In June of the fourth year of Yongle (1406), Zheng He made his first voyage to the Western Ocean. He followed the wind south and arrived at the Majo Basie Kingdom on Java Island. The ancient name of Java is Java, and today's Java Island in Indonesia is a strategic hub in Southeast Asia with dense population, rich products and developed commerce.
At that time, the Eastern King and the Western King of this country were fighting a civil war. The King of the East was defeated and his territory was occupied by the army of the King of the West. The personnel of Zheng He's fleet went ashore to do business in the market. They were mistaken by the occupying army as coming to aid the Eastern King. They were mistakenly killed by the Western King Maho Baxie, a total of 170 people. The officers under Zheng He called for war one after another, saying that the blood of the soldiers could not be shed in vain, and they were eager to declare war on the Majao Basie Kingdom and take revenge.
After the "Java Incident" occurred, the King of the West was very frightened and sent an envoy to apologize and pay 60,000 taels of gold as atonement. Zheng He's first voyage to the West had a bad start, and he lost another 170 soldiers. Under normal circumstances, it would inevitably lead to a large-scale battle. However, Zheng He learned that this was a manslaughter, and since the Western King was frightened and asked for punishment, he reported to the Ming Dynasty, turned the conflict into friendship, and dealt with the incident peacefully. The Ming Dynasty decided to give up its claim for compensation to the Maho Basie Kingdom. When the King of the West learned about this, he was very moved, and the two countries lived in harmony from then on.
Members of the organizing committee of the event commemorating Zheng He's 600th anniversary in Semarang, Java, talked to reporters about this matter. They all admired him very much, saying that Zheng He treated all countries equally, regardless of their strength, weakness or closeness. Even when there are conflicts between the two countries, they can still maintain great restraint, accept humiliation, convince others with reason, and show peaceful cooperation and good-neighborly friendship with neighboring countries. This has made the traditional friendship between the Chinese and Indonesian peoples go back to ancient times. We settled here. We also feel light on our faces. We are proud of Zheng He.
Indonesian scholars believe that Zheng He’s fleet was undoubtedly the most powerful maritime task force in the world at that time and an invincible fleet. In the twenty-eight years of Zheng He's seven voyages to the West, there was only one real foreign war in Ceylon (today's Sri Lanka), and it was a defensive war under forced and helpless circumstances. When Zheng He dealt with the "Java Incident", he not only did not use force, but also did not ask for compensation, which fully demonstrated that Zheng He was a messenger of peace. What he spread was the traditional Chinese etiquette of "peace is the most important" and the idea of ??"one family everywhere" , the Chinese civilization of "the world is for the common good".
From 1405 to 1433, Zheng He made seven missions to the West, strengthening ties between China and the West and expanding international trade. It had a huge and far-reaching impact on the "Tang people", which people did not expect. Mr. Lin said with emotion that as soon as Zheng He's fleet arrived in countries with "Tang people", the "Tang people" living in these countries rushed to tell each other and were extremely happy. Their joy was because Zheng He brought great national prestige. Whenever Zheng He went to a place, he would first visit the king of that country according to the etiquette of the country and send him precious gifts. These precious gifts that represented Chinese culture alone impressed the kings, ministers, princes and nobles of the country where they were located. The locals admired Zheng He's huge fleet even more. Knowing that there was such a powerful country behind these "Tang people", they did not dare to look down upon the "Tang people", thus greatly improving the status of the "Tang people" abroad. , which led to the formation of Chinatown.
Feng Menglong was a novelist and dramatist of the Ming Dynasty. He devoted his life to the research of novels, operas and folk literature and the compilation and selection of popular novels. He recorded in his book "Zhitan" that during the Tianshun reign of Yingzong in the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Yingzong was fond of playing with treasures. A eunuch gave the idea that thirty years ago during the reign of Xuanzong and Xuande, he sent Sanbao eunuchs to the West and obtained countless rare treasures. Yingzong ordered the eunuchs to go to the Ministry of War to search for Zheng He's maritime route map to the West. When Liu Daxia, the Minister of War, learned about it, he found out the information about Zheng He's navigation, secretly hid it and burned it. Although the historical facts of Liu Daxia's destruction of documents recorded in "The Think Tank" are controversial, it confirms that Zheng He did leave behind nautical charts and other navigation information.
