#65 ๐๐ฅ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ค๐ ๐ง๐๐ช๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐
This post takes a look at the significance of the background painting during the meeting between US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Oct 9.
Came across the meeting between US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Chinese President Xi Jinping (see below) on Oct 9 at the Great Hall of the People (ไบบๆฐๅคงไผๅ ), and the background painting intrigued me. The majestic Chinese painting looks like it has some allusions that warrant some research, and so I decided to take up this challenge.
๐ป๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐พ๐๐๐ ๐ด๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ย ๆญฆๅคทไนๆฅ
The name of the painting is "The Spring of Wuyi Mountains" ใๆญฆๅคทไนๆฅใand Wuyi Mountains are a mountain range located in the prefecture ofย Nanping ๅๅนณ, in northernย Fujian provinceย near the border withย Jiangxi province, China. The mountains have been listed as aย UNESCOย World Heritage Site since 1999.
The painting measures 10 metre long and four metre long, and housed in the Fujian Hall (็ฆๅปบๅ
), and it is smaller when compared to the bigger paintings such as those hung in the National Reception Hall (ๅฝๅฎถๆฅๅพ
ๅ
) and the Golden Hall (้่ฒๅคงๅ
) where you usually see meetings between Chinese leaders and visitors seated in the rounded manner without a long table in between.
Do note that this is a lacquer painting (ๆผ็ป) and Fuzhou city of Fujian province is well-known for producing aesthetic and high quality lacquer paintings in China.
๐น๐๐๐๐/๐ฟ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
One could see that Jade Maiden Peak and Great King Peak are not joined together seamlessly as they were separated physically. There is a beautiful story connected with these two peaks. It is said that the Jade Maiden in Heaven admired the beauty of Earth and decided to live on Wuyi Mountain. Her love, the Great King, also came down and joined her there. But their whereabouts were found out and reported to the Jade Emperor by the Iron Slab Demon, who was then ordered to spy on them. The Jade Maiden and the Great King loved each other so much that they decided never to return to Heaven. With his magic powers, the Iron Slab Demon turned them into stone mountains. The demon himself also became a mountain because of his evil doings. Today, Iron Slab Peak (้ๆฟๅถ Tiebanfeng) , see below pic) stands between the Great King and the Jade Maiden peaks.
Of course, one could see the relevance between Taiwan and China via these two peaks. Though both are separated now with the US and its allies playing the role of Iron Slab Peak, you cannot stop such separation eventually as one could just scale Iron Slab Peak with modern tools which were not possible in ancient China.
As China is modernising its defence and with Russia a possible ally against any attack by the US and its allies, it is different during the Korean War when China had to use human wave attack, and also China's breaking off with USSR after Stalin died in 1953 due to ideological differences means that it was alone if it wanted to reunify with Taiwan then.
Below are some stunning photos of Wuyi Mountains (copyrighted to Reggie Lee@flickr).
