Four Ancient Civilizations "Four Ancient Civilizations" refers to China, ancient India, ancient Egypt and ancient Babylon, the birthplace of ancient civilizations. This statement was first used by Mr. Liang Qichao in the 2th Century Pacific Song in 19. Liang Qichao's statement comes from the "birthplace of the four major civilizations" recognized by the world academic community at that time. Unfortunately, except China, the cultures of the other three ancient civilizations have disappeared from the earth, leaving only some historical traces. At present, there are five ancient cradles of civilization recognized by international academic circles. The History of World Civilization (William Gao Xi, USA) states that "ancient Babylon (between 4 BC and 225 BC), ancient Egypt (between 35 BC and 6 BC), ancient Greece (between 3 BC and 11 BC), ancient India (in 2 BC) and ancient China (in 16 BC). This is the most recognized statement in academic circles. Other statements include: "Ancient Egypt, ancient India, ancient Babylon, ancient Greece and ancient Maya" and "Ancient Egypt, ancient India, ancient Babylon, ancient Inca and China".

At present, it is generally accepted in China academic circles that China is one of the cradles of world civilization, with a history of 4,78 years, and is called "four ancient civilizations" together with ancient Egypt, Babylon and ancient India.

the first civilization in ancient Egypt (from the late 4' s to the early 2' s BC)

The emergence of civilization-Egypt is one of the cradles of human civilization, which experienced its own Paleolithic and Mesolithic times. The Neolithic culture in Egypt (Merimda culture on the western edge of the delta, Fayong culture in central Egypt, Tasa-Badali culture, etc.) is a mixed culture of agriculture and animal husbandry. Although it is still controversial when and where Egypt's agriculture originated, its agricultural culture was quite developed in 6-5 BC, and bronze wares were used, which laid the foundation for the early emergence of its civilization.

In the early dynasty, according to Manetto (an Egyptian priest who lived at the turn of 4th-3rd century BC), the first dynasty was founded by menes, the king of ancient Egypt. Since then, Egypt has experienced 31 dynasties (before the Greek conquest). Modern egyptologists divide ancient Egyptian history into several periods, and each period includes several dynasties of Manieto. The early dynasty included the first and second dynasties, which lasted about 31-2686 BC.

According to Manetto, menes was not only the founder of the first dynasty, but also the founder and unifier of the Egyptian state. After establishing his own country in the south, he conquered the delta in the north. In order to consolidate his rule in the north, he established a fortress city-Memphis (formerly known as Baicheng, which was called by the Greeks) at the junction of the river valley and the delta, and its patron saint was Putah (the creator of the world, the patron saint of art and handicrafts). Modern archaeology has not found any physical evidence about the existence of menes. Therefore, modern Egyptologists often regard Narmai or Aha and menes with cultural relics as one person, while some scholars doubt the authenticity of menes.

the social and economic situation of the ancient kingdom period and the first middle period

The ancient kingdom period included the 3rd-6th dynasties, the time was about 2686-2181 BC, and its capital was Memphis. The construction of the pyramids began in this period, and the largest pyramid was also built in this period, so the ancient kingdom period is also called the pyramid period.

The ancient kingdom period was a period when the slavery economy in ancient Egypt was greatly developed. The unification of the country has created a relatively stable environment for social and economic development; The construction of irrigation system on a larger scale has provided important conditions for the development of agriculture. All the main crops (such as barley, wheat, flax, grapes, figs, etc.) planted in Egypt by future generations have been planted during the ancient kingdom. In terms of farm tools, the slave owners used a heavy plow pulled by two cows in their economy, which was much more advanced than using a simple wooden plow to cultivate land. As can be seen from the paintings in the tombs of nobles, agricultural technology is still primitive on the whole, but because the silt deposited after the flooding of the Nile is very fertile, the grain output can still support the huge ruling class state machinery and the vast number of craftsmen in the ancient kingdom.

the royal family controls the state affairs: the autocratic monarchy in the ancient kingdom period was not only manifested in the king's direct control of the main power of the country, but also in the royal family's control of the state affairs, and most senior officials were members of the royal family. In the 4th dynasty, the post of Wiesel was mostly held by a prince. Even in the 5th-6th dynasty, there was a prince holding the post of Wiesel. In Sakala, one of the six princes' tombs in the 5th-6th dynasties served as Vesil; Two people have served as royal affairs supervisors and military commanders. At the end of the ancient kingdom, the kingship weakened, and the local aristocrats rose. Some local aristocrats served as Wiesel. For example, in the 6th dynasty, a Wiesel named Zawu turned out to be a local aristocrat. However, the reason why Zawu can hold the post of Wiesel may be related to his two sisters becoming queens.

