Eighty-seven years after Zheng He set out, the Italian Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1492 and arrived in the New World of America, mistaking it for an Asian island. 92 years later, Portuguese da Gama bypassed the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa on 1497 and reached the west coast of India along the route opened by Zheng He. After 1 16, Portuguese Magellan crossed the sea area between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, which was later named "strait of magellan". Zheng He, who took the lead for nearly a hundred years, led the world ocean exploration movement.
After 600 years of smoke, let's re-examine the history of Ban Bang, look back at Zheng He, a great politician, strategist, diplomat and navigator, and look up at the colorful sails in the history of the Chinese nation and even the history of world civilization.
Light of wisdom
How far the mind is, how far the pace can go; How broad your vision is, how broad your mind can be. Every time Zheng He went to the Western Ocean, thousands of people set sail and hundreds of horses mounted in unison. Sails are like clouds, and colorful flags cover the sky. Its large scale, strict organization, excellent equipment and majestic momentum make the navy of any Asian country and even all European countries "unparalleled". Later, the fleets of Columbus, Da Gama and Magellan had only a few ships, but no more than 20.
The spectacular scene is really amazing, but the light of wisdom blooming by Zheng He's sails is even more amazing. Shipbuilding technology and navigation technology involve many disciplines such as structural mechanics, fluid mechanics, magnetism, engineering, mathematics, astronomy, geography, geology, oceanography, meteorology, biology, medicine and so on, representing the highest achievements in the field of science and technology. Zheng He's treasure ship shines with wisdom from structure to ingenuity, which makes the European shipbuilding industry far behind. At that time, this huge wooden boat formation was able to meet the sky and the sea in the flood with a mountain-like wave. "Yun Fan is high and the stars fly day and night", which is a miracle in the history of navigation. They used the compass invented by China people to locate the stars and guide them accurately; They recognize flags during the day and lights at night, realizing communication and dispatching between ships. They drew Zheng He's nautical chart with the names of more than 530 cities, islands, navigation marks, beaches, reefs, mountains and air routes. It is accurate, vivid, rich and complete, and it is the earliest existing nautical atlas in the world. It has become the information that navigators including Prince Henry, Columbus, Magellan and Da Gama are scrambling to find secretly ... The light of wisdom illuminates the middle of the night.
It's a long way on the sea, water and sky are the same, there are countless reefs on a desert island, glacial trenches and vortex storms, which can be described as dangerous. There will be a lot of troubles in the clouds and waves, and there will be many disasters in the wind and waves. Zheng He went out to sea with a coffin, fearless and indomitable, showing extraordinary mind and courage, superhuman courage, outstanding talent and wisdom. With his diligence, courage and cleverness, he accomplished a person's contribution to the country and a nation's contribution to human history. Sailing boat, like a monument, embodies the essence of the Chinese nation, standing in the long wind of 5,000 years and the vast sea of 600 years.
The boat of civilization
Going abroad requires self-confidence and strength.
/kloc-Before 0/5th century, the economic and cultural development of ancient oriental civilizations such as China and Indian were in the forefront of the world. 1405, France was still in the hundred-year war between Britain and France, with frequent wars and countless lives. Britain is abolishing serfdom and slavery, developing an economy and society dominated by yeomen, and gradually forming a British nation-state; Some countries and regions in Southeast Asia, South Asia and Africa are in slavery society and tribal disputes, and their productivity level is low. The islands of Oceania, the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean are still in the stage of primitive commune system. At this moment, the Ming Dynasty is in the "Yongle Shi Sheng", with national unity, social stability, economic prosperity and strong national strength.
Judy is one of the few great emperors in the history of China. He inherited many wise policies of Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and maintained economic and social development and stability by fighting without chaos. The emperor moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing, restored Qin Changcheng, expanded the Grand Canal, built the Forbidden City, edited the Yongle Grand Ceremony, loved astronomy, climbed high and looked far, saw the temptation of rippling blue waves, and then promulgated a series of policies to develop shipbuilding, maritime transportation and foreign trade. As a result, the pace of Chinese civilization has rapidly expanded from land to sea.
Zheng He threw the iron anchor of the Ming Dynasty in the coastal harbor, and also planted the ancient Chinese civilization in various foreign lands. He faithfully carried out the foreign policy of "taking Germany as his neighbor" and "treating others with leniency", and devoted himself to popularizing Chinese ethics and Confucianism, calendar and measurement system, agricultural technology, manufacturing technology, handicraft industry, architectural carving technology, medical skill, navigation and shipbuilding technology. , shoulder the responsibility of "preaching in overseas countries, guiding etiquette and changing habits" and ".
