain into three canyons of "human gate", "god gate" and "ghost gate", leading the Yellow River water to surging eastward, Sanmenxia is also named. In the waves of the Yellow River in Sanmenxia, there is a stone, called the pillar stone, which is said to be the stone pillar of the town river left by Dayu when he controlled the water.

The 5,464-kilometer-long Yellow River, like a giant dragon, winds its way through the north of China, writing a big "several" character on the vast land. For thousands of years, the Yellow River has nourished the nurturing and growth of ancient civilizations and dyed the hot yellow background of the Chinese nation. This is how the Yellow River flows in our culture, and it is with such heroic spirit that it appears in the wilderness of Asia.

The burning of animal bones at the site of Xihoudu in Ruicheng, Shanxi Province, has pushed the history of human use of fire to 1.8 million years ago; the carbonized grain specimens found in Gansu and Inner Mongolia have confirmed that the Yellow River Valley had started agricultural civilization 8,000 years ago; in the period around 5,000 years ago, the clans and tribes in the Yellow River Valley matured, and the Yellow Emperor led the unified Chinese nation to stand in the center of the Yellow River stage, which fully opened the beginning era of Chinese civilization......

The surging Yellow River, flowing from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the sea, is full of energy and runs through Changhong. The classics represented by the "Historical Records" record the courage and skill of the ancients in governing the Yellow River. Reading between the lines of these documents, we can read the hearts of those ancient sages who were interested in saving the common people from the cross-current. They all understand that making the rolling yellow stream work for the benefit of the common people requires a strong ability to integrate resources, and this must largely rely on the cooperation of the whole country in a game of chess. Therefore, the collectivism in the bones of the Chinese can be said to be innate.

Similarly, the Yellow River is also a continuous flow of many large and small tributaries, so that it has become a long river in the world. For example, the Wei River, the largest tributary of the Yellow River, is a river flowing with classic culture, and many literati and scholars have left their swan songs here throughout history. Nowadays, with the creation of the Yellow River landscape line, the Wei River, which has been swept away from the dust of history, reproduces the charm of the Han and Tang dynasties, and has become a livable place that people yearn for. Xi'an, on the banks of the Weishui River, an ancient capital with a long history and famous at home and abroad, is seeking a high-quality development path suitable for its own characteristics. From Chang'an, the ancient capital of all countries, to the ever-changing northwest town, the prosperity of the past and the present is vividly displayed here.

This is a river that shows people-oriented feelings

Walking into the hall of the office building of the Yellow River Water Conservancy Committee of the Ministry of Water Resources, what catches your eye is the exhibition "Honest People in River Governance" on display. Here, we can see the achievements of the predecessors of the people who have been able to govern the river and the honest officials who have governed the river and the people who have governed the Yellow River through the ages.

Relevant comrades of the Yellow River Water Conservancy Committee told us that in recent years, the Yellow River Water Conservancy Committee has carried out solid research on the culture of honesty in the Yellow River, and deeply excavated the elements and genes of honesty in the long history of river governance. At the beginning of 2024, the Yellow River Water Conservancy Commission will further expand the channels for the dissemination of the culture of river governance, and carefully prepare for the exhibition of "Honest Figures in River Governance", on the basis of preliminary research, from the pre-Qin period to the present day, 21 representative and honest figures of river governance will be selected to sort out and refine their self-denial, non-self-interest, uprightness, honesty and honesty, with image pictures of people and illustrations of historical monuments and ruins, etc., to deepen people's understanding of the culture of river governance and integrity, and help create a clean and upright atmosphere. The atmosphere of advocating honesty and rejecting corruption.

Hou Quanliang, chief expert of the Yellow River Culture Research Institute of the Yellow River Hydraulic Research Institute and academic advisor of the Chinese Society of Dam Engineering, mentioned the history of water control. "During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Wang Jingzhi's governance of the Yellow River was a major practice in the history of the Yellow River, and the flood disaster that lasted for decades was quelled. Wang Jing was promoted to the rank of servant for his meritorious service in governing the river. For more than 800 years after that, there was a rare record of the Yellow River breaking, and Wang Jingzhi River flowed peacefully, leaving a name in history. "The famous ministers who ruled the river in history are not only known for their achievements, but also for their honesty and integrity. For example, Pan Jitao in the Ming Dynasty, the prime minister of the imperial history of the Imperial History of the Imperial Palace, he wrote the "River Defense at a Glance" and "Two Rivers Management" which had an important impact on the governance of the river in later generations. Zhang Pengxi of the Qing Dynasty, Kangxi valued his incorruptible quality and appointed him as the governor of the river, and the court called him 'the most honest official in the world'. There are many such capable and honest officials. ”

During the Daoguang period, Li Yumei, a famous minister of water control, was dedicated, honest and honest, and finally died as the governor of the river due to overwork. On the way back to Shanxi, the people set up sacrifices along the road, thousands of miles away. The Qing history manuscript commented: "Solid strength, Zhuo was the crown of Hechen at that time, not only the brickwork creation law can be disciplined." ”

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, our party had already begun the work of harnessing the Yellow River. In 1946, at the moment when the Kuomintang and the Communist Party launched a major struggle over the return of the Yellow River to its original route, 38-year-old Wang Huayun was appointed director of the Yellow River Water Conservancy Committee of the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Border Region, and began a lifelong career of governing the Yellow River. From 1946 to 1949, during the days and nights of flood control and risk fighting, Wang Huayun organized operations and worked the embankment where the waves crashed on the shore during the day, and he had to read every night. In 1952, Wang Huayun accompanied Mao Zedong to inspect the Yellow River, and he meticulously and comprehensively recounted the past, current situation and management ideas of the Yellow River for three consecutive hours. Wang Huayun participated in the organization and led the planning and construction of the Sanmenxia Water Conservancy Project, the first dam of the Yellow River, and accumulated experience for the construction of water conservancy and hydropower projects in New China, and cultivated a large number of construction talents. In the more than 40 years he has presided over the work of harnessing the Yellow River, he has made significant contributions to the development of the Yellow River and the cultivation of water conservancy talents.

