Sunday Times 2
Socio-economic progress I saw during my many visits to China
My relationship with China goes back more than 30 years. I have visited China eight times and saw some beautiful places.
In 1997, I received an invitation from China’s People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries. During that visit I was able to fulfil a childhood dream and see the Great Wall of China, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. It is the longest man made structure in the world and spans more than 8,000 kilometres. Construction of the Great Wall began in 700 BC. Even a large truck can drive on the Great Wall. It was built by the ancient Chinese to protect them from their enemies. It is a clear example of knowledge and courage of the Chinese people.
The Ethnic Village in the Yunnan Province is another place I like. It demonstrates various traditions, cultures and everyday life of the minorities of China. About 55 minority communities live peacefully with the majority Han. It is a great example to the rest of the world. The Chinese government has laws to protect the rights of minorities. It also protects languages, religion, traditions and festivals of minorities. The Chinese government also works hard to develop the regions where minorities live to make their lives happy and prosperous.
I was able to see the Terracotta army in Xian during my visit to China in 2007. It was amazing. The Terracotta army has about 10,000 sculptures of soldiers, horses and chariots. All sculptures are built to the size of real soldiers. It is said that an ancient king of China built this army to protect him after his death. The story is that a peasant named Yang Zhifa had found the head of a Terracotta warrior accidentally, while digging a well in 1974. Today more than two million tourists visit Xian annually. In 1987, UNESCO included the mausoleum of emperor Qin Shihuang and the Terracotta warriors in the world heritage list. Weapons carried by the Terracotta warriors do not get corroded. The Chinese believe that this is because of a coating on the weapons nearly two thousand five hundred years ago.
I also visited West Lake in Hangzhou in the Zhejiang province in 2011. West Lake is a beautiful natural lake surrounded by mountains. Its beauty and serenity inspired me to write this article. According to history, the aesthetic value of West Lake was identified somewhere in the 9th century. It was recognised as a natural garden lake and cultural centre by emperors around the 18th century. In June 2011, UNESCO declared West Lake as a world heritage site. It said the cultural landscape of Hangzhou West Lake best represented the aesthetics of garden design of China and around the world.
I visited the Henan Province in 2007. The Ancient Silk road goes through this province. Because of that Buddhism first arrived to Henan Province from India, before it came to other parts of China. There are important Buddhist temples in this area. These include the White Horse temple, the Shaolin temple and Longmen Grottoes.
The White Horse temple is one of the most revered Buddhist shrines. The original temple was built in 68 AD. It is the first Buddhist temple to be built in China and is an important part of China’s Buddhist history. According to legend, two Buddhist monks from India riding a white horse delivered Buddhist scriptures to Luoyang, hence the name of the temple. The temple covers an area of 4,000 square metres and has more than 100 halls and rooms. It is from here, that Buddhism was spread throughout China and to many other Asian countries. Even now it is esteemed as the home of Chinese Buddhism.
Longmen Grottoes is located in South suburbs of Luoyang city. Longmen Grottoes houses more than 2,100 Buddhist niches, more than 100,000 sculptures and 40 Buddhist pagodas. They scatter on the eastern and western cliffs on both sides of the Yi river. The construction of Grottoes began during the period of Northern Wei (386-534) and had continued for more than 400 years. Longmen Grottoes at Luyong is one of three most famous groups of Grottoes in China. It was included in the list of world heritage by UNESCO in 2,000.
The Shaolin temple is one of the most famous temples in the world. This temple is the cradle of famous Chinese martial art, Kung Fu. It is also the birthplace of China’s Chan sect Buddhism. The temple is located 14 km northwest from Dongfeng city and on the slopes of Shaoshi mountain. it was first built in 495 AD during the Northern Wei dynasty. The imposing temple consists of seven courtyards. it spreads over 30,000 square metres. The hall of Thousand Buddha, which is also known as the shrine of Vairocana is one of the largest and best preserved buildings of the temple. It also contains houses of bronze statues, jade statues and murals of the Ming dynasty. To the west of the temple, there is a 243 brick forest and masonry stupas of different sizes and architectural styles. These stupas were built across a 1,000 year span from Tang to Qing dynasties. It is the largest group of tomb pagodas in China. It is also the graveyard of monks. Presently teaching Kung Fu has become a lucrative business and there are 81 international Kung Fu schools in this city.
I have noticed fast trains in China during my visits after 2010. They were unbelievable. Today we can see them in every major city of China. The average speed of these trains is about 300 km per hour. The fast train service has greatly reduced the time taken to travel between cities. A normal train takes about 12 hours to travel 1,200 km from Beijing to Shanghai. The fast train takes only 5 hours. Chinese Fast trains provide facilities similar to an airline. Thus most Chinese people enjoy a modern and convenient train service.
A Kung-Fu festival at the Shaolin Temple. AFP
I also saw the development of Chinese universities in Shanghai, Beijing, Nanjing and Hangzhou. They have worked hard to develop their universities to the same level of other famous universities of the world. My daughter also studies in Shanghai Jiao Tong University. This university has a history of more than 100 years. Jiao Tong university provides excellent modern facilities to students.
Another significant feature I noticed during my visits to China is how the elderly people assembled in parks in the mornings and the evenings. They sing, do exercises and aerobics. I think people gather in parks mainly for social exchange and their love for music. They believe music is a good medicine for the heart and the mind. These elders spending the evening of their lives forgetting pressures of life is a serene sight. A sense of comradeship was evident everywhere. Elderly Chinese people singing the song “I love you China”, accompanied by two accordions in Jinshan park of Beijing is an unforgettable sight to me.
Another interesting fact I noticed was most Chinese people carry a bottle of tea. The Chinese introduced tea to the world. Ancient Chinese monks got used to drinking tea. Then they served tea to devotees who visited temples. Now most Chinese people drink tea throughout the day and during meals.
The Chinese eat a little rice with several dishes of fish, meat and vegetables. They also drink soup. They usually do not mix rice and other dishes together. Instead they eat each item separately with chopsticks. The Chinese eat fruits for dessert, mainly watermelon. I did not see them eat other desserts like ice cream. I asked a few of my Chinese friends about this. They said they ate watermelon and other fruits to support their farmers. Chinese recipes usually do not use sugar and salt. They also drink tea without sugar. They start dinner around 5.30 pm. Chinese families eat dinner together while discussing their day’s activities.
They organize banquets to welcome guests. They follow some interesting traditions during these banquets. One such tradition is toasting. Unlike in Europe there are several toasts in a Chinese banquet. They usually toast with a shot of Maotai, popular liquor in China. They usually conclude a toast with words “ganbei”. “Ganbei” means bottoms up. These toasting rituals are designed to show respect and friendship and to build and strengthen relationships with the guests.
The Chinese people are punctual. It is an admirable quality. They provide us a time table when we visit China with invitations from Chinese associations. We have to work according to the time table. The work ethic of the Chinese people is admirable. They are not lazy. They work hard and effectively. Their ambition is to develop their country and make it one of the best in the world. I have tremendous admiration and respect for China and the Chinese people.
Finally I have to say that I have seen so many changes in China. But amidst all these changes there is one element of Chinese life that remains constant. It is the hospitality of the Chinese people.
Long live China and Sri Lanka friendship!
(The writer is the Vice President of the Sri Lanka China Society.)