The History Of Modern Chinese Water Culture

Water is a human society indispensable natural resource,and it plays an importantrole in human production and life. Since Dayu water conservancy, the history ofChina has a deep bond with water, rulers of all dynasties conduct their rein in thesethousands of years have put water conservancy in the important position of governingthe country, forming water conservancy culture. At this point of view, Chinese historyis a history of about water. So the research on water is indispensable. Today’s waterresource is in the urgent situation.The central goverment issued several files whichcalled on the whole society to attach great importance to the water. The topic ofresearch will help provide history lessons for construction, speed up the constructionof water culture.Since the modern China, the western capitalist countries came to China by theinterests. The salvoes of the opium war awakened slumbering Chinese people. Behindthe cannons, the advanced capitalist ideology and science and technology also spreadto the East.These things conflicted with old-fashioned, traditional conservativethought,which making more and more Chinese people realize the advanced nature ofWestern thought. Attitude of modern Chinese society for water awareness and use ofwater occurred in this context.The ancient Chinese history formed with rich content of water culture. Not onlyformed a set of effective management to take system, save a lot of hydrologicalrecords, but also emerged many outstanding water conservancy works, left a preciouswater conservancy experience for later generations. Water in Chinese traditionalculture also has a mysterious power. People constantly deified the water to form avariety of mercury,and sacrificed in daily life especially when floods occurred. Inaddition, ancient China also formed on water philosophy, literature and art andarchitecture, folklore and so on. These constituted the main content of the traditionalwater cultures. After the Opium War, water content of modern china also increasingly reflected thefeatures of science.Firstly,each government introduced western system gradually,andformed the modern management of the water which continued to standardization.Secondly, with the rise of education and spread of Salvation, Higher EducationIndustry developed rapidly, and water conservation education appearing in the lateQing gradually established and developed in the Republic of China. Not onlyengineering school curricula at all levels had been improved, but also there were morewater conservancy specialized schools for the development of modern waterconservancy providing the talent guarantee. Thirdly, modern water utilities have beendeveloped. Not only the modern society generally realized the importance of waterconservancy construction, but also the whole society discussed around thephenomenon of water conservancy construction, sprung up many outstanding waterconservancy experts.At the same time,it promoted the development of the modernwater conservancy science and technology. Fourthly, the water god worship in thetraditional culture continued to exist in modern China, and reflected new features.Although the Water God gradually declined in recent times, but due to the dependenceof folk beliefs and deep-rooted nature, it was not easy to eliminate, thus forming asuperstition and science, tradition and modernity coexist. Fifthly, by exploring books,newspapers, periodicals, books and other historical celebrities which published inmodern China,the articles also explored the modern understanding of people on thewater. Since the coming of Western advanced scientific knowledge, people had amore scientific understanding and interpretation on the water, especially about riversand lakes, waterfalls and other natural things.Because all kinds of newspapers,magazines about various types of scientific knowledge which included scientificknowledge and literature about water were published,they changed people’straditional knowledge of water, and also changed the habits and enhance the quality ofpeople’s life, which reflect the modernization of China’s water science. Finally, as aspecial water,sea had an important position in modern China. Modern Chineseinvaders invaded from the sea, which led to the awakening of modern Chinesemaritime awareness. Coupled with the introduction of Western ideas of sea power, modern Chinese coastal sea Chauvinism had also been developed and improved.In a word,the water culture in modern China not only retained the content oftraditional society, but also accepted the contents of the Western culture.So the waterculture continuously developed between "change" and "not change".This not onlyreflects the traditional culture of the modern water culture inheritance anddevelopment, and the introduction of modern Western culture and advanced waterabsorption,but also embodies the traditional culture of inclusiveness.At the sametime,it reflects the nature of modern culture,too. Under the influence of dual culture,modern China’s political system, education system, social life, customs, folk belief,science, culture and others present the diversification and the trend of themodernization of Chinese society.Modern China went toward a modern, civilized,scientific direction.