According to Wang Huayun's son's recollection, his father has been a "river official" for 40 years, and has handled thousands of funds and equipment for the treatment of pornography in his life, but he has always adhered to the principle of extreme caution and self-discipline for his family and private property.

The Yellow River is Anlan, and the country is peaceful and the people are safe. Starting from Dayu, to later Wang Jing, Guo Shoujing, Pan Jitao, Lin Zexu, Li Yizhi, Wang Huayun...... These figures related to the governance of the Yellow River, adhering to the feelings of public and selflessness and people-oriented, braved the wind, frost, snow and rain, clothed in rain and smoke, and carried them on their shoulders through knives and axes, so that the rolling Yellow River became the cradle of nurturing all living beings.

It is a river that continues to advance in its heritage

"I stood on the top of a high mountain, watching the Yellow River roll and run to the southeast. The turbulent waves are surging, setting off a raging tide, the turbidity current is like turning, forming a nine-song chain, running from the Kunlun Mountain to the edge of the Yellow Sea, splitting the Central Plains into north and south. This is a fragment from the poet Guang Weiran's "Ode to the Yellow River" written in 1939. The whole poem is unrestrained in language, broad in artistic conception and magnificent, praising the unruly blood of the Yellow River and the heroic spirit of the Chinese nation, and expressing the strong determination and indomitable courage of the Chinese people.

The years in northern Shaanxi have fascinated countless people. As the poet He Qifang wrote: "The city gate of Yan'an is open all day long, and there are young people coming from all directions all day long, carrying luggage and burning hope, entering this city gate...... Burning with enthusiasm, they dispersed in all directions. "The holy land of the revolution is like the beginning of a sublime song, with a loud and moving tone.

In 2019, the National Museum of China grandly launched the exhibition "Standing in the East: Classic Art Works from the Museum's Collection", and these carefully selected oil paintings, Chinese paintings and sculptures from the museum's collection are still the objects of long-term admiration for visitors. Among them is an oil painting "Crossing the Yellow River East", which was created by Zhong Han in 1978. This classic depicts the experience of Mao Zedong and other revolutionaries of the older generation crossing the Yellow River in Wubao County in 1948.

Looking at the rolling Loess Plateau and facing the turbulent waters of the Yellow River, Mao Zedong sighed: "You can despise everything, but you can't despise the Yellow River." To despise the Yellow River is to despise our nation. ”

From the founding of the People's Republic of China to today, the vicissitudes of life for more than 70 years are full of the struggle of the people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China to control floods, revitalize water conservancy, protect the ecology, save resources, and seek development.

Entering a new era, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core has taken the pulse as a whole and systematically opened the way to raise the concept of Yellow River governance to a new height. In the upper reaches, emphasis should be placed on improving water conservation capacity, in the middle reaches, emphasis should be placed on soil and water conservation and pollution control, and in the lower reaches, attention should be paid to protecting wetland ecosystems and improving biodiversity. The management and protection of the Yellow River has made remarkable achievements. The river is clear and clear, and the two banks are "green", and a beautiful picture of harmonious coexistence between man and nature is slowly unfolding. The Yellow River, gushing out of the prospect of rejuvenation, played a chorus of the new era.

From 1972 to 1998, there were 21 years when the Yellow River was cut off. According to the data, during the period from 1972 to 1996, when the flow was cut off, the economic losses of industry and agriculture caused by the interruption of the flow and the shortage of water supply amounted to more than 20 billion yuan.

From the past years of continuous interruption to the current smooth flow of the river, from ecological degradation to birdsong and fish leaping, from self-care to benefit the distance...... The big river flows, with a new look, and the splendid rivers and mountains are full of splendor.

The Hetao irrigation area in Bayannur City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, has adopted high-tech irrigation and water-saving technology, and the amount of water used in agriculture has been reduced to one-fifth of that used for traditional irrigation, thus freeing the people in the plateaus and mountainous areas from the situation of relying on the sky for food...... The surging water of the Yellow River has been turned into a clear stream through long-term ecological efforts, the economy of the Yellow River Basin has embarked on the path of high-quality development, and the ancient and glorious culture of the Yellow River Basin has been reborn through inheritance.

Today, China's two mother rivers, the Yangtze River and the Yellow River, have a national strategy and a clear roadmap for their economy, ecology and culture. This is the recreation of rivers and mountains, this is the creation of history, so it is destined to be difficult and glorious, and it will surely shine in the history of human self-improvement.

Source: Grassland Zen Medium

Editor: Li Jinxuan

Editor: Zhao Zongjie

Final review: Li Enguang

Director: Zhao Huiru