Zhu Yunming was a calligrapher of the Ming Dynasty and a talented scholar from the south of the Yangtze River. Together with Xu Zhenqing, Tang Yin, and Wen Zhengming, he was known as the "Four Talents in Wuzhong". Zhu Yunming recorded in his "Wild Notes": "In the last year of Zhengde Xin (1511), the Balasi Kingdom sent an envoy Sha Dibai to pay tribute to his country in the South China Sea, which was far away. He then received the king's order After traveling on a foreign ship for four and a half years, the ship was blown to the west coast by the wind. The ship was damaged and only one boat remained. After another eight days of sailing on the ocean, he arrived at Jiling Country (now northern Bangladesh) and lived there for eleven people. After that, he stayed in Mide (today's Bhutan) for eight months. Then he followed the road for twenty-six days to the Kingdom of Siam. He gave the king a gift of jade and lived there with four other women. Four years.
It was not until May of this year that I attached the title, and people arrived in Guangzhou by boat. His tribute: six wooden gates, gold-leaf inscriptions inside, one emerald, four coral trees, four glass bottles, four glass lamps, agate beads, and Holidan."
Six hundred words Two years ago, there was an eunuch surnamed Zheng, his seventh wife, and tens of thousands of soldiers. They formed the largest fleet in the world at that time and sailed to the Western Ocean seven times. In name, they were doing business, but in reality they were looking for people. The missing little emperor.
During the long years of sailing, the little lady was idle and depressed. Many soldiers were also depressed due to the monotony of life at sea and the pain of homesickness. p>
Zheng He was very anxious after seeing this, worried that if this continued, the consequences would be disastrous. In order to relieve his wife's boredom, and to boost the morale of the soldiers, the eunuch surnamed Zheng began to look for a solution based on the following principles:
< p>1. Four people must be able to play together: yourself, the young lady, the deputy commander, and the main officer.2. The rules are simple, but can be easily changed. , it is more convenient to adjust the game rules according to the little lady's battle situation.
3. It lasts for a long time and adapts to the continuous boring life at sea.
After thinking hard, I finally came up with the idea that is realistic. Solution:
Use the existing moso bamboo on the ship to make bamboo signs, engrave text patterns, and formulate game rules, and put them on the dining table to entertain four people at the same time.
In the determination of the text pattern, the red "center" represents the land of the Central Plains, which is in line with the principle of Chinese red.
The word "fa" engraved on the bamboo sign coincides with the name of navigation and the amount of wealth. Then from "ten thousand" to "nine thousand", according to Chinese custom, if it is too full, it will overflow, so there will be no more ten thousand. After the ten thousand words were decided, the rest were followed. The food on the ship was mainly large cakes. So, one loaf to nine loaves; when you are tired of eating loaves, you can fish, one to nine fish. The boat depends on the wind direction, and there are "east", "south", "west" and "north" winds. "Summer Lotus", "Autumn Chrysanthemum" and "Winter Plum" represent the four seasons of the year; the white board represents the vast white sea.
Once the game was launched, it was an unprecedented event, and the mighty fleet on the sea was roaring. < /p>
Among the soldiers, there was a general named Ma who won many battles. After winning, he sang loudly, which greatly boosted the morale of the entire army. Over time, the bamboo tiles were officially named "Mahjong".
p>
There is no way to verify the little emperor’s discovery, but a game that has been popular in China for more than 600 years has been born, and it has derived a culture that can almost represent Chinese culture: Mahjong culture.
< p>Some people say that "Mahjong culture", as a symbol of Chinese culture, shows the cultural characteristics of Chinese people who emphasize themselves and are good at independent survival.In fact, the biggest difference between Mahjong and other sports is the participation of all parties. Unlike Go and Chess, which are two-player games, bridge is actually divided into two sides, no matter how complicated the interaction between the two parties is. Mahjong's four-way battle is even more complicated, so the meaning comes from this. In other words, Mahjong is a high-IQ game that is more realistic in virtual reality.
