Xi Jinping's Cultural Footprint, Anyang Yin Ruins: Continuously Revealing the Code of Chinese Civilization Xi Jinping

Xinhua News Agency, Zhengzhou, June 16, Title: Yin Xu in Anyang: Continuously Revealing the Code of Chinese Civilization

Xinhua News Agency reporters Tang Weibin, Guijuan, Shuangrui, Zhai Zhuo

"I have been longing for Yin Ruins for a long time. This time I want to learn and understand Chinese civilization more deeply, make the past serve the present, and provide reference for the better construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation." Walking into the gate of the Yinxu Ruins in Anyang, Henan, the words of General Secretary Xi Jinping on the exhibition board impressed every tourist who came to visit.

On the afternoon of October 28, 2022, General Secretary Xi Jinping came to Anyang City, Henan Province to inspect the Yinxu ruins on the north and south sides of the Huan River in the northwestern suburbs of Anyang City.

The Yin Ruins, which dates back over 3300 years, is the first capital site of the late Shang Dynasty in Chinese history to be documented and confirmed by archaeological excavations. The oracle bone inscriptions unearthed from the Yin ruins have thoroughly confirmed the legendary Shang Dynasty, and China's written history has advanced by about 1000 years.

Only by comprehensively and deeply understanding the history of Chinese civilization can we more effectively promote the creative transformation and innovative development of excellent traditional Chinese culture, and more effectively promote the construction of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics and the construction of modern Chinese civilization.

Over the past century, archaeologists have been exploring and researching the Yin ruins, and it has become the ancient capital site with the most archaeological excavations, the longest duration, and the largest exposed area in China. On the new journey, this key site that proves the origin, formation, and development of Chinese civilization will continue to reveal the code of Chinese civilization and continue the spiritual roots of the Chinese nation.

Yin Ruins as Axis, Revealing the Origin Code of Chinese Civilization

In June, the scorching sun shone on the Central Plains, and visitors flocked to the ruins of palaces and ancestral temples in the Yin Ruins.

The magnificent palace complex, the massive royal tomb area, highly developed bronze artifacts, mature oracle bone inscriptions, and a well-defined handicraft system... The "treasure of the Shang King" in the ancient Yin ruins amazes tourists with its profound charm that has traveled over 3000 years.

In October 1928, archaeologist Dong Zuobin swung his first shovel in Xiaotun Village, located in the northwest suburbs of Anyang City, marking the beginning of the scientific excavation of the Yin ruins by Chinese archaeologists. Prior to this, people's understanding of the Shang Dynasty mainly remained in the records of over 3000 words in the Records of the Grand Historian.

"In terms of archaeology, there is currently no site that is more important than the Yin Ruins," said Li Boqian, chief scientist of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou Chronology Project and professor at Peking University. Due to the Yin Ruins, the history of Chinese belief has been pushed back to the Shang Dynasty. Taking the Yin Ruins as a fulcrum, the construction of a spatiotemporal system of Xia Shang archaeological culture also provides an important starting point for exploring earlier civilizations.

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that "Chinese civilization has outstanding continuity." "If we do not understand China from the long-standing historical continuity, it is impossible to understand ancient China, it is impossible to understand modern China, and it is impossible to understand future China".

"The discovery and determination of Yin Ruins is the origin and cornerstone of exploring Shang culture, Xia culture, and tracing the origin of Chinese civilization." Wang Wei, a member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and chief expert of the Chinese Civilization Exploration Project, said that Yin Ruins inherit the trend of gathering civilization from all directions and create a continuous and diverse pattern of integrated civilization, which is a very important link in the process of Chinese civilization.

Following the footsteps of General Secretary Xi Jinping during his inspection, people experienced the vivid daily life of businessmen more than 3000 years ago in the Yin Ruins Museum and the Che Ma Keng exhibition hall, and experienced the mystery of the oldest known Chinese characters in the "A piece of oracle bone shocked the world". style.

69 year old Jiangsu tourist Xu Genfa visited Yin Ruins for the first time. He said, "When I was young, I knew about Yin Ruins in textbooks and always wanted to come and see them. Today, when I saw bronze artifacts and oracle bone inscriptions, I not only marveled at the ancient people's superb wisdom, but also felt sincerely proud and proud of the continuous development of Chinese civilization."

