More than 1,000 years ago, an ordinary Tang Dynasty monk, through the desert, over the Heavenly Mountains, and in Central Asia, traveled to afghanistan, Pakistan, India and other countries for 19 years, wrote the "Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty", leaving an immeasurable public morality... More than 1,000 years later, our reporter has traveled a total of 40,000 kilometers in a few years, becoming one of the few people in China who has almost walked through the footprints of Xuanzang's journey to the west, and what he has seen and heard along the way has a bit of the twists and turns and novelties in "Journey to the West".
The first time journalists had the opportunity to follow Xuanzang's footsteps was in 1999, because they participated in an event at the United Nations and had the opportunity to investigate along the Steppe Silk Road. In ancient times, the Silk Road was divided into two parts, land and sea, and the overland Silk Road was divided by historians into the desert Silk Road east of the Pamir Plateau and the steppe Silk Road west of the Pamir Plateau according to geographical characteristics. At that time, the specific route of the expedition was from Moscow to Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, and then in Central Asia, 3 "zigzags" covered the route that Xuanzang walked.
Culturally speaking, the significance of the overland Silk Road far exceeds that of the Maritime Silk Road. Because this commercial artery not only communicates the Han Empire, the Kushan Empire, the Sabbath Empire and the Roman Empire in the core area of human culture, but also makes the most thorough cultural connection between The Jingjiao in Rome, Buddhism in India, Islam in Arabia, Manichaeism and Zoroastrianism in Persia. However, from 300 AD onwards, the Silk Road had begun to decline, and by the beginning of the 7th century when Xuanzang passed through here, the Silk Road was described as bleak and no longer as glorious as it had been.
Although the area we walk is called the Steppe Silk Road, its landform is actually dominated by desert surrounded by oases. In the distance, there is snow on the mountain, and under the snow is green, and from the depths of the green is yellow. The steaming heat in the distance is like a crumpled plastic sheet under the action of the light, hanging in the desolate day, and the figure becomes a small mud spot on it. Thinking of Xuanzang's figure in the desert in a hurry, it was really emotional.
I remember that Xi'an Ci'en Temple preserved a stone carving of Xuanzang taking sutras: Xuanzang was wearing a monk's robe and had a Buddha bead hanging on his chest, which was a bit of an emperor and a saint. He pedaled straw shoes, clothes in a small package around his waist, held a scripture in his left hand, dusted in his right hand, and carried a book box, the round cover on the top of the book box was an umbrella, and a small oil lamp hung in front of the umbrella. This is probably the scene of Xuanzang reading the scriptures on the side of the road at night while rushing to the side of the road. The Song Dynasty stone engraver does not seem to have much travel experience. In the vast wilderness, it is impossible for a person to walk while reading a book.
The rarest thing in the desert is an oasis, and whenever we go to such a place, we will stop deliberately to see the life of the descendants of the ancient caravans. And the local honored elders will welcome us with bread and salt, which is a legacy of the Silk Road. They live a quiet, simple life here. The surrounding desert limits the development of the local economy, and these people are still basically still living habits from 100 years ago. They brought out the best food to entertain us, and each person could get two slices of cucumber, three slices of tomatoes and a bowl of lamb broth buns. An elder here told me that his ancestors were mainly engaged in long-distance trafficking, and when they came here from Hami, China, there was a rumor that there was a plague in another oasis, and they did not dare to go forward, so they settled here.
Xuanzang's journey was really arduous. However, he was much luckier than the other monks who had traveled to India to learn the scriptures. There were many Chinese monks who aspired to go west at that time, but except for a few people such as Faxian, Xuanzang, and Yijing, the rest were frozen and starved to death or killed by thieves. Therefore, every time he gazed at Xuanzang's image, the reporter always felt that it was the accumulation of countless images of ancient Chinese monks.