There is also a legendary story about Xi'an Mosque. In the Ming Dynasty, when Zheng He was preparing to lead a huge ocean-going fleet to the Western Ocean again, although the mission had nearly 20,000 personnel, it only lacked translators who were proficient in Arabic and Ceylonese. So Zheng He traveled thousands of miles and made a special trip to the long-famous Chang'an City Mosque to seek talents.
After careful examination and careful selection, he selected Hasan, the headmaster of the temple, and appointed him as the chief translator of the Western mission. Ha San was smart and steady, and lived up to the expectations of "Zheng". During his mission, he not only made suggestions and solved problems for Zheng He, but also successfully completed his mission. Back in the capital, Zheng He asked for a reward for Ha San's meritorious service, but Ha San refused politely. He only asked the Holy Spirit to be kind to the mosque and to allocate funds for repairs. Zheng He returned to Chang'an with the decree, personally designed the drawings, recruited skilled craftsmen, and selected good materials to give the Qing Temple a new look.
The great mosque has experienced several dynasties. For more than 1,200 years, it has entrusted the hopes and wishes of the Muslim nation. To this day, it is still a temple where tens of thousands of Muslims in Xi'an worship devoutly, communicate emotionally, have cultural exchanges, and celebrate festivals.
Every Chinese knows the story of the Three Treasures Eunuch Zheng He’s seven voyages to the West, but Zheng He has always been a mystery.
How could a Muslim child born in Yunnan come to the palace within the high walls? In such a complex political situation in the early Ming Dynasty, how could a eunuch stand out in the emperor's favor? What kind of magnificent events made Zheng He's wise sailing career possible?
With doubts, I went to look for the real Zheng He. When I saw his portrait for the first time in the "Maritime Silk Road Collection", my eyes lit up. He was tall and handsome. He is dignified and looks forward firmly, with a kingly demeanor that is not angry and self-defeating. Later, I saw the statue of Zheng He in Yunnan. The stern granite stone statue was a little less gorgeous in clothing than the portrait, but it was more elegant and elegant. According to the book "Zheng He's Voyages to the West" It is also recorded: "Zheng He was nine feet tall, with a waist ten girth wide, tall mountains and a small nose. He had a very noble face, with clear eyebrows and eyes, white ears, teeth like plaited shells, walking like a tiger, and a loud voice." It turns out that he was born with an extraordinary personality.
Zheng He must have both wisdom and appearance, talent and courage to become one of the greatest navigators and diplomats in ancient times. Sure enough, I was right. I wrote in my monograph about him: "Zheng He demonstrated outstanding wisdom and talent in many aspects such as navigation, diplomacy, military, and architecture."
The Legend of Zheng He His life is closely related to his life experience. To understand him better, we must trace back to his ancestors. In the third year of Xining, Shenzong of the Northern Song Dynasty (1070), his tenth generation ancestor - Pu Huali of Bukhara in Central Asia The king or imam Sufei'er led more than 5,000 people and more than 5,000 camels and horses to China to pay tribute, and applied for surrender. Shenzong named him the Marquis of Ningyi. His fifth-generation ancestor, Saidian Chigansiding, caught up with the great Kublai Khan and was named King of Xianyang, stationed in southern Yunnan. From then on, they became the aristocratic surnames in Yunnan. Although he became an authentic Chinese, he still believed in Islam. Zheng He's grandfather and father both went to distant holy places to worship. When he was a child, he often sat at his father's knees and listened to his stories about his experiences on the pilgrimage to Mecca. His father's thrilling journey across mountains and rivers, and the customs and customs of distant foreign countries left an unforgettable impression on little Zheng He. The endless novelties and endless tales attracted him deeply like a magnet. . Influenced by the adventurous spirit of his family's fathers, little Zheng He had made great ambitions since he was a child, preparing to sail to the West and make a pilgrimage to Mecca in the future. He often sits and meditates, then gets up and works hard. He studies rowing, sailing, and swimming assiduously. He also devotes himself to the study of navigation history books, as if he deliberately wants to become a generation of navigators and adventurers.
Just as he was carefully weaving the dream of a bright future, the god of fate brought misfortune to him. In 1385, the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang sent troops to pacify Yunnan. Zheng He's father unfortunately suffered a disaster. At that time, his name was not Zheng He, but his name was Ma Sanbao. The 11-year-old Ma Sanbao became one of the countless children who were captured and immediately castrated. This is the beginning of hardships and the foreshadowing of glory.
