What are the four stages of Chu culture development?

Chu culture has been developing and growing in the long historical years. According to the characteristics of Chu culture in different periods, Chu culture can be divided into four stages: initial stage, prosperous stage, prosperous stage and transformation stage.

The thirty-one years from the founding of Chu people to Zhou Pingwang (740 BC) is the beginning of Chu culture. During this period, Chu completed the transformation from primitive society to slave society, and began to create its own characteristic culture on the basis of synthesizing the strengths of Chinese culture and barbarian culture. Generally speaking, there is no obvious difference between Chu culture and Huaxia culture at this time, especially in material culture such as pottery and bronze ware, but Chu culture has shown some characteristics of its own after all. The characteristics of worshipping fire, phoenix and witchcraft, pioneering and enterprising, informal manners and laws, and unconventional laid the foundation for the development of Chu culture later.

The Spring and Autumn Period is the heyday of Chu culture. During this period, Chu culture began to show its own distinctive characteristics, which were manifested in all aspects. From the social form, serfdom spread all over the counties and cities of Chu, but slavery was not fully developed. In terms of ethnic policy, Chu people positioned themselves between Yi and Xia, and implemented the ethnic policy of "returning Yi to Xia". For the destroyed country, the Chu people's practice is to move the capital, guard the ancestral temple and county territory, take care of their subjects and use their talents instead of capturing slaves. From the perspective of official system, Chu officials mostly call Yin, with few exceptions from the central to the local; From the administrative system, Chu initiated the county system, which was followed by other countries. In the military system, the title and organizational system are also different from those of the Central Plains. These large cultural backgrounds fully show the individuality and boldness of Chu culture, and Chu culture has also matured.

The Warring States period is the heyday of Chu culture. At this time, bronze production reached its peak, ironware was widely popularized, silk embroidery flourished, lacquerware and wood products appeared, urban construction flourished, and material culture reached its peak. Obviously different from the prosperous period, the spiritual culture of Chu in its heyday shines brilliantly, which gives great enlightenment to future generations. From philosophy to literature, from calligraphy and painting to music and dance, all of them are unique, unique and face the future. More importantly, the political and social system, national cultural psychology and daily life style of Chu people tend to be mature and stereotyped, making Chu culture truly a unique culture, which has been told by people for thousands of years.

The transitional period of Chu culture is between Qin and Han Dynasties. Qin destroyed Chu and rejected Chu culture, which suffered a great blow. But the spiritual factors of Chu culture are far more deeply rooted than the material factors, so Chu culture is defeated and unbeaten. At the end of Qin Dynasty, Chu culture was revived by Liu Bang and Xiang Yu, but it is impossible for Chu culture to develop along its own path without the foundation of material culture. After Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty exclusively respected Confucianism, the self-contained Chu culture ceased to exist, but some factors of Chu culture, like the traditional Central Plains culture, became an integral part of the new China culture. At this point, the North and South cultures blended and promoted each other, creating a splendid civilization of the Chinese nation.