"Recently, the research and learning team that came to Yin Ruins has shown explosive growth, with the number of students surpassing 20000 in April alone." Liu Shanshan, a tour guide at Yin Ruins, has been particularly busy lately, having to explain at least 10 times a day and walking more than 20000 steps every day.

"Many students from the research and learning team have reported that through on-site visits, they have truly experienced the profoundness of Yin Shang culture, touched the roots and soul of the Chinese nation, and further established the concept of respecting cultural relics and history, full of national pride." Liu Shanshan said.

Using Chinese characters as a medium to maintain the formation and development of the Chinese nation

At the entrance of the Yin Ruins Museum, there stands a large stone with the red oracle bone inscription "Fu" on it. Tourists often take photos here to commemorate it. This year's Spring Festival, the Spring Festival couplets designed based on the character "fu" have become popular locally.

"Many tourists are interested in oracle bone inscriptions, and if they know what word it is, they still need to ask why." Liu Shanshan said, "The word 'fu' refers to holding a wine jar with both hands on one side of the altar, which means praying for blessings. Even today, we can still understand this, and this is the charm of Chinese characters.

During his inspection of the Yin Ruins, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that "China's Chinese characters are very remarkable, and the formation and development of the Chinese nation cannot be separated from the maintenance of the Chinese characters." "The oracle bone inscriptions unearthed in the Yin Ruins have preserved the characters of 3000 years ago for us and pushed the history of Chinese letters upward. It has been about 1,000 years".

The knife and pen leave marks, and the oracle bones look strange. The Yin Ruins have unearthed a wealth of cultural relics, and oracle bone inscriptions are undoubtedly the heaviest category. As the earliest mature script used by the Chinese nation, oracle bone script, which has been buried deep underground for thousands of years, can be partially recognized upon excavation. It may seem incredible, but it is precisely the uniqueness of Chinese characters.

Data organization, chronological division, textual interpretation, and research on business history... Setting aside the thick soil of history, for over 120 years, generations of scholars have passed down the torch and continued to interpret the ancient code of Chinese civilization.

In the landmark building of Anyang, the Chinese Character Museum, one can visually observe the evolution process of Chinese characters. Relying on the essence of thousands of cultural relics, this national museum with the theme of characters systematically interprets the configuration characteristics and evolution process of Chinese characters, which can be called "a landscape style text ceremony for people to appreciate Chinese civilization".

"From the evolution of Chinese characters, we can see the vastness, profoundness, and long history of Chinese culture. We can understand the inscriptions on bronze vessels, the" Preface to the Orchid Pavilion "from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and the" On the Balcony Tie "from the Tang Dynasty. It's amazing when we think carefully." As summer approaches, Tian Ruoshui, who has just graduated from Zhengzhou Foreign Language School, eagerly took his friends to visit the Museum of Chinese Characters, where they frequently linger in interactive experience areas such as calligraphy exhibition halls and puzzle walls.

Text is an important symbol of the emergence of civilization and also an important carrier for the inheritance of civilization.

Today, on the vast land of 9.6 million square kilometers in China, regardless of how different dialects, accents, and customs may be, people can communicate ideas and emotions without barriers through a common language. This seemingly ordinary scene is backed by the cultural foundation of Chinese characters, which has been accumulated for thousands of years.

From oracle bone inscriptions and bronze inscriptions to large and small seal scripts, and then to clerical and regular script, Chinese characters have evolved over 3000 years without changing their form, allowing people to break through the limitations of time and space to communicate ideas. The interpretation and inheritance of this culture carry the common cultural memory of the Chinese nation, becoming a cultural gene with strong national cohesion and a spiritual bond with the bloodline of the Chinese people.

In recent years, there have been significant changes in the group of visitors to the Museum of Chinese Characters, with the majority being born in the 1990s and 2000s. More and more young people are recognizing and understanding Chinese characters, actively touching and learning about China's excellent traditional culture. This change has made Yu Xiaoying, the director of the Propaganda and Education Department of the Museum of Chinese Characters, sincerely delighted.