The king has unlimited authority over his subjects: in ancient Egypt, the king was above the state, and all subjects seemed to be his slaves. When the subjects saw the king, they could only kiss the dust at his feet, and it would be a great honor for a Xu to be allowed to kiss the king's feet. The attitude towards the king reflected in the inscriptions of some officials (such as Wu Ni and others) in the 5th-6th dynasty fully explained the nature of the relationship between monarch and minister at that time. However, it seems that the relationship between the officials and the king at the turn of the 3rd-4th dynasty reflected in the inscription of Mei Teng's tomb is not so, and the inscriptions of Henku and Eby in the 5th-6th dynasty seem to indicate that the relationship between local nobles and the king is not so. Perhaps, people like Wu Ni are hand-picked cronies of the king, so their attitude towards the king is very different from that of local nobles.

The kingship was further deified: the absolute monarchy used theocracy to strengthen the kingship and strengthen the rule of the slave owner class. In the early days of the ancient kingdom and before, Horus, the eagle god, was the main protector of kingship. A statue of King Hafra in the 4th Dynasty was created by Horus spreading his wings to protect his head. At that time, the king also had a Horus name (title). However, during the ancient kingdom, the worship of the sun god La gradually developed and gained the upper hand in the 5th Dynasty. According to Weist Karl papyrus, the first three kings of the 5th Dynasty all declared themselves sons of Lashen, that is, descendants of Lashen. Since the 3rd dynasty, the king's name has been written in an oval frame. This frame symbolizes the area where the sun shines, and it also means that the king is protected by the sun god. During the ancient kingdom, many kings' names had the name of Dora at the end. In order to get the support of theocracy, the kings in the ancient kingdom donated a lot of land and labor to the temple. Deifying kingship is not only the requirement of kingship itself, but also the need of the ruling class at that time. The deification of kingship also means the deification of the slave owners' class regime. Therefore, it is also tolerated by the slave owner class. To this end, ancient Egyptian slave owners kept a whole priest group.

the construction of the pyramid

the pyramid is the tomb of the ancient Egyptian king, and China people call it the "pyramid" because it looks like the Chinese character "gold". The construction of the pyramids began with Jossel, the first king of the 3rd dynasty. At that time, he asked the famous architect Eamon Hotep to design a grave for him. Eamon Hotep originally designed and built a huge stone Mastaba in Sakala. But Jossel and Eamon Hotep are not satisfied with themselves, and feel that they are not solemn enough. So Imonhotep added five Mastaba smaller than each other, which became the hierarchical pyramid of Jossel that can still be seen now. It is 61.2 meters high, 123.3 meters long from east to west at the bottom and 17.4 meters long from north to south. There are corridors and burial chambers at the bottom of the pyramid, a memorial temple is built next to the pyramid, and the whole building complex is surrounded by walls. When the first king of the 4th Dynasty, Snevruz, built three pyramids. His first pyramid was in Maidumen, which was originally a hierarchical pyramid. Later, the steps of each layer were filled in to form a pyramid with a pyramid; Later, he ordered someone to build a real pyramid in Dashuer, but due to design errors, he found that the angle was too large in the middle of the building, so he had to change the angle, thus becoming a diamond pyramid, or a curved pyramid. Of course, Snevru was not satisfied with this, so he ordered another pyramid with a real pyramid to be built in Dashuer. It can be said that the Snevreu period was a period of transition from hierarchical pyramid to real pyramid. The largest pyramid was built by King Khufu of the 4th Dynasty (the Greeks called him Qi hops), and its architect was Khufu's brother Hymian, whose address was chosen in Kize, on the west bank of the Nile near Memphis. The pyramid is 146.5 meters high and each side is about 23 meters long. It is said that the pyramid used about 2.3 million stones of different sizes, each weighing about 2.5 tons on average. The tomb was originally built at the bottom of the tower, and later a tomb was built in the middle of the tower. The entrance of this pyramid is triangular at 13 meters above the ground in the north of the tower, so that the weight of the tower body is evenly dispersed and the passage opening will not be crushed.

According to Herodotus, it took 3 years to build the pyramid of Khufu. In the first 1 years, roads for transporting stones and underground burial chambers were built, and in the next 2 years, the pyramid itself was built, with 1, workers every year.