After Xuanzang trekked through the desert of 800 miles and overling Lingshan Mountain, there must have been an action of looking back at the Tianshan Mountain, because it was really "dangerous and obstructed, and the cold wind was fierce" here. Xuanzang in the Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty not only outlines its geographical location, but also accurately describes that here "the cliffs and ridges are hundreds of weights, the valleys are steep, the ice and snow are constantly accumulated, and the cold winds are fierce." "By following the UN expedition, the reporter had the opportunity to overlook the Tian Shan and the Pamir Plateau from the air.
Because there are many Soviet military bases on the west side of the Tianshan Mountains, the reporter's helicopter can only quickly skim the Tianshan Mountains and fly close to the cliffs, but it is still very shocking to overlook the "roof of the world" - the Pamir Plateau. Here is a "knot" formed by the intersection of the Tianshan Mountains, Kunlun Mountains and Hindu Kush Mountains, where the huge energy in the depths of the rock layers cancels each other out, forming a gentle mountain at an altitude of 4200 meters. From the helicopter, you can see that there is a clear stream in the valley, next to which is covered with green grass and small yellow flowers. An unknown animal seemed to smell something at this moment, and cleverly flashed behind the rock. Local guides said it was a snow leopard, which operates between 1,800 and 5,500 meters above sea level. The guide said that there are also legendary "snowmen" activities along the Pamir Plateau.
Out of the Pamir is Central Asia. The four neighbors of Central Asia are the centers of ancient civilizations, so this place has become a collision and intersection of different civilizations, an eternal crossroads. If you look at history, you will find that the dynasties in the early history of Central Asia, like a short tornado, were self-centered and arrogant for a while, and finally collapsed in the desert without exception. It was not until the 7th century, after Islam entered Central Asia, that Central Asia gradually gained its own identity and character.
Xuanzang seemed to be in a hurry as he passed by here, paying little attention to the two ancient cities that stood here, Bukhara and Samarkand. However, by the time Xuanzang entered the Western Regions, China had been in contact with the Western Regions for at least eight centuries. From Turkmenistan to Uzbekistan, we often hear locals talk about two animals, one is the Silkworm of China and the other is the horse of the Western Regions. When we visited the Komosol Horse Farm in Turkmenistan, the owners here talked about how the Chinese emperors liked their "pegasus". The pegasus in his mouth was indeed extraordinary, elegant and noble, and the maroon fur was soft and bright as satin. However, when the reporter asked whether this horse was the sweat-blood BMW described in ancient Chinese books, the owner of the horse farm said that he had only seen a horse with sweat and blood on the shoulder once in his life, but the horse died quickly.
Among the places Xuanzang passed, Bamiyan was one of the most famous in recent years, but sadly this was associated with a cultural disaster that shocked the world. Journalists set foot on Bamiyan's soil in 2002, when the United States used force against the Taliban, prompting journalists' trip to Afghanistan. From the plane, Afghanistan is a rolling, desolate hill, dotted oasis packed with honeycomb-like adobe houses. The river flowed out of an oasis, and only a wave of light evaporated into the sand, making the distant trees wait.
After Xuanzang entered Afghanistan from Central Asia, his walking speed slowed down significantly, and he felt that Buddhism at that time was quite weak, and he sighed from time to time: "Although there are many Galan, there are few monks"; "The court is lonely, there are no monks". However, there are more than 6,000 large and small grottoes on the cliffs, and Bamiyan, who has 6 huge Buddha statues in the grotto group, still gave Xuanzang a great surprise, and the big Buddha in his pen is "golden and shining, treasure decorations are rotten" splendor. But by the time the reporter visited here, the Bamiyan Buddha statue group was already desolate, the grotto was the remains of the Buddha statue, and the rubble and loess pieces scattered outside the cave should be the "corpse" of the big Buddha. Several pieces of plastic sheets were covered with the words "Protected by UNESCO". The shrines in the nearby halls are full of empty seats. The grottoes on the mountain walls are where Buddhists practice, and more than 600 Afghan refugees now inhabit them.
Xuanzang continued westward from Afghanistan into present-day Pakistan and India. In both places, he visited a number of Buddhist centers, including Buddhist holy sites in Pakistan, Taksira, where Buddhist statues were at their peak, and Luyeyuan and Bodh Gaya in India, where journalists visited in May 2000 after he had the privilege of becoming a correspondent in India, but the most impressive of these was xuanzang's westward destination, the western heaven where he obtained the true scriptures, the Nalanda Monastery in India.