Zheng He used boats to promote harmony among tribes. People who have lived in a certain circle for a long time have seen the diversity of foreign civilizations and cultivated their yearning for civilization and progress. Some messengers who preached culture and religion, some sailors who abandoned water and went ashore, some craftsmen who spread rice planting techniques, fishing and hunting techniques and weaving techniques, and some old, weak, sick and disabled people who abandoned their boats in the storm were left in foreign islands and gradually integrated into local life, which objectively played a role in promoting indigenous civilization. Day after day, year after year, decades and hundreds of years, they eagerly looked at the East, waiting for the treasure ship of the motherland to pick them up. Moist eyes were blocked by Lian Tao again and again, condensed into bitter tears, and finally dried into mottled Chinese characters on the barren grave. Only a few years later, some people vaguely heard that their ancestors came down from the big ships in the East, as evidenced by the fragments of celadon vases and crocks. Two Peruvian experts even found that the DNA of Native Americans was similar to that of Cantonese in China. Behind this medical discovery, there are many touching sour stories!
A journey of peace
Before and after Zheng He, among the numerous sails around the world, Zheng He's fleet was the only one that could be called "the sail of peace".
The Ming Dynasty showed great country demeanor and benevolent mind. It attaches importance to harmony, gives everything, takes care of the interests of all parties and coordinates multilateral relations. It not only established the authority of China, but also did not harm the interests of other countries. It is as close as an island far and near. All countries, big or small, are equal, all religions live in harmony and many ethnic groups are interdependent. They pacify countries with harmonious culture, educate neighboring countries with Confucian etiquette, deter troublemakers with powerful maritime power, pay equal attention to intimacy and friendship, safeguard international order, safeguard the stability of countries, ensure maritime safety and promote world peace and stability.
Zheng He's treasure ship is full of exquisite gifts such as gold and silver, silk, porcelain, lacquerware, iron, golden flag, incense burner, sesame oil, Chinese medicine, tea, food, livestock and plants, as well as skilled craftsmen, translators proficient in various languages, Buddhists and Muslims. People from all countries along the way greeted these poems and ceremonies with surprise and enthusiasm. Wherever Zheng He's fleet went, it turned this place into a sea of festivals.
Along the road of friendship initiated by Zheng He, monarchs and envoys from all countries flocked to pay tribute and worship, forming a grand occasion of "all nations coming to Korea". During the 22 years of Judy's rule, envoys from Asian and African countries came to China 3 18 times, with an average of 15 times a year. Seven kings of Brunei, Malaga, Sulu and Gumala led delegations successively, and at most 18 tribute missions from different countries came to China at the same time. Three kings died during their visit to China, leaving a will to bury China, all of whom were reburied in the Ming Dynasty.
Spreading the mighty imperial demeanor and spreading the rain and dew of civilization also won Zheng He prestige and love. People in some countries in Southeast Asia have built temples and erected monuments everywhere for China's "God of Peace" and image ambassador. There are temples, mountain cities, streets, ports, palaces, wells, stone tablets and Zen temples all over the island. People will not erect a monument for robbers, only peace messengers can enjoy this honor!
The route is long and there are countless trips, but Zheng He's fleet did not build any castles, strongholds and colonies of its own, did not sell slaves, and did not forcibly promote its own language. His fleet crossed the Straits of Malacca several times, but never claimed an inch of land from Malaysia. In sharp contrast, for hundreds of years, Portuguese, Dutch, British and Japanese have inserted combat knives in this throat connecting East and West. Some navigators and explorers are also invaders and colonists with blood on their hands. Spain and Portugal "bit" the earth in two for maritime hegemony: Spain monopolized America and Portugal seized Asia and Africa. Columbus, a Genoese sailor who was deeply influenced by Marco Polo's travels, just like the Crusaders believed that "milk and honey flowed everywhere in the East", publicly declared that he would go to China and India where "Durani peanuts are rich in spices". Portuguese maritime expeditions openly claimed that their main targets on the west coast of Africa were the slave trade and the search for gold and ivory. Interests make navigators become colonial robbers. Portugal is the fiercest in Europe, and this small country has become a rich and powerful country because of spice trade. It is against this background that China and Macau fell into the hands of Portuguese colonists. Navigator Da Gama came to India with powerful ships and guns, burning and looting all the way, and loading the limbs, lips, ears and teeth cut off by indigenous people with boats. The evil deeds are outrageous! They once met an unarmed ship coming back from Mecca in the Indian Ocean and burned more than 700 moors on board at one time! Destroyed the Indian city of Coetzee Cote with artillery. The Spaniards insisted that they sailed for food, spices and gold. Brave Magellan did not expect that he would be buried by the angry sword of the Filipino tribe braver than himself. His fleet started with 265 people and returned to Spain three years later, with only 18 survivors.
