Xian the historical place

Xian Travel

I wonder, what do I want to get in this trip to Xian.
First, to feel the heroic atmosphere of the desert. Xian was the capital of thirteen dynasties of China. It was here that the territory of China was expanded. Without Qin Shihuang, there would be no China of today. I want to feel this heroic climate, to see what was there in the minds of Qin Shihuang, who lived a hero, and wanted to die also with the accompaniment of thousands of soldiers.
Second, to see the pagodas where the great monk of the Tang dynasty, Xuanzang, went to India to study Buddhism and returned with volumes of scriptures to be translated. I want to feel the boldness of the great monk, and to see if I can some of his handwritings.
Third, Xian is the starting point and ending point of the Silk Road. I want to ask my way there, to see what is the best way to travel there, what to take note of, and what to see.
Fourth,Hua Qing Pond is the bath place of the Queen Yang Guifei of the Tang dynasty. I want to see what did the King wanted, and what the queen wanted. And I want to captivate the state of mind of "The Saga of the Lengthened Hatred" written by the poet Bai Juyi, in which it rhymed, "This hatred is dragging without an end, in the same silken wear we endure in the perpetual sky and earth".
Fifth, Xian old wall is the best preserved ancient wall of the world. What kind of adverse effect has it towards the modernization of a city? What can Xian do to harp on the greatness of the Chinese race.
Sixth, Yan An is the headquarter of the Chinese Communist Party during the anti-Japanese warfare. I want to feel the desertedness of the place.
Seventh, Hua Shan is a famous mountain of Taoism. I want to feel the dogma of retreat when the Dao is superior. Hua Shan is known for her treacherous precipices. I want to see what it entails.
In summary, there are two reasons for my going to Xian:
1. I feel that Xin Jiang is a future time bomb precinct of the world. This is a place where the Muslims live and multiply.There must be a flexible way out. The Malaysian way may be worth emulation. But it cannot be copied en bloc. In Malaysia, the majority race is the Malays. But in Xin Jiang, the western nationality is the minority. Xian is the starting point of the Silk Road. I want to see what the Muslims there think.
2. Xian was the capital of 13 dynasties of China. Not going to Xian, is equivalent to not going to China. That is why the former US President, Bill Clinton, traveled to Xian first, before Beijing. I want to see the remnant winds and tide of the Tang dynasty. I want to feel the pride of the Chinese race.

In short, this trip of mine is a throbbing of the heart, an accumulation of the humane and cultural elements.
Time flies. One month has come and gone. It's time for me to summarize my experiences.