Xuanzang arrived at Nalanda Temple in 630 AD. At that time, Nalanda Monastery was the largest monastery in India and the center of Buddhism in the world, and "there were often tens of thousands of monks and guests". In the 5th century, King Gupta built a Buddhist academy here, teaching not only Mahayana and Hinayana texts, but also Brahmanism and Vedic literature, as well as philosophy, astronomy and other subjects. Xuanzang's arrival coincided with the period when the collection of books at Nalanda Monastery was at its richest, and Xuanzang read and mastered all kinds of scriptures here. However, he was still not satisfied, and he left Nalanda Monastery to travel in various Indian countries for six years, and finally returned to the monastery to become a visiting professor, preaching the mahayana and the theory of the choice of knowledge for the monks of the whole monastery.
It is said that at that time, a Brahmin who was so proud of himself that he had learned from him went so far as to call out to Nalanda Monastery, claiming that no one in the monastery could refute his views. In order to maintain the Buddhist status of Nalanda Temple, Xuanzang stepped forward and debated with the Brahmin, but in the middle of the night, the Brahmin bowed his head and conceded defeat. The onlookers saw that the Chinese monk with a short nose and small eyes could speak fluent Sanskrit, and immediately admired three points. By the time Xuanzang casually solicited and quoted, he had already admired the five bodies to the ground, and Xuanzang's reputation was shocked from then on. The Qunucheng Buddhist Debate in 642 brought greater honor to Xuanzang, but he declined invitations from various countries and resolutely returned home with 675 Buddhist scriptures.
Various religious theories were discussed at Nalanda Monastery for 800 years, but the Muslim army came, and in 1197 AD, after a period of burning and plundering, Nalanda Monastery, the ideological home of Buddhism, was once again lost. It was not until 1861 that the site was rediscovered with the help of the Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty. Today, this magnificent Buddhist building is in dilapidated rubble and protected by the Indian Archaeological Inspectorate. Near almost every site, however, there is a brief introduction to when Xuanzang came here and what activities he did here. Although the words are short, they express the infinite gratitude of the Indian people to Xuanzang, the pioneer of Sino-Indian cultural exchanges and the author of the most important historical document for interpreting Indian Buddhism, the "Records of the Western Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty".
The basic route of Xuanzang's travel: In 627 AD, Xuanzang set out from Chang'an, smuggled through Yumen Pass, took Yiwu (present-day Hami, Xinjiang), and traveled west along the southern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains, passing through the kingdom of Aqini (present-day Yanqi, Xinjiang), the state of Quzhi (present-day Kuqa, Xinjiang), the state of Valujia (present-day Aksu, Xinjiang), overling lingshan (present-day Mussell Ridge), and coming to Shanye City (southwest of present-day Tokmak, Kyrgyzstan). After crossing the Iron Gate (present-day Buzgala Pass in southern Uzbekistan) to Tochara (present-day northern Afghanistan), via the founding of the State of Samuel (present-day eastern Samarkand), over the Iron Gate (present-day Buzgala Pass in southern Uzbekistan), from which it traveled south, via the Snowy Mountains (present-day Hindu Kush Mountain), to the State of Fanyana (present-day Bamiyan, Afghanistan), east to the Kingdom of Gandhara (present-day Peshawar, Pakistan), and into India. In the spring of 643, Xuanzang traveled north through present-day Pakistan, through Afghanistan, over the Pamir Plateau, and back to Chang'an along the southern line of the Tarim Basin.
Western cowboys, get together once a year
A single tamed wild horse flew over the calf
Chen Te'an
Known as the "cattle city", Calgary, an important city in western Canada, is bordered by the Rocky Mountains in the west and the prairies in the east. Since 1912, cowboys from western Canada and cowboys from places like the United States have held competitive conventions here every year. Calgary's rodeo is rustic and competitive, and has been called "the world's largest rodeo".