Next to the pyramid of Khufu, there are the pyramids of the two kings of this dynasty, Hafra (the Greeks called him Zivlin) and Menkaure (the Greeks called him MacKay Linnus). There is a sphinx of the king not far in front of the pyramid of Havelah, which is about 2 meters high and 5 meters long. It is said that its face is carved according to the image of Havelah. The ancient Egyptians believed that the lion was the guardian of the entrance to heaven.

around these pyramids, there are many aristocratic masters, which symbolically reflects the supremacy of absolute monarchy to its vassals.

Ancient India

The world where the Buddha and dreams are intertwined-Indian culture

India is close to our country, but due to the barrier of the towering Himalayan snow-capped mountains, we know little about this neighbor's situation. "Going to the Western Heaven to learn Buddhist scriptures" has become a synonym for hardship in the ears of China people. Like the Nile and the two river basins in ancient Egypt and the Yellow River and the Yangtze River in China, the Indus River and the Ganges River are the same.

5, years ago, there were ancient ancestors in the Indian subcontinent. They were also slash-and-burn, fishing, hunting and gathering, and they thrived from generation to generation. By the Neolithic Age, about 1, years ago, there were settlements all over India, and people had begun to engage in agriculture, domesticate livestock and make exquisite household appliances. All this provided fertile ground for the birth of a splendid ancient civilization. In the South Asian subcontinent, there is an ancient country with towering Himalayan mountains and vast Indian Ocean, which is magnificent and full of vitality. This is India, which is called "the country of the moon". Because its territory is shaped like a cow's head, some people call it "the country of the cow's skull".

The Ganges River, an ancient civilization in India, started from the Himalayas and passed through an Asian peninsula surrounded by the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, which nourished this land and gave birth to a splendid civilization and became a "holy river" of a country. And this lucky country is India, one of the four ancient civilizations in the world.

India is a melting pot of culture. The unique historical background of this country makes it contain many cultural trends from ancient times to modern times, from west to east, from Asia to Europe and so on. In addition, it is a country composed of five ethnic groups, and it is like a big cultural museum. Mumbai, on the west bank of the capital New Delhi, is the center of culture, while Calcutta has news about culture every day. Diversified music, dances, ballet and comedies dazzle tourists and make them forget to return.

After living in a noisy big city for a long time, people yearn for a return to nature. The foundation of Indian traditional music is "nature". It praises the relationship between people, between man and nature, and between man and God. The melodies of the four seasons are all reflected in the traditional tune "Lag"-it is said that the ancients were inspired by the chirping of birds and the burning sound of branches in the forest and created the first "Lag". As for the content of the song, it originated from religious ceremonies in North India. Today, traditional songs still retain the ancient pronunciation, and the singer's sound quality is pure, which makes the songs maintain a simple and pure feeling of hymn. Even if you don't understand the lyrics, you can feel the sacredness and peace of nature.

Natyam, one of the oldest dances in India, means "the art of dancing" in Hindi. In addition to emphasizing the rhythm of dance, it also emphasizes that accompaniment music must be pleasant to listen to, consisting of solemn poems and simple music. This is a sacrificial dance, which can fully reflect the feelings of dancers. It was originally performed by temple dancers in the temple. The key to this dance is to keep your upper body straight, your legs half bent, your knees apart, and your feet like a half-open fan. Although there are strict action norms, in fact, each actor's performance is different, and most of the time the performance is improvisation, so each Natyam's personal style is very strong.

Now, this traditional dance is resurgent in a retro trend. However, in ancient times Natyam was generally a solo dance, but now group dance is more popular. A group of graceful dancers in gorgeous traditional costumes danced like fairies in beautiful music, and the effect was better than solo dancing. Today, Natyam has developed into a technical art system.

Cuisine cooked by clay stove and charcoal fire

Indian curry is world-famous, and many people think that rice and curry are the main foods and seasonings in India. But in fact, rice is the staple food in only some parts of India, and curry is a strange seasoning for most Indians. In fact, there is no unified style is the biggest feature of Indian food. Moreover, not only are there great differences in eating habits among cities in India, but even every family has an obvious eating style. But on the whole, chicken, fish and mutton are the most common. Gravy is the main sauce in India and is very popular all over India. Of course, the gravy in every place has its obvious local characteristics. In Indian kitchens, only fresh green peppers and dried red peppers are spicy. So tourists who don't like spicy food don't have to worry about not eating authentic Indian food. For tourists, India's most famous traditional dishes originated from the Indian royal family. Stewed meat, sauce and rice are the basis of three different cooking styles. But after all, royal food can only be eaten in specialized restaurants and hotels, and ordinary people are not "cold" about it. In the local area, many popular Indian dishes are very homely, such as unleavened oat bread coated with green mustard cooked by coal fire all night. Such a simple winter snack is regarded as a favorite by both farmers and city people. And in the southern city