Qin People’s pursuit of bigness and grandness
During the Spring and Autumn Period, China remained a separatist regime for quite a long period, which resulted in the distinctive cultures in different geographic locations. Generally, the other six states in the eastern part of China were greatly influenced by Confucianism, which featured emphasizing ethics and overlooking personal interests. Qin, located in the secluded West China, was quite the opposite, focusing more on personal pursuits while neglecting ethics and morals. With this notion in mind, Qin People gradually cultivated the aesthetic standard of pursuing something big and grand, which later became one distinctive feature of the Qin culture. Archeological findings from the cultural relics and historical sites revealed that most cultural relics of Qin Period are large and grand.
The cemetery of the State of Qin in Yongcheng, Fengxiang County, for instance, comprises 32 big tombs, among which the No.1 tomb site in Nanzhihui Village covers approximately 20,000m2. The No. 1 Tomb Site of Duke of Qin excavated in 1986 extends 300 meters with the tomb chamber measuring 59.4 meters in length and 38.45 meters in width. Its eastern passage extends 156.1 meters and western passage 84.5 meters with an area of about 5334m2. Being bigger than tombs of the same age in other states and several folds larger than imperial tombs of the Shang Dynasty, the cemetery is till recently the largest tomb site of the pre-Qin Period.
Tile-end with the kui-dragon pattern
From 1973 to 1974, 60 plus jin gang, an architectural component for ancient palaces, of the State of Qin during the Spring and Autumn Period were excavated in Yaojiagang Village, Fengxiang County, among which the largest one measures 1 meters tall, which was rarely found in other places in the world.
In the Mausoleum of Emperor Qin Shihuang, big tile-ends were found with kui-dragon patterns measuring 48cm high and 61cm in diameter. The patterns on them are symmetric and vigorous, which embody the stateliness of the Qin Empire and the aesthetic standard of that age. They were the largest tile-ends excavated till now and were praised “King of Tile-ends”.
The No.1 Palace of Qin Capital excavated in Xianyang City, Shaanxi Province, from 1974 to 1975 extends 60 meters eastward and 45 meters southward. The palace base is 6 meters above the ground level and digs 5 meters into the ground. The main hall covers 160.8m2. The No.3 Palace Site extends 117 meters westward and 60 meters southward with an entire coverage of about 7020m2. With such vast coverage, the No. 1 and No.3 Palaces form only a small part of the entire palace complex.
The archeological site which best reflects Qin People’s pursuit of bigness and grandness is none other than the burial pit of the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses excavated in 1974 and 1975. The world-shaking discovery houses in its No.1, No.2 and No.3 pits over 8,000 pottery warriors measuring 178cm tall. The large collection of pottery warriors with such stature was unprecedented in Chinese history and even in the world’s carving history. Other typical examples include the imposing Great Wall built after Emperor Qin Shihuang unified China and the chi dao, express way, for military use at that time.
Aeroview of No. 1 Tomb Site of Duke of Qin
Qin People’s pursuit of bigness and grandness was not merely reflected by such material things as the big palaces, big tomb sites, big stuff and vast coverage but also by the rulers’ exponential ambition for power and territory expansion. In late Western Zhou Dynasty, Qin People was still a nomadic clan in the western frontier of Zhou and was not annexed until King Xiaowang of Zhou came to the throne. It was later enfeoffed as a vassal in 770BC because of its ruler’s contribution to escorting King Pingwang to move eastward to Luoyang. Henceforward, the State of Qin expanded gradually from its original enfeoffment in Qingshui County in eastern Gansu Province eastward to the eastern Guanzhong Area in 679BC to 678BC when Duke Wugong ruled the state. By this time Qin had actually won the ruling of the entire Wei River Valley. Till 659BC when Duke Mugong of Qin came to the throne, Qin People were unsatisfied with the ruling of merely Guanzhong Area and their ambition quickened its expansion eastward to seek control over northeast China. Qin’s ambition was reflected from various aspects. Duke Mugong of Qin, for instance, named his palace “Palace of Dominance” and renamed the Yong River to Ba River, which literally meant River of Dominance to show his ambition to gain more power. This fervent pursuit of power is consistent with the Qin People’s pursuit of bigness and grandness and is also the embodiment of such value system in terms of politics.
During Mugong’s reign, Qin expanded eastward and won control over the State of Jin for a while. With the eastward expansion of the territory, the capital was also moved, which illustrated Qin’s ambition to expand eastward. After Duke Xiaogong of Qin became the ruler, Qin’s ambition became all the more apparent. With Shang Yang’s successful reforms, the State of Qin turned gradually into a power which had set as its aim to unify the entire nation. This is also illustrated by Shang Yang’s words “Defeating vassals in the East on the basis of strong fortress and fulfilling the imperial aim”. The rulers of larger and more powerful states such as Qi and Chu, however, had no such aims at all at that time. The ambition of both the ruler and subjects of the State of Qin was also vividly described in the well-known article Guo Qin Lun by the great politician, Jia Yi and it can be seen that the history of the State of Qin is a process of expansion and annexation. This process continued even after Qin unified China in 221BC, which was exemplified by its expedition northward to the Huns, an ancient minority in North China, its southward expedition to Vietnam and its efforts to send people overseas to find the mountain of immortals. All these actions and events reflect Qin People’s emphasis on bigness and grandness.
Golden woodpecker unearthed from No. 1 Tomb Site of Duke of Qin
Strong determination and pursuit of grandiosity is one spiritual treasure the Qin People left for their descendents. Superficially, Emperor Qin Shihuang’s unification of China was attributed to the exponential growth of the national strength of Qin, but it could not have been realized without the surging spirits of its people. Shang Yang’s Reforms together with other reforms carried out over various periods by the State of Qin made the Qin People determined and progressive. At that time, farming was not well developed in the State of Qin, which made Qin unprivileged in many aspects compared with other six states. Nevertheless, through long-term reforms, Qin People were mostly active, self-disciplined and determined, which enabled the Qin People dwarf those people from other six states who are slack, self-content and conceited. This discrepancy in spirit and morale eventually led to the defeat of other six states in the Warring States Period, a period during which the law of jungle prevailed.