The Calgary Stampede, held on Friday of the first week of July each year, lasts 10 days. Early in the morning, locals and foreign tourists almost all wear cowboy hats, jeans and cowboy boots. After a complimentary breakfast, people flock to watch the Stampede opening ceremony parade.
At 8 a.m., the streets near the parade route were lined with people on three floors outside. Some lots also have multi-storey grandstands. In the waiting crowd, many people wore blankets or sat on quilts and sleeping bags, and it turned out that they had come from the countryside or other places to watch the parade the night before. Calgary's summer temperature difference between morning and evening and evening temperatures as low as 9 degrees Celsius have not dampened people's enthusiasm for Participating in Cowboy.
At 9:30, the parade officially began. The 4.5-kilometre-long procession was protected by police cars. Among the nearly 100 marching parties were Canadians and Indigenous people representing The British, French, American, German, Italian, Korean, Arab and other ethnic groups. The sheepdog herding performance in the parade was particularly eye-catching. Seeing the shepherd dog lying on the ground, the sheep immediately stopped, the sheepdog ran, and the sheep immediately ran with it.
There were also horse-headed cleaning trucks in the procession, which lined up at the middle and end of the parade. The cleaning staff drove the horse head car and cleaned up the garbage such as horse manure on the road in time. After the two-hour march, hundreds of thousands of people dispersed, leaving no trash left on the streets.
Stampede Park, west of Calgary, is the most attractive place to visit during the Stampede. Not only is it a place for teenagers to entertain, nurture a spirit of adventure and seek excitement, but it is also a place where cowboys show off their toughness and wit. Only to see a young cowboy hooked and suspended tens of meters high in the air. Suddenly, the hook was loosened and the cowboy fell from the sky. The onlookers immediately screamed. He landed in the net close to the ground, unharmed, and excitedly gave a thumbs up to the onlookers.
In the saddle-shaped Sader Dom Stadium, many of the cowboys competing are young riders around the age of 10. The performances in the racecourse are thrilling. The winner of the competition receives a huge prize money. Despite the high price of the ticket, the most eccentric seat costs $33 CAD (1 CAD for RMB 5). Looking around, all the seats in the stands were densely packed with people.
In horse racing performances, cowboys ride on the back of a wild, ferocious horse or cow, and they are turned upside down. Untamed horses or cows always try to throw the cowboy off their backs. The arms, waist and legs of the participating cowboys must be skillful, adapt to the rhythm of the horse or cow jumping wildly, and firmly grasp the reins. To win, the cowboy must stay on the back of a large bull for 8 seconds and be able to safely escape the attack of the angry bull after being dropped; or while riding a horse, the spurs have been clamping the horse's body, and the cowboy's hand cannot touch the horse's body. In the race of empty-handed calves, the cowboy riding a horse galloped at a certain distance to pounce on the running calf, grasped the horn with his eyes and hands quickly, and used all his strength to twist the calf's neck, and both the cowboy and the calf fell to the ground.
The carriage race attracted a lot of spectators. Four horses galloped on the racecourse. Spectators joined in, cheering for the carriage, and people shouted with all their might: "Run! Come on! "Due to the excessive number of galloping horses, some horses bumped into each other when they grabbed the road, and the scene was lively.
Cowboys are pioneer heroes in people's hearts, full of youth and vitality. They are industrious, courageous, gritty, rugged and promote individuality. Now, the clothing worn by cowboys has become an important part of the world's popular culture. According to Bland Hencha, head of the Calgary Stampede News Center, the purpose of holding a large-scale cowboy competition is to protect and promote the local historical heritage, respect and inherit the cowboy culture, and promote the cowboy spirit. At the same time, it also adds vitality to the development of agriculture, trade, culture and entertainment, sports and education in western Canada. Figures provided by the person in charge show that this year's Stampede added 3,500 jobs to Calgary, attracted more than 1.2 million visitors and earned $140 million in net income.
![Xuanzang: Where is the most famous monk in Chinese history? What did he do?[fig]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP///wAAACwAAAAAAQABAAACAkQBADs=)