Sea Sorrow - A Memorial for 600 Years of Zheng He's Voyages

Author: Liu Dengge
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-06-01
Features: On world maps from the early 15th century, only China could capture people's attention. China held the reins of the world, as it was the most powerful empire in the world, with no nation or force capable of challenging it. The scale and number of Zheng He's fleet were not surpassed by Western fleets until 500 years later, during World War I. Openness leads to prosperity, while closure leads to decline: embracing the sea leads to survival, while turning away from it leads to demise! Why did Zheng He's maritime expeditions last only 28 years? Why did the maritime explorations of the Four Seas people continue relentlessly? Why did Zheng He's grand voyages yield minimal results, while Columbus's smaller voyages had a profound impact? Six hundred years ago, Zheng He led the largest fleet in the world, making seven voyages to the Western Oceans. He began maritime exploration 87 years earlier than Columbus, circumnavigated the southern tip of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope, 92 years before Vasco da Gama, and sailed around the world 116 years before Ferdinand Magellan. Why, after China held absolute superiority at sea, did it abandon its maritime endeavors? Why did the 1,000-year maritime tradition of the East suddenly reach its zenith and then abruptly end? Why did Zheng He's maritime activities fail to have a more positive impact on Chinese or world civilization and historical progress? Why did ancient Chinese science and technology once lead the world for over a thousand years but fail to produce modern natural science? History is a mirror; by reflecting on it, one can understand rise and fall. In the mirror of Zheng He, there is regret and disappointment, but also pride and glory; there is lament and despair, but also ambition and splendor.
Six hundred years ago, the people of distant East Africa described Zheng He's voyages like this: "The Ming fleet drifted over like a cloud and vanished like a cloud." To the people of East Africa at that time, Zheng He's voyages were as mysterious and incomprehensible as visitors from outer space, far beyond their imagination. Six hundred years of time have passed, the stars and constellations have changed, and countless ordinary and extraordinary days have slipped through our fingers in the blink of an eye. Today, China has become the fastest-developing country in the world. From the Great Wall to the Yangtze River, from land to sea, the ancient land of China has never been as vibrant as it is today.