The old winds and tide of the Tang and Han dynasties are worthy of preservation. It gives people an atmosphere of deep national pride and far-reaching ethical meaning. As a Chinese, it is proud for them to have such a history of splendid grandeur. Twelve years ago I was here. At that time I found the old city wall was truncated due to the construction of a railway station. Now, in heaven's sake, it is rebuilt, and it was open again for pedestrians on the day I left Xian. This means the old city wall now can let visitors walk one complete round. I took 4-1/2 hours to do so, a step at a time, slowly feeling the godly mission of the city wall in defending against the invaders. When I was at the Shimen Dam, I realized that the ancient alleynote1 is now sunk beneath the raised water level of the dam. I asked: Weren't there a debate as to the construction of the dam and its destruction of the historical relics? The reply I got was: at that time, it was ideology first, there was no place for the historical relics to speak. Oh, I hope China realizes her follies. She should not under rate the significance of heredity in her pursuit for an economical emergence. Anyway, it is nice to hear that the strategy for developing Xian takes care of that. ( Xian's strategy for development: 1. to be internationalized, 2.to be humanized, 3.to be market-oriented, and 4.to suit environmentalism.)
I discovered that the people of China are no longer subjected to the influence of Communism. Whether this is good or bad, it is yet to be seen. From the context of a benefit, this resembles the way of the philosopher Laozi, who said "rule with inactivity". Liberate people's thinking, do not interfere with them, do not command them, let them develop according to their whims and fancy, and this will naturally lead to a healthy and broad highway. If this is really going according to Laozi's philosophy, I would say China would have escalated a step upwards, into the realm of navigating by philosophy.
The Terracotta display added a 360 degree Surround Video depicting the history of the Qin dynasty. This is a progress, it enables visitors to better understand the historical backgrounds of hitherto. I suggest that videos, seminars and explanations should be set up at all sites, describing briefly the historical incident and highlighting its contemporary meaning to us. This will make visitors better grasp the implications of history and its functions in today's world. This will further enhance the spreading of the winds and tide of the Tang and Han dynasty.
The greatest gain for me in this trip is the full understanding of an ancient proverb: "Build the alley openly, passing Chen Cang stealthily". When I arrived at the city of Baoji, about 150km to the west of Xian, I asked people, "Where is Chen Cang?" They immediately replied, "This is Chen Cang! Baoji's old name is Chen Cang!" Baoji and Chang An(the ancient name of Xian) are both in the Guanzhong basin, or alternately named as Qin Chuan. What is meant by the saying, ?ight hundred miles of Qin Chuan?is that this place is a basin rich with resources. On its west, it is the Tai Bai Shan Mountain, on its east, it is the Li Shan Mountain, on its south, it is the Qin Ling Mountain, while on the north is the Wei River, a tributary of Huanghe. On the southern part of Qin Ling Mountain, it is Hanzhong. This is a even more bountiful land. It has won the award as the being the most environmentally suitable place for human dwelling. After building the Han dynasty in Hanzhong, the Emperor Liu Bang wanted to go north to fight another rebel, Xiangyu. His strategist, Zhangliang, recommended to him to ?uild the alley openly, and pass the Qin Ling Mountain by way of Chen Cang stealthily? meaning to pretend building the alleys through Qin Ling Mountain, but in actual fact passing by way of Chen Cang, which is a much more difficult path to cross. This is akin to the Sunzi Art of War saying ?ake the treacherous path a straight one? Going by way of Chen Cang was least expected by Xiangyu. However Liu Bang made it fast and cause Xiangyu a complete surprise, and hence won the war. After coming here, I then realize why the Chinese race chose this place called Guanzhong to develop her civilization. There are ample reasons to doing so. The Qin Ling Mountain is a divider for the north and south of China. How to cross the Qin Ling Mountain was a deciding factor of a strategy.
I feel that the temples of China are currently developing a new culture, which should be resurrected for good. Almost every Taoist temple I?e been to has this kind of culture. Even Buddhist temples are not spared (here I mean the Buddhist temple inside Wu Zetian mausoleum). They use the avenues of drawing lots, fortune telling and explanation to bring visitors to the priests, who then explain the meaning of the lots drawn. In the process of explanation, they would deftly tell you that you are lack of this or that, in order for you to overcome them, you need to light an incense, or light a lamp, or buy a spiritual beast to take back home. These all require money. Lighting a high incense may cost you a thousand Renminbi, lighting a lamp may cost you ten thousand Renminbi. Most visitors under this kind of circumstances would show consent, because in their mind, it is ?sing money to forsake mishaps? ?oney is a thing external to the body? ?ust to buy a peace of mind? However, this way of getting money from visitors is somewhat secular, it resembles an extortion, a cheating. It should not happen inside religious temples which are related to superlative missions. I do not where the complaint channels are in China, I just hope that those who Chinese who read this article, may, upon their own conscience, transfer this message to the authorities, so that the appropriate measures can be taken to remedy this state of affairs.
In Xian, you can see posters everywhere asking the people to ?ecome civilized city dwellers? But I observed a few incidents which signifies that the Chinese can do more to help the situation. I spent 4-1/2 hours to walk round the old city wall. Halfway, I asked a guard where was the toilet. He replied thus, ?ou want to pass urine? Just anywhere will do?I was totally taken aback. How can a guard of a tourist site say this? Isn? this somewhat lacking in civilization? I stayed in the Shuyuan International Youth Hostel. In front is the south wall of the old city wall. One day, I saw a lady embracing a little kid of four to five year old walking by. She put the kid down on the pathway and she walked on. I was questioning the wisdom of this lady doing so, as there were so many cars passing, and the kid was so young. A I looked in the direction of the lady, I saw her kneeling down, and passed urine there and then. What a shame! Doing this in the broad daylight, in a big city like Xian?
Yet another bad habit among the Chinese. They like to spit everywhere. The ground is full with spits, uneasy to the eyes, and obviously unhygienic. This must be far away from the stipulated civilization.
As to the Silk Road, I got two opposing opinions. One said that it is bad to go for the Silk Road now. Because there are inter-racial conflicts there. Another opinion said that the Uigurs are much better off now than before, and they are more open and welcome visitors. The best season to go is during the autumn when the fruits such as the grapes are ripe.
Yan An is now a small township. No more the revolutionary fervour of the past.
The tour guide said that the revenues of Xian? travel industry constitute 23% of the Province? total revenues. Hence, the travel industry is an important area to develop. I suggest that we can set up more English road signs in Xian to facilitate foreign visitors. We should also open up the use of international credit cards, so that foreign visitors do not have to carry so much Renminbi around.(Currently only the China Bank is authorized to exchange foreign currencies)
Finally, I feel the emergence of China should be coupled with a humanitarian value system peculiar to China. Emergence is not just economically, it is also humanitarianally. The emergence of humanitarianism calls for a resurgence of the winds and tide of the Tang and Han dynasty, it relates to the spreading of Chinese philosophy of Laozi, Confucius, Zhuangzi, and Sunzi. Thinking along this direction will bring out a new China with humanitarian ideologies, an example for the world to emulate.


(On 1Apr to 29Apr, 2005, I traveled to Xian China for a month)