Engels hit the nail on the head and pointed out that "the Portuguese are looking for gold on the African coast, India and the whole Far East; The word gold is a spell that drives the Spaniards across the Atlantic to America; When white people first set foot on the newly discovered coast, gold was what they wanted most. " The early maritime history of Portugal, Spain and other countries is a history of expansion, aggression and colonization, and it is also a history of people's resistance struggle in various countries. They set off the blood shed at sea, making a beautiful and charming history of navigation bloody.
Nowadays, in the museums of some African countries, the guns used by Europeans when landing are lined up with the ceramic jars presented by China. This sharp contrast is the best evaluation of Zheng He's peace trip and the European navigator's colonial expansion trip.
Century sacrifice
Here, we have to mention gavin menzies, a former British naval officer, writer and historian.
In March 2002, menzies announced in London, England a news that shocked the international maritime, historical and archaeological circles: the first person to draw the world nautical map came from China, and the first person to reach the American continent was not Columbus, but Zheng He of the Ming Dynasty in China! Before Magellan crossed the strait of magellan, Zheng He, a native of China, was the first person to sail around the world! The first one to bypass the Cape of Good Hope was not Da Gama but China's fleet!
He made this discovery while studying a chart drawn by Venetian cartographer Pizgano in 1424. Because he found another chart marked China's junk, which is richer, more specific and more perfect than Pizgano's chart-this shows that more Gao Wenming-class navigators have sailed around the world. To complete such a grand journey, a navigator must come from a country with considerable political strength, economic strength, scientific and technological ability and navigation experience. As far as the world was concerned, it was China.
Following this train of thought and route, after 14 years of research, menzies made a field survey of historical sites, ancient castles, coral reefs and desert islands in 120 countries and regions, verified the historical materials of more than 900 libraries, archives and museums, and found a large number of China porcelain, silk, tributes, stone carvings, nautical relics and Chinese characters along the way. He intercepted and amplified A.D. 142 1 because Zheng He made his sixth voyage to the West and created many brilliant classics.
We are in awe of menzies's spirit of exploration, proud of our forefathers' outstanding achievements, and sighing for Zheng He's fate.
Zheng He is a lonely jumper. In front of him, only a few navigators touched the coastline, and behind him, Columbus, Diaz, Da Gama, Magellan, Cook and others sailed for nearly a century. But what really makes the hero lonely is the chill in the heights. When Zheng He was exhausted from fighting with the wind and waves, he didn't know that there was an uproar brewing in the Ming court thousands of miles away. After Zheng He's fleet returned from six voyages to the Western Ocean, Judy died on the way to the Northern Expedition, and people began to criticize Judy's foreign policy. Coupled with the famine in the late Ming Dynasty, the national treasury was empty and people's livelihood was depressed. Some people accused Zheng He of wasting manpower and material resources on his voyages to the Western Seas, so Zhu Gaochi ordered him to stop shipbuilding and recall his troops on the day he ascended the throne.
However, the ban on navigation has not fundamentally reversed the embarrassing situation and economic difficulties, but has hindered the increasingly prosperous maritime trade. More seriously, this conservative view directly breeds and encourages the political proposition of closing the country to the outside world. Under the pressure of public opinion in the ruling and opposition parties, Zheng He has not set sail for nearly ten years.
In A.D. 143 1 year, after experiencing the loneliness of no one at home, the newly enthroned emperor Zhu Zhanji sent sixty-year-old Zheng He to sail for the seventh time. At this time, the old navigator who has gone through the sword and rain but can't escape the angry words knows that this is probably the last voyage in his life. As a devout Muslim, it is his lifelong wish to make a pilgrimage to Mecca in person. This time, however, Zheng He hesitated and finally decided to give up his wish. He sent Muslim sailors to the Holy Land, but he stayed in Guri, India. During his seven voyages to the West, he stayed there seven times and looked sadly at the Arabian Sea, which he envied when he was there. I suspect that Zheng He's move is to show the world that he traveled across the ocean, not afraid of hardships, for the sake of the Ming Dynasty and the Chinese nation, not to realize his personal wishes. Because in the end, this time, Guri in India has always retained the greatest navigator in the world.
Everything is unexpected and expected. What greeted the great navigator's tired sails was a pile of raging fires-in order to prevent anyone from going out to sea again, Ministry of War officials even burned Zheng He's huge and brilliant sails, painstakingly managed the shipyard for many years, and exhausted his shipbuilding drawings, logbooks and navigation materials. The route opened by a generation of pioneers was thus buried in the sea of fire. Ming dynasty is a torch, it will last forever! Subsequently, the Ming Dynasty fell into a total ban on the sea-foreign trade businessmen were executed and foreign language teaching was strictly prohibited. As for the Qing government, it even stipulated that sails were not allowed to go out to sea, lines were not allowed to go out of bounds, and it was illegal to kill people out of bounds! -A nation's ship has been stranded for hundreds of years!
