China Cultural Chronicles November 16, 2012
- Plastic City of all Shanghai Buildings
- Buddhist Iconography (Lokesh Chandra)
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These images are from the Lokesh Chandra publication of the 510 iconographic images known as the Mongolian Pantheon. The pages below contain all of the images in sequential order at www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setid=2616.
It is interesting to note that neither the Mongolian Pantheon nor the Prajnaparamita Block Print Images, Mitra Gyatsa Block Prints, Rinjung Lhantab of the 4th Panchen Lama nor any other Tibetan Buddhist Pantheon such as the Narthang set includes even one depiction of Dorje Shxxxen Dolgyal, the minor and obscure worldly protector –and that is out of literally thousands of images of Buddhist deities! - Jinli Street of Chengdu
- Jinli Street of Chengdu
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- Jinli Street of Chengdu
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- Jinli Street of Chengdu
- Jinli Street of Chengdu
- Tsangpa 1
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Phuntsok Sangpo was a master painter from Tsang who worked for King Senge Wangchuk of Bhutan, His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, Jigdral Yeshe Dorje and other eminent patrons.
- Tsangpa 2
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Notice in this detail that the heart of the rGyalpo demon has been ripped out
- Tsangpa 3
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Notice in this detail that the heart of the rGyalpo demon has been ripped out.
- Ship - China, Qing Dinasty, age Kangxi (1662-1722) - The section of Oriental Art of the Museum "Duca di Martina" in Naples
- Yangzhou preserves charms of Grand Canal
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下载安装Flash播放器An overview of the Wang's Small Garden.
Yangzhou was a dazzling, decadent, cosmopolitan city and a vibrant trading hub on the Grand Canal. Today it's a quiet model of historic canal preservation. Yao Minji pays a visit.
My first encounter with Yangzhou began with a verse from a story written by Yin Yun (AD 471-529) - "I want millions in riches attached to my waist as I ride a crane to Yangzhou."
I imagined Yangzhou to be something like Las Vegas, where a money belt could be necessary, where everything is available for a price. There were extravagant mansions, spectacular magic shows, splendid natural scenery, elaborate artificial gardens, refined cuisine and beautiful courtesans skilled in singing, dancing, writing poetry, playing musical instruments and playing go.
It was only later that I read the entire fable, one of many similar tales around the world. Four young men happen to save an old man, who reveals himself as a god and grants each one a wish. The first man asks to become a millionaire; the second wants to become governor of prosperous Yangzhou, a position like that of Shanghai's mayor today; the third wants to become a god.
The last man, after listening to his friends, combines their wishes, saying he wants to have riches strapped to his body as he rides an auspicious crane, like a god, to Yangzhou. Gods used to be depicted riding white cranes in the clouds.
The fable warns against greed, but also shows how attractive Yangzhou was back then, and how living there could be one's lifelong dream.
There's no indication that the city was as alluring as I had imagined, even before Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty (AD 569-618) committed two million men into building the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal. Some say the emperor himself favored the fashionable city, adding a personal reason to the grand construction. It helped unify the country, distribute grain to the dry north and aid in governance.
The canal made the city into one of the most important commercial centers for merchants, scholars and artists. By the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), it was already known to be the city with the trendiest products, best accommodations, most delicious food and most charming performances.
'Heavenly' city
At that time, the city was reported to have around half a million residents, including hundreds of Persian merchants from today's Iran. Chinese poet Li Bai (AD 701-762), regarded the "god of poetry," wrote, "In the mist and flowers in March, he goes to Yangzhou."
The verse commemorates saying farewell in Beijing to a friend leaving on the canal for Yangzhou. "Mist and flowers" refers to the blossoming of hundreds of flowers and misty weather in March on the lunar calendar.
By the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), after the canal had been expanded a few times and the salt trade was opened to private merchants, the city was described as "heaven" by many who left records.
In the evening, dozens of boats, some with extravagant furnishings, plied the Slender West Lake. Some were tour boats where one could enjoy a few cups of warm rice wine and gaze at the harmonious passing scene of elegant pavilions, as well as natural beauty. Other boats featured graceful courtesans who would dance, play musical instruments and sing about the pleasures in the city.
- Efforts made to revive China's cultural heritage
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下载安装Flash播放器Longmen Grottoes in the central China's city of Luoyang
Driven by the goal of reviving China's traditional culture, the government has been pouring resources into preservation efforts. Special funds have been set aside at all levels of government to finance protection, restoration, maintenance as well as promotion of China's cultural heritage.
Cultural heritage is like a people's signature written in time. Thanks to new technologies, the government has been able to gain an upper hand in the battle against time.
One recent example is the digitalization of the Longmen Grottoes in the central China's city of Luoyang. The grottoes are one of the finest examples of Chinese Buddhist art. They contain over two thousand caves, 100,000 Buddhist statues and around 2,800 tablets. Using 3D technology, statues and carvings from the grottoes have been collected into a computer database that can be used to preserve and renovate the site.
The Yuzhen Temple is another example. To avoid being submerged by the Danjiangkou Reservoir, the temple's gates, weighing thousands of tons, have slowly been raised at the break-neck speed of 75 centimeters per day.
But historic sites all over China are coming under stricter protection.
