【AICC Original Article】Appreciating the Grand Canal through Rows of Willows: A Time-honored Cultural Pulse Reinvigorated

“ The Sui Di Yan Liu" is one of the Eight Views of Hong Township in ancient Sixian County. The Sui Dyke is also known as the Bian Dyke, which is the embankment of the Tongji Canal. ”

Willows planted in rows by the flowing waters" — solidified is the canal scene, while flowing is the canal water. Waterfowl leisurely roam in the river, and people stroll along the banks. The villagers of Caomiao Village in Sixian have lived along the canal since ancient times. The area was historically called the "

Ten-Li Long Village," and this section is also the core area of the Sixian section of the Grand Canal.

The 28.1-kilometer-long waterway of the Sixian section of the Grand Canal is the most complete existing segment of the "living canal" of the Sui and Tang Dynasties Grand Canal (Tongji Canal). Among it, the approximately 5.8-kilometer stretch from the Xinhongqiao eastward to the confluence with the Xinsuihe in Sixian is a World Cultural Heritage segment. For thousands of years, literati have composed verses praising it, and skilled craftsmen have dredged the canal and maintained its embankments.

By planting willows and reeds, dredging silt, storing water, replenishing water, and managing the river, the people living along its banks carry forward the wisdom of their ancestors, safeguarding this millennia-old green corridor. Through the coordinated development of people, water, and the city, the cultural value of the Grand Canal is further highlighted.

Within Sixian County, the canal connects southward to the Xinbianhe water system and eastward to the Xinsuihe, revitalizing the entire water network of the ancient canal course in Sixian and forming a complete, living water system. "

The local water conservancy and ecological environment departments in Sixian conduct water quality monitoring at multiple sections of the Grand Canal once or twice a month, and carry out water changes and replenishment based on real-time conditions," a staff member from the Sixian Water Conservancy Bureau introduced. Focusing on key aspects such as the connectivity of water systems in sections with water flow and the allocation of water resources, the management and protection of the Grand Canal primarily involves four areas: consistently implementing the river chief system, strictly approving river-related projects, regularly clearing garbage and aquatic plants, and regulating water levels through water replenishment projects.

How can this flowing scenic line be better presented? An integrated system model combining ecological water management, cultural heritage protection, flood control safety, and the integration of cultural tourism with urban development will continuously support the protection, inheritance, and utilization of the Grand Canal.

The imprint of the Grand Canal is deeply embedded in the lives of families along its banks. In Yongqiao District, Lingbi, and Sixian within Suzhou, there are many roads and residential communities named after the "

Bianhe" or "

Grand Canal."

Dahe South Street, one of the oldest streets in Yongqiao District, Suzhou, owes its name to its location on the south bank of the Sui-Tang Grand Canal. The commercial area north of Dahe South Street marks where the ancient Bianhe River once flowed. At the northwest corner of the intersection of Dahe South Street and Huaihai Road stands a monument marking the site of the ancient Yongqiao Bridge, standing alongside the vibrant modern scene of bustling traffic and crowds.

Lingbi County town can be described as a small city built upon the ruins of the ancient Grand Canal. During archaeological excavations on Fengshan Avenue in Lingbi County, a complete river channel, river embankments, remnants of wooden bank reinforcements, and abrasion marks from ship bottoms were uncovered, confirming that the canal was once navigable here and served a grain transport function.

Along this precious living water vein in the Sixian section, the scenery is particularly captivating. "

Sixian is home to the Museum, Library, Planning Hall, Family Tradition Hall, Cultural Center (Children's Palace), Science and Technology Museum, Ancient Shoe Museum, and Sui-Tang Grand Canal Museum," a staff member from the Sixian Culture and Tourism Bureau introduced to reporters, detailing the series of public cultural venues lining the canal. These multifunctional, comprehensive cultural spaces integrate venue tours, intangible cultural heritage teaching, cultural performances, social education, and cultural experiences, leveraging the canal's resource advantages to revitalize the utilization of canal heritage and cultural transmission. Naturally, the construction and opening of these venues serve the daily lives of local residents, blending seamlessly with the beautiful ecological environment of the canal to become one integrated scene and scenic view.

The water has become clearer, the banks greener—the vigorous figures jogging on the greenway at dawn, the energetic dance moves in the square during the evening, and the silhouettes of small groups sitting facing the river in the afternoon all etch the nourishing benefits that the green development achievements of the Grand Canal have brought to the people's lives.

In recent years, systematic archaeological surveys conducted along the entire ancient course of the Grand Canal in the Sixian section have basically clarified the alignment, riverbed, and bank slopes of the Sixian Canal. With local investigations and sorting of cultural resources along the route, the distribution, preservation, and utilization of these cultural resources have gained widespread recognition.

The willows shading the canal banks, echoing the chants found in ancient texts, have become a symbol of the canal's healthy ecology and the prosperous lives of local residents today. Through watershed management and cultural empowerment, a distinctive landscape embodying local sentiments has taken shape. The profound ability of a sound ecological environment to shape social life is vividly demonstrated, painting a happy picture of ecological beauty, universal benefits for people's livelihoods, and thriving cultural tourism.

Source: Anhui Daily