XINING, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- A forum exploring the preservation and promotion of Kunlun culture, centering around a celestial peak in the shared mythology and collective memories of various Chinese ethnic groups, took place Wednesday in northwest China's Qinghai Province.
The Kunlun Culture Forum, being hosted in Xining, capital of Qinghai, is dedicated to exploring the historical roots, spiritual connotations and contemporary relevance of Kunlun culture.
Stretching over 2,500 km across western China with an average elevation surpassing 5,000 meters, the towering Kunlun Mountains have long been revered as "the ancestor of all mountains and the source of all waters."
In Chinese mythology, Kunlun is a sacred peak where the Queen Mother of the West resides and where the Yellow Emperor, the cultural progenitor of the Chinese nation, built palaces to inaugurate the civilization of ritual and music.
At least 20 ethnic groups, including the Qiang, Yi and Jingpo, trace their ancestry to the foot of the Kunlun Mountains. Since modern times, Kunlun has been a spiritual homeland for the Chinese, often eulogized to invigorate the national spirit in times of national peril.
The event was co-hosted by the publicity department of the Qinghai Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Qinghai Branch of Xinhua News Agency. ■
