|
The tombs of the Ming
Emperors are situated out near the Tianshou Mountains, some 50
kilometres northwest of Beijing. It may be a bit off the beaten track
for many tourists but it is well worth making the trek out to view the
necropolis of some of China's great rulers of the past — monarchs who
ruled from 1368 through to 1644.
Apart from the tombs of 13 Ming Dynasty emperors, the tombs of seven
concubines and the tomb of a eunuch are also situated in the valley.
According to UNESCO, the Ming Tombs' area was worthy of being listed as
a World Heritage Site because it offers a number of unique attractions.
The tombs, which took more than 200 years to construct, show the
harmonious integration of remarkable architecture set in a natural
environment. And, what makes this natural environment particularly
fascinating is that it was selected to meet with the ancient rules of
geomancy, or Fengshui, thus making the imperial tombs a masterpiece of
human creative genius.
According to Fengshui, bad spirits and evil winds that descended from
the North had to be deflected and so an arc-shaped area at the foot of
mountains north of Beijing was selected. Today, the Ming Tombs offer us
dazzling insight into the beliefs, world view and geomantic theories
prevalent in feudal China. The tombs offer the visitor the opportunity
to not only view the burial edifices of great historical figures, but
experience what was the theatre for major events during the course of
China's rich and gripping history.
The Ming Tombs area covers
some 80 square kilometres. The three main tombs that draw tourists are
Changling, Dingling and Zhaoling. Changling mausoleum is undoubtedly the
most magnificent of the three main tombs here. Changling is the tomb of
Emperor Zhu Di, often referred to as Emperor Yongle. It is also the
burial site of his wife, Empress Xu. In fact, it was after the death of
his wife, Empress Xu, at the age of 45, that Emperor Yongle ordered the
building of the mausoleum out in this valley. This tomb alone took 18
years to construct.
Emperor Yongle is known to many as the monarch who ordered that the
Imperial capital be moved from Nanjing to Beijing. He also ordered the
construction of the Forbidden City, and during his reign there were
numerous notable achievements such as the compilation of the Yongle
Encyclopedia, as well as the voyages of Zheng He. But when this great
emperor passed away in 1424 at the age of 64, he was not laid in his
mausoleum alone. He was entombed with his wife, Empress Xu, who had died
17 years before him. And, his concubines were buried with him too. In
fact, Emperor Yongle had about 30 women hanged so that they could be
buried with him and accompany him on his journey into the afterlife.
The practice may sound quite shocking today, but Emperor Yongle would
not have batted an eyelid at such a practice. After all, this is the man
who ordered and then witnessed 2,800 women being slowly sliced to death
in front of him after he concluded that the death of one of his
concubines was due to poisoning. The practice of entombing living
concubines, however, was abolished during the reign of Emperor Zhengtong
in the mid-1400s. Emperor Zhengtong's tomb is known as Yuling, and is,
like the other Ming Dynasty emperors, built around mausoleum where
Emperor Yongle lies.
The best approach to the Changling, the mausoleum of Emperor Yongle, is
along the Sacred Way, a seven-kilometre-long colonnade. This divine
pathway is lined with willow trees, and as you make your way along the
colonnade you stroll past life-size statues of camels, lions and
elephants. You will also view statues of Chinese mythological beasts.
And, as you reach the end of the Sacred Way you come across the statues
of generals and other dignitaries.
The Sacred Way symbolizes the
road leading to heaven. It was believed that the Emperor, who was known
as the Son of the Heaven, came from Heaven to his country via the Sacred
Way, and so it was thought that the emperor deserved to return to Heaven
the same way.
Once you've walked the whole of the Sacred Way it is then easy to hop on
a bus and take the 10-minute ride out to the Changling mausoleum. Of
course, you may opt to head off to the Dingling Tombs or Zhaoling Tombs
first, but do remember that Changling is said to be the best of the
three sites.
The tombs are quite spread apart so you will definitely need transport.
Certainly, if you have your own transport, you can easily cover all
three tombs in a day, but those relying on public transport would be
wise to take in just two of the tomb sites so that they can enjoy these
at a leisurely pace. Another option is to take one of the unofficial
taxi drivers who will more than likely approach you.
On a recent daytrip out to the Ming Tombs I decided to visit just
Dingling and Changling, and save a visit to Zhaoling for another day.
Dingling was the first tomb I visited. It is located at the eastern foot
of the Dayu Mountains. Construction of this tomb started in 1584 and
took six years to complete. It was constructed as the mausoleum for
Emperor Zhu Xiejun, who was popularly known as Emperor Wanli, as well as
for his two empresses. Emperor Wanli was the 13th emperor of the Ming
Dynasty. He was born in 1563 and was enthroned at the age of 10. Emperor
Wanli reigned for 48 years, until he passed away at age 58.
The Underground Palace of Dingling is the only one of the Ming Tombs
excavated so far. Inside there are five stone chambers, and more than
3,000 cultural relics have been unearthed here. You can walk around the
chambers and see the coffin bed where replicas of the huge red coffins
and cases are on display. Unfortunately, when the archeologists
initially opened the Underground Palace the coffin of Empress Xiaojing,
as well as most of the funerary objects, had decayed. However, there is
a museum on site where you can view crowns, treasures, silks and robes
that have been unearthed at Dingling.
Meanwhile, at Changling once entering through the Gate of Eminent Favour,
you pass the stele pavillion, and two sacred silk burners in a huge
courtyard before coming to the Hall of Eminent Favour. Here, you come
face-to-face with a huge bronze statue of Emperor Yongle. A display in
both Chinese and English explains the achievements of his reign. You can
view his crowns, as well as jade jewellery, porcelain, and even gold
chopsticks and spoons that were used by one of the greatest of the Ming
Emperors and the man who envisaged his name and memory living on for
many centuries after his death.
(Source: China.org.cn 2010_04_07) |