During this year's May Day holiday, over 20000 visitors visited the Chinese Language Museum every day. Outside the exhibition hall, the Chinese character park, which integrates multi-dimensional expressions of Chinese character culture into landscape design, is also a popular night time destination for citizens.

Adhering to the principles of integrity and innovation, continuing the cultural heritage and composing magnificent chapters

"Archaeological work must continue to attach importance to and strengthen, and continue to deepen the project of exploring the source of Chinese civilization." "It is necessary to better inherit the excellent traditional culture through the excavation, research and protection of cultural relics." During the inspection of the Yin Ruins, General Secretary Xi Jinping asked Yin Yin Yin.

Not long ago, the important progress meeting of the "Archaeological China" major project was held in Beijing, and the important archaeological achievements of the Anyang Huanbei Shopping Mall site were reported. According to He Yuling, a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and deputy director of Anyang Workstation, a large sacrificial ditch from the Yin Ruins period was also discovered during the excavation process, providing clues for understanding the layout of the Yin Ruins settlement.

Apart from archaeological excavation work, a considerable amount of He Yuling's energy is devoted to giving lectures. "From kindergarten to high school and university, from museums to party and government agencies, I now give at least five or six lectures a month." He clearly felt that people's enthusiasm for understanding the Yin ruins and the long history of Chinese civilization had increased.

The display subject is becoming richer, the content is more diverse, the forms are more vivid, and the coverage is wider. The ancient Yin ruins are entering the public eye with a younger posture: projects such as the National Archaeological Site Park and Archaeological Cultural Tourism Town of Yin ruins are steadily advancing, and the digital upgrade of Yin ruins using high-tech methods such as AR and holographic projection is in the ascendant. Cultural and creative works such as oracle bone emoticons and digital collections of Yin ruins bronze ware are constantly iterating

A new building of the Yin Xu Museum, covering an area of 262.5 acres and a building area of 51000 square meters, has been erected across a river from the palace area of Yin Xu. Currently, the secondary structure of the main project has been basically completed, and from a distance, it looks like a giant tripod standing under the sky.

"There will be a significant leap in the number of exhibited cultural relics, exhibition techniques, and level," said Zhao Qingrong, Deputy Director of the Yin Ruins World Cultural Heritage Protection and Management Committee. After the new museum is completed, it will comprehensively showcase the rich cultural connotations of Yin Ruins, helping audiences to have a deeper understanding of the contribution of Yin commercial culture to Chinese civilization and even world civilization.

At the symposium on cultural inheritance and development, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must adhere to integrity and innovation, and continue the historical context and compose the contemporary chapter with the integrity and vigor of integrity and innovation."

In the Chinese Language Museum, a unique "oracle bone school" has attracted many children to participate. Learn to write the twelve zodiac characters in oracle bone script, DIY the Shang Dynasty element backpack, and learn to dance "Dancing Chinese Characters". Children can experience the beauty and wisdom of Chinese characters in the game.

"To become 'popular', we need to become 'active'. We attach great importance to the interactivity of popularizing education and exhibitions, and have specially set up an interactive and video hall, covering more than ten types of Chinese character games." Wei Wencui, member of the Party Committee and Deputy Director of the Chinese Character Museum, introduced that in recent years, the Chinese Character Museum has developed more than 160 Chinese character themed education projects, held nearly 1500 Chinese character education activities, and attracted nearly 45000 families to participate in the activities.

"We must strengthen our cultural confidence and enhance our self-confidence and pride as Chinese people."

"The Chinese civilization has a long and uninterrupted history, shaping our great nation, and this nation will continue to be great."

……

In Anyang Yin Ruins, General Secretary Xi Jinping's words were inspiring and released the strong voice of the times.

"As cultural and museum workers, we must continue to actively excavate and conduct archaeological research on important sites such as the Yin Ruins, interpret the cultural genes carried by cultural relics, and enable Chinese people to better touch the past and perceive history, contributing to the revitalization of Chinese civilization." said Li Xiaoyang, Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Anyang Cultural Relics Bureau.