After Chinese dance entered the civilized society from the primitive times, its development accelerated and got matured quickly. The Yayue(elegant music) system established in the early Western Zhou Dynasty (11thcentury -771BC) was a milestone marking maturity of the Chinese dance culture. The rite and music system of the Zhou Dynasty (11thcentury - 256BC) was founded on the heritage of the preceding systems of the Xia (21st- 17thcentury BC) and Shang (17th- 11thcentury BC) Dynasties. As a ruling measure -- an instrument of education, the status and function of music and dance art were given unprecedented attention. This part of music and dance is the so-called Yayue(elegant music) or Yawu(elegant dance), which would remain the chief part of Chinese music and dance culture. Although it experienced ups and downs in the following feudal society spanning thousands of years, it always represented the orthodox trend of music and dance. The chief content of the dance for Yayuewas the Six Major Dances, or the Six-Dynasty Dances, which represented six dynasties. The first dance was said to be the Yunmen(also called Yunmen Dajuan, XianchiorChengyun) and it originated from the legendary ancient Emperor Huangdi. The following parts were the Dazhang (or Daxian) from the Emperor Yao, the Dashao (or Dazhao) from the Emperor Shun, and the Daxia(or Xiayue) from Emperor Yu of the Xia Dynasty, and the Dahuo(also called Sanglin) from Emperor Tang of the Shang Dynasty. The last dance was Dawuon a realistic Subject, which reflected the achievements of Emperor Wu who overthrew Emperor Zhou of the Shang Dynasty and set up the Zhou Dynasty. These dances disappeared long ago and it's impossible to find their details nowadays. However, from various legends about these dances, we can still guess some basic elements of them.

A grandson of Yellow Emperor Xuan Yuan, Emperor Yu’s family name was Si and given name Wenming. A generous man, Yu was very diligent. He was known for his virtues. His kindness made people want to be close to him and people believed what he said. People were willing to follow what he said and did. He was a leader people looked too. Gun, his father, received orders from emperor Yao to stop floods. He was executed for his failure. Emperor Shun ordered Yu to continue what his fathered failed to do and appointed Yu to the post of Minister of Works. Learning from his father’s failures in controlling the flood, Yu adopted different method of leading waters away. He opened channels and leveled blocks so that the water could be led into big rivers. During the 13 years when the project lasted, Yu work toiled despite wind and rain, and put his heart and soul in the work. He got married at 30 in Tushan and said goodbye to his newly wed wife after three nights. Later he had three opportunities to see his wife on his way to somewhere, but he did not have time to go in and see his wife. Yu confined himself to simple food and simple garments. Government offices under him were not allowed to enjoy any luxuries. Yu carried out water control projects by renovating ditches and cannels. Yu carried a plough and a spade to the fields and worked there to set a good example to people. Yu formulated a policy of tributes, which decided on the tributes different places should send to the court based on respective local special products. This police was named “Determination of Tributes”. In order to commemorate Yu’s achievements, Shang Shu, an ancient book, named its first chapter as Yu’s Tributes. Yu held, “Virtue lies only in good administration and the purpose of governance is providing for people.” He made a suggestion to Emperor Shun that only nine kinds of things could be called achievements and only these nine achievements should be advocated for a government. Emperor Shun spoke highly of Yu’s suggestion. He applauded Yu’s achievements by saying to the effect that the chaotic world came back to peace and it was a great achievement on which 10,000 generations could rely for prosperity. Yu was conferred on Duke of Xia. For this reason, Yu was also known as Duke Yu. Later, Emperor Yu passed the throne to Yu, who set up the Xia Dynasty, the first dynasty in Chinese history. Legend has it that Yu came to Kuaiji during his fight against the great flood. He climbed the Wanwei Mountain and distributed letters written in gold to gods and got the water diversion method from gods. After he ascended the throne, he completed his work in three years and brought the country to his control in five years. He then traveled all over the country and came back to Yue. He got to the Maoshan Mountain and met ministers from all over the country and decided on the ruling policies during the gathering. At this meeting, Yu also conferred honorary titles on virtuous people and awarded people of achievements. Yu’s principle of rewards and punishment was that no man should be executed if his crimes were not proved beyond doubt and no man should be awarded if his achievements were not proved beyond doubt. The name of the Maoshan Mountain, where Yu and his people met, was later changed to Kuaiji. In his evening years, Yu came to East China for inspection and hunting. After he came to Kuaiji, he met old people and decided on the measuring and weighing systems. Yu died there and was buried in Kuaiji. Yu Mausoleum, Yu Memorial Temple and Yu Temple are located in the southeastern Shaoxing County. Source: sx.gov.cn Editor: Wang Moyan  

Geography Shanxi (literally, west of mountain) is named after its location in the west of the Taihang Mountain Range. It is situated 34"35"-40"45" north latitude and 110"15"-114"32" east longitude with an area of 156,300 square kilometers. It is bounded by the North China Plain in the east and the middle Yellow River in the west. Mountains cover 67.5% of Shanxi Province, and its highlands, hills and basins stand at about 1,000 meters or more above sea level, sloping from northeast to southwest. Climate Shanxi has a continental monsoonal climate with distinctive seasons. It has cold winters but mild summers, with a mean annual temperature of 6oC to 14oC. The greater part of the province has a mean annual precipitation of 400-650 mm, increasing gradually from northwest to southeast. Administrative Division and Population It is divided into 1 district, 10 prefecture-level cities, 12 county-level cities and 85 counties, with a population of 32.97 million as of 2000, mainly including ethnic groups of Han, Hui, Mongolian and Manchu. Food Daoxiao Mian (Knife-Pared Noodles), Shaomai (steamed dumplings with the dough gathered at the top), and Youmian (Naked Oats Noodles), etc. Special Local Products The traditional specialties are Fen wine, Zhuyeqing wine, Qingxu vinegar and Changzhi ginseng. Culture Shanxi Bangzi (a kind of opera in Shanxi), Huagu (Flower Drum), and Yangge (popular rural folk dance), etc. Brief Introduction Shanxi, Jin for short, is situated on the middle segment of the Yellow River. The land of Shanxi is one of the origins of Chinese civilization, exhibiting evidence of human settlement over a million years ago. Huangdi (the Yellow Emperor), a famous legendary hero, apparently sojourned in Shanxi, and the earliest rulers, Yao, Shun and Yu, all founded their capitals there. Datong, known as Pingcheng in ancient times, was the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534) and famous throughout the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-581). During the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) Dynasties, Shanxi became very prosperous. In the past, Shanxi people were once called the Chinese Jews, indicating that they were people of wisdom. The long history of Shanxi has provided the province with a rich and colorful cultural heritage. The basins here are the main agricultural region. The most important products are wheat, corn, cotton and peanut. Shanxi is the base of coal industry. The produces of heavy machinery and textile are very important in the whole country. Also, there is iron and steel, electric power, chemical industry, textile and food. The communication is mainly railway. And the highway here is convenient, too. There are abundant historic reserves in Shanxi, including Wutai Mountain, Hengshan Mountain, the Jin Ancestral Hall in Taiyuan, the Yungan Grottos in Datong, the Shuanglin Temple in Pingyao, the Hanging Temple in Hunyuan, and the Hukou Waterfall of the Yellow River.