Eternal Genius Zheng He No. 2——Military Talents for Lifelong Escort
Starting in 1385, 11-year-old Ma Sanbao accompanied the Ming army in campaigns in the north and south, outside the Great Wall and in Peking, leaving behind everywhere His young footprints. The war caused this child to suffer a lot, but it also made him grow up rapidly. When he was sixteen years old, he met Zhu Di, the then King of Yan and later Emperor Yongle, and was immediately selected as King Yan's personal bodyguard, and he has been with the King ever since. There is no doubt that he was already an outstanding young man at that time, and from then on, he was already a martial arts master. When I saw in the "Maritime Silk Road Collection", he was holding a sword around his waist in his right hand. The hilt of the sword looks like it is ready for action. I can't help but imagine how swift and fierce he is when he unsheathes the sword; I also wonder how his swordsmanship compares with Jing Ke of the Qin Dynasty and Yue Fei of the Song Dynasty. As a young man, he worked very hard, practicing sword dancing every day in Prince Yan's Mansion, and studying poetry and books every night.
In August 1399, the four-year "Jingnan War" broke out in the Ming Dynasty. He followed Zhu Di through life and death, and his military ability increased day by day, and he repeatedly made military exploits. At the beginning of the "Jingnan", he made great achievements and laid the foundation for Zhu Di's subsequent victory. At the beginning of the "Jingnan", the Yan army was quite isolated and at a disadvantage politically, militarily and economically. Its sphere of influence was limited to a few isolated cities in Yan and Zhao (today's Tong County, Jinji County, Juyongguan, Huailai and other places in Beijing). General Li Jinglong of the Ming Dynasty took advantage of Zhu Di's attack on Daning to surround Peiping and form nine battalions at Zhengcunba (20 miles east of today's Beijing). King Yan returned to fight, and Ma Sanbao offered a plan. Once Li Jinglong moved his troops, he would attack with surprise troops from both sides.
The King of Yan adopted his strategy and ordered him to go to the battlefield in person. The three guarantees went through life and death, and he defeated Li Jinglong's seven battalions and beheaded tens of thousands of people. Li Jinglong was defeated and fled south to Texas. The morale of the army was suddenly in chaos. The Yan army captured tens of thousands of surrendered troops and war horses. With 20,000 horses, he achieved his first major victory since the "Jingnan" and turned the entire war situation around. Zhu Di never forgot this. In July 1402, Zhu Di ascended the throne and became emperor. Ma Sanbao was also granted an official title. During his tenure, he served as an official, supervisor, and eunuch, which was equivalent to the fourth rank. After more than 20 years of miserable life, he became a prominent minister. Inner eunuch. In 1404, he was given the surname "Zheng". There has always been a saying in China that "horses do not enter the palace". Ma Sanbao made his greatest military exploits in Zheng Village, so he was given the surname "Zheng". When Sanbao was born, his parents prayed for God's blessing. The world was peaceful and the child could grow up safely, so he was named He. From then on, he changed his name to Zheng He, and his original name was slowly forgotten. In ancient China, giving a surname was the highest honor, and it was unique for eunuchs to be given a surname. This shows how much Emperor Yongle relied on and trusted Zheng He.
Years of military life have honed Zheng He’s military talents. He has both the talent of a strategist and the ability of a general to go into battle to kill the enemy in person. He is indeed an outstanding military talent. Military talent was the basis of various achievements in his life, and it was also of great use in navigation. In the fleet, he was both a diplomatic official and a military leader. During the voyage, the fleet experienced three extremely dangerous battles, but with Zheng He's military talent, he achieved decisive victories. On July 11, 600 years ago, Zheng He, the world-famous Chinese navigator and diplomat, made his first voyage to the Western Ocean. In the next 28 years, Zheng He made seven voyages to the Western Ocean, each time leading a fleet of more than 27,000 people to visit more than 30 countries and regions in Asia and Africa, reaching as far as the Red Sea and the southeastern coast of Africa. It is said that he even visited Antarctica and Australia. The scale of its fleet, the advanced navigation technology, and the strict organization and command were unmatched by other overseas voyages at that time. It was nearly a century ahead of the great voyages that Europeans called the "Geographical Discovery".