China joined the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Heritage in 1985. And one of the first enlisted groups is Imperial Palace, which is lying behind me. And since then the number continues to grow. At present, the country has a total of 43 world heritage sites, out of which 30 are cultural heritages. As the great philosopher Confucius once said, you can always learn something new by reviewing the old. So it is definitely more than just saving these spectacular marks that we human beings put on this planet, but also to inspire new thoughts by reviving the traditional arts and culture.
Unlike the huge historic sites built by tiles and bricks, China's intangible cultural heritage is seen mostly through people's traditional ways of living and aesthetic tastes. And it can only be preserved by passing on the traditional routines of daily life.
In June 2011, the "Law of Intangible Cultural Heritage" was enacted. More than 10,000 provincial and national relics have been collected under the law.
"Since being put into effect, the law has generated a very good social influence. More and more people started to pay attention to traditional arts and culture. It's not just what we keep behind the window of the museum, but rather, everything in our daily lives, from dressing to eating, from living to transporting."
China's cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, is being protected more closely than ever before. The hope is that these efforts will re-infuse China's history with modern vitality.
- Suzhou embroidery keeps ancient needle art alive
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下载安装Flash播放器Suzhou embroidery is world renowned for its exquisite, elegant, clear and beautiful artistic style.
During the Spring and Autumn Period some 2,500 years ago, people from Wu State applied embroidery to clothes, and thus began the origin of Suzhou-style embroidery. Suzhou embroidery is world renowned for its exquisite, elegant, clear and beautiful artistic style.
The Suzhou Embroidery Museum was established in 1986 and was originally in the Fishing Master's Garden. In 1988, the museum was moved to Wang Ao's Ancestral Temple at No.262, Jingde Road.
Emperor Qianlong's imperial robe is one of the most precious items at the museum, boasting 42 dragon stripes, all embroidered with gold threads. The dragon stripes are intermingled with colorful cloud patterns, all in perfect harmony.
- Beautiful scenery of Daming Lake in east China
- Macao's package tour arrivals up 21.9% in September
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Macao's visitor arrivals in package tours in September rose by 21.9 percent year on year to 749,496, according to figures released by the city's Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) Wednesday.
Visitors from the Chinese mainland (538,178), Taiwan (69,911), South Korea (35,093) and Japan (21,798) increased by 23.7 percent, 50.8 percent, 33.9 percent and 14.2 percent respectively, the figures indicated.
In the first nine months of 2012, visitor arrivals in package tours increased by 24.5 percent year on year to 6,571,468, accounting for 31.5 percent of total visitor arrivals, according to the DSEC.
Meanwhile, Macao residents traveling outbound in package tours soared by 107.6 percent year-on-year to 32,373 in September 2012, with the Chinese mainland (82.3 percent of the total), Taiwan (4.1 percent of the total) and South Korea (3.8 percent) being the most popular destinations.
- Xi'an Travel Tips
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As the birthplace of Huaxia civilization, Xi'an is a city with long history and abundant cultural heritage, and was entitled the national historical and cultural city in the first batch. As one of the four famous capitals in the world, (the other three are Rome, Cairo and Athens), Xi'an is exceptionally rich in resources for traveling and is a city that is well-known worldwide. There are more than 120 mausoleums of the emperors surrounding the Xi'an city. The Terracotta Warriors are reputed as "the eighth miracle" in the world.
Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor is the first Chinese heritage that is included in the World Heritage List. The ancient city wall of Xi'an is the most well- protected and the most splendid ancient city wall relics in the world up till now. The beautiful landscape combined with the modern site of the ancient city constitutes the unique charm of Xi'an.
Transportation: Xi'an is located at the geographical center of China, as the important traffic hub that connects the western part of China, Xi'an forms the modern transportation network mainly contributed by the aviation, the railway and the highway.
Foods: The famous food of Xi'an should be snacks. Most snacks are belong to snacks of Hui ethnic group, such as, spicy soup, steamed pork with rice flour, soup dumplings, persimmon cake, bubble steamed mutton, sprinkle and the grills. Something that must be noted are the noodles of Xi'an, there are various kinds of noodles in Xi'an, such as biangbiang noodle, Qishan noodle, hand-pulled noodle, spiced noodles, that are too numerous to count. The people in Xi'an like eating noodle very much so you can find the best noodle here throughout China.
Accommodation: There are adequate choices for accommodation in Xi'an, but if encountered golden week or peak seasons, you had better book the hotel in advance. Besides, the prices would rise in the peak seasons.
Shopping: The East Avenue is the traditional commercial street of Xi'an. It is a good place for shopping. If you want to buy some souvenirs, you can go to the College Cultural Street. If you are interested in boutique, you can go to Huajue Lane antique market , Eight Immortals hut antique market and Chenghuang Temple market. Remember do not touch the so-called antiques that piled up together, in case that you will be cheated. Some tips: Xi'an is much dryer than the southern areas, remember to drink more water and take care of your skin. The best seasons for traveling to Xi'an is spring and autumn. If you go in summer, get yourself ready for SPF protection. The sunshine is fierce around the noon and the temperature is very high. There happens to be thunderstorms now and then. Please avoid going to the places without sunshade measures in the daytime.
- detail of Hayagriva by Situ Panchen
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- Hayagriva by Situ Panchen
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Based on quality, I suspect this is the original painting and the previous one on this page (sold at auction by Christie's in 2000) is a copy.
Image courtesy Sechen Archives
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