For hundreds of years, we wanted to pay tribute to our sailing ancestors, but it was difficult to find a canvas or a plank. We can only borrow a copy of a sea chart from a foreign museum, interpret one or two words from foreign archaeological discoveries, and mourn the strength and spirit of our ancestors from the wreckage of Chinese sailboats salvaged by foreigners. China children know more about Columbus, Magellan and Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days, but less about Zheng He. What a pity! Compared with some countries and regions in Southeast Asia where the Sanbao Temple is filled with cigarettes and jostled with each other during the Spring Festival, the Zheng He Memorial Hall in China looks lonely, which is incredible! There are few chapters about Zheng He in China's history books, and there are many mistakes. National Geographic magazine once counted the world's most famous explorers during 1000 years, among which more than 30 explorers were on the list, and Zheng He, the only Asian, was impressively listed. Foreigners are still like this, so don't sell yourself short!
For hundreds of years, Zheng He didn't seem to get the courtesy that national heroes deserved. Zheng He's voyage to the West is a big step to realize his personal spiritual pursuit and moral value, and it is also a big step for the Chinese nation to move towards civilization. He devoted the rest of his life, even his whole life to it. Regrettably, after the sound of oars and sails, China went through hundreds of years of excessive calm and silence. Yes, Zheng He was a eunuch, but he didn't form a clique in the high wall of the palace like Li and An Dehai, and his hands were covered with blood. But to shoulder the national justice and set sail for peace. He is a real man! We should not envy Zheng He's eunuch status, which was a chronic disease under the ancient feudal system in China, and Zheng He himself was the victim! He made a despised eunuch, a cancer of the feudal body, so brilliantly, which is unique in the history of China. We should evaluate this hero of the Chinese nation fairly.
For hundreds of years, it seems that Zheng He's historical contribution and far-reaching significance have not been fully recognized by the world. The sea has never been calm, and the right to control the sea has always been the focus of contention. Fires are flying and the waves are boiling, and all countries are competing for resources and territory. Looking back 600 years ago, if Zheng He's fleet did not cruise on the sea, mediate disputes, deter the strong beam and appease the weak, there would be no peaceful and stable environment around China, and it would be impossible for countries along the way to put swords into storage, forge them into plowshares and develop production. Tribes of different nationalities, races and religious beliefs do not know how long it will take to fight and how long the pace of world civilization will lag behind. Without Zheng He's expedition, human steps would still be trembling, and it would be inseparable from the coastline. Transoceanic trade and intercontinental exchanges would have to go through a long exploration, and China would not have the prosperity and development of shipbuilding, textiles, ceramics and medicine. Peaceful use of the ocean and promotion of civilization and progress are the original intention of Zheng He's voyage to the West, China's contribution to the world and the spiritual wealth of all mankind.
For hundreds of years, the history of China has repeatedly proved a truth-lagging behind will be beaten. Without a strong maritime armed force, it is difficult to guarantee national security and territorial integrity. 100 years ago, Mr. Liang Qichao lamented: "After Columbus, there were infinite Columbus, after Da Gama, there were infinite Da Gama, and after Zheng He, there was no second Zheng He." Zheng He's sail fell, and so did the opening curtain. From the mid-Ming Dynasty to the Opium War, the Chinese nation staged a farce of being closed to the outside world for more than 300 years, and also staged a tragedy of ceding land for reparations, kneeling down for peace, and humiliating the country. If Zheng He's fleet were still alive, there would be no panic and helplessness in the face of the warships of the great powers, no tolerance for foreign sailors entering Longyan's magnificent palace, no painful groaning and eternal shame of the gardens of the Great Qing Dynasty under the gunfire of robbers, and no first treaty of nanking signing in Nanjing Jinghai Temple built by Judy to reward Zheng He! There would be no wailing of grief and indignation in the Sino-Japanese War! It's sad that there is nothing to be done when the ship stops oaring, and thousands of troops are racing against the clock. The pioneers were defeated, and the explorer's home became a paradise for adventurers. This sour history is still bloody! History will not stop because of forgetting, nor will it be rewritten because of assumptions, and it will not repeat itself because of awakening. The open door will not be closed again, even if it is lightning and thunder, tigers and leopards are everywhere.
Zheng He is a warrior who maintains peace and a hero who fell on the journey. His sail of life was shaped into a monument, which raised the spiritual height of a nation. Zheng He's voyage to the West is not an individual's behavior, but the behavior of a nation and a country, which is a leap of the Chinese nation. We should give him heroic glory in the name of the nation and the country.