From prisoner to general
In 1371, Zheng He was born into a Muslim family in the mountains of Yunnan, China. It's far away from the sea. His father and grandfather once traveled across the ocean to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. They were all soldiers in Genghis Khan's army. When Zheng He was born, the Yuan Dynasty had collapsed.
In the fifteenth year of Hongwu (1383), during the war to unify Yunnan launched by Zhu Yuanzhang, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Zheng He was captured and brought into the palace, and later became a personal attendant of Zhu Yuanzhang's fourth son, King of Yan. From then on, he followed the Yan King Zhu Di to fight in the Mongolian steppes. At the age of 20, the eunuch had become a general.
In 1403, Zhu Di launched the Jingnan Rebellion, seized power and ascended the throne, and was known as the founder of the Ming Dynasty in history. Because Zheng He was brave and resourceful, and repeatedly performed outstanding achievements, he was appointed as an "internal official eunuch" by Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty. He was included in the list of senior officials who moved inland. He was given the surname "Zheng" and was renamed Zheng He.
As the activities of Japanese pirates seriously affected coastal trade, in 1404, Zheng He went to Japan as an envoy to persuade the Japanese emperor to personally stop the activities of Japanese pirates. This mission demonstrated his outstanding diplomatic talents. During this time, Ming Chengzu was building his own fleet. In four years, various shipyards along China's coast will build 1,681 ships.
China’s maritime tradition has a long history, and it is unprecedented to build so many large ships. During the Song Dynasty, shipbuilding technology developed greatly. There were many styles of sailing ships, and maritime trade flourished. The Chinese discovered the existence of a magnetic field on the earth, and this important invention of the compass led to significant development in China's shipping. Zheng He also drew a fairly accurate map of sea routes with the help of a compass. Zheng He's large ship was 130 meters long and 50 meters wide, and could carry up to a thousand passengers. In addition to Zheng He and his seven eunuch captains, there were also soldiers, merchants, translators, monks, representatives of other religious circles, doctors, coachmen, cooks, workers, and sailors recruited from prisons and the army... 1405 On July 11, 2017, under the command of Zheng He, this huge fleet of 317 ships, carrying more than 27,000 people, sailed southward like a mighty city on the sea. People called it the "treasure ship". ".
Opening trade routes
In fact, Zheng He was more like a messenger than an explorer. From 1405 to 1433, he made seven voyages. On each voyage, he more or less followed the routes of some unknown Chinese merchants before him.
He arrived at the largest spice market on the coast of the Indian Ocean. Merchants from all over the East were doing business in this open market. Before the Ming Dynasty, China was always just a farming country, and there were even laws prohibiting any foreigners from coming to China. Zheng He's spectacular fleet showed the world that China would embark on the road of maritime trade again on a large scale.
Zheng He’s mission was not limited to economic aspects. In the early Ming Dynasty, pirates frequently appeared in the South China Sea. Zheng He's important mission in his voyages to the West was to ensure maritime security, maintain stability in Southeast Asia and South Asia, and keep sea routes open to facilitate fair trade with Western countries. In 1407, on the way back to China, Zheng He's fleet encountered terrible pirates in the Strait of Malacca. This battle with pirates was another victory for Chinese gunpowder. The pirate ships were destroyed one by one by the artillery fire of the Chinese fleet. As a result, this sea route became safer, and Malacca City became a major stopping point for the fleet. For foreigners, this sea route opens the door to China.
Although this huge fleet was powerful, it never conquered by force wherever it went. The few battles it fought were conducted in self-defense when threatened. A little story about Ceylon is still well-known today. The king of Ceylon at that time refused to receive the Chinese general and refused to pay tribute. In 1410, he even sent 50,000 troops to attack Zheng He's fleet. During this battle, the king was captured and Zheng He took him back to Nanjing. The emperor of the Ming Dynasty spared his life. Since then, China’s authority in the Indian Ocean region has grown.
China opens its door
In 1412, in order to welcome Zheng He's treasure ship back to China, Emperor Yongle Zhu Di ordered the construction of a nine-story porcelain pagoda known as one of the seven wonders of the world. The pagoda was destroyed during the Taiping Rebellion in 1856. In 1414, Zheng He invited a chronicler aboard his ship and asked him to record the fleet's adventures. Zheng He was a devout Muslim, and those who later followed him on his missions were mainly Muslims who could speak Arabic.
Zheng He’s fleet sailed on the emerald-green sea. They visited the atolls of the Maldives and stopped in the port of Aden. Then the fleet braved the strong winds and sailed along the African coast to the motorbikes of Somalia. Gadishu and Brava, Mombasa in Kenya...Zheng He's fleet also visited the waters of Madagascar.
Zheng He’s trip to Africa was the pinnacle of the Chinese overseas expeditions. When Zheng He returned in 1419, a group of envoys from African countries also came to China with him, and of course a giraffe came with him. In 1420, envoys from these African countries and many guests from all over the world were invited to attend the inauguration ceremony of the Forbidden City.
During Zheng He's voyages to the West, the "tribute" between overseas countries and the Ming Dynasty increased from a few countries during the Hongwu period to more than 30 countries, and as many as 185 kinds of goods were imported into China from Southeast Asia. A large number of overseas goods were imported into China, adding new foreign elements to the development of China's zoology, botany, medicine, and manufacturing industries such as porcelain and glass. Through official and private trade channels, Zheng He successfully built a China-Southeast Asia economic and trade network. China and Southeast Asian countries established close political, diplomatic, and trade relations, and the cultural exchanges between the two sides lasted for a long time.
The spirit of exploration lasts forever
On August 12, 1424, Emperor Yongle died of illness. His son Zhu Gaochi ascended the throne. His first decree after taking the throne was to stop sending diplomatic missions to foreign countries, stop building ships, and even stop repairing ships.
Zhu Gaochi only reigned for one year, and his son re-appointed Zheng He after he ascended the throne. Zheng He, who was in his sixties, felt that the upcoming voyage might be the last in his life. In 1432, he led a fleet of 27,500 people to Calcutta again. He hoped to make a pilgrimage to Mecca like his predecessors, but he died before reaching his destination. It is said that Zheng He's body was buried in Java.
In the autumn of 1433, the last three giraffes arrived in Beijing. Until 1470, the fleet was still sailing sporadically, and the door to China quietly closed again.
Zheng He became a legendary hero. In Southeast Asia, people built temples to commemorate him. He became a sacred role model for overseas Chinese. Zheng He's fleet sailed along the coasts of Africa and India, leaving behind many Chinese stone tablets, carvings, porcelain, ancient books and Chinese almanacs. His expeditions are as famous as the Great Wall.
What he brought to wherever he went was friendship, porcelain, craftsmanship and culture. What he spread was the science and technology of the Chinese nation, sowing the seeds of friendship and civilization. It not only demonstrates the broad mind of a powerful country that embraces all rivers, but also establishes a peaceful and friendly model of country-to-country exchanges. Joseph Needham once commented: "The Chinese, the navigators of the East, are calm and docile, do not remember past grudges, are generous, and never threaten the survival of others; they are fully armed, but they never conquer foreigners or build fortresses."
< p> In the past 600 years, great changes have occurred, but what remains unchanged is the aspiration of a nation for peaceful development. In the current context of China's reform, opening up, and economic development, commemorating the 600th anniversary of Zheng He's voyages to the West is of special significance. Chinese people all over the world and people in the areas where Zheng He sailed are commemorating him. People look back on that great voyage not to commemorate the feats of one person and the glory of an era, but to commemorate a historical tradition in international exchanges represented by Zheng He's voyages to the West and to commemorate the different people who participated in this great voyage. A valuable gesture of bringing cultures closer to each other.Zheng He’s voyages to the West have become a symbol. The concepts and practices of good-neighborliness, friendship and peaceful exchanges it embodies provide valuable historical experience for human beings to live in harmony, and are in line with today’s era of world peace and development. The theme is consistent with what the international community needs today. The solemn commemoration of him across China demonstrates China's commitment to peace, development, and cooperation, and China's firm belief in developing itself while safeguarding world peace and promoting world peace through its own development.