车出北京八达岭，便一路爬坡。过了河北界，就在晋北的黄土高原上颠簸着。窗外，是典型的黄土风光，一层又一层的塬、梁、峁，像是大地裸露的筋骨，苍黄是这里亘古不变的底色。那“黄”中好不容易挣扎出的些许绿意，便显得格外珍贵，星星点点，如同岁月补丁上的细密针脚。风过处，仍有干燥的黄土气息扑入车窗，带着一种古老而执拗的脾气。我要去的，是老家阳高境内那座名为“大泉山”的丘陵。说它是“山”，实在是有些过誉了。在见惯了名山大川的人的眼里，它至多算是个隆起的土丘，其貌不扬，沉默地蜷缩在苍茫天地之间。然而，正是这座小山，肩上扛着一个“大”名字、一段“大”历史、一种“大”精神。汽车在百里绿色长廊穿行，我的思绪随着车身的摇晃，荡漾开一圈圈疑惑与期待的涟漪……
Once the car pulled out of Badaling on the outskirts of Beijing, it began a steady climb upward. Crossing the Hebei border, it rattled and bumped its way along the Loess Plateau of northern Shanxi. Outside the window unfolded a classic loess landscape: layer upon layer of loess tablelands, ridges and mounds, like the very sinews and bones of the earth laid bare. The pale, enduring yellow had been the land’s eternal hue since time immemorial. Against the overwhelming yellow, the occasional patches of green, struggling to emerge, looked exceptionally precious—sparse and scattered, like the delicate stitches on patches mending the fabric of time. When the wind swept by, the dry tang of loess still drifted into the car window, carrying with it an ancient, unyielding temperament. My destination was Daquan Mountain (literally meaning “Big Spring Mountain”)—a hill in my hometown of Yanggao County. Calling it a “mountain” was almost an overstatement. To those accustomed to famous peaks and mighty rivers, it was no more than a raised mound of earth: plain-looking, quietly nestled between the boundless sky and land. Yet, it was this small hill that bore a “big” name, a “big” history, and a “big” spirit. As the car glided through a hundred-mile green corridor, my thoughts, swaying in tandem with the vehicle’s rhythm, rippled outward in waves of doubt and anticipation…
大与小
Big and Small
我站在大泉山的脚下，仰起头，仔仔细细地打量它。它果然是不高的，山势也算不得奇崛，仿佛一个蹲在田埂上歇晌的老农，脊背被岁月压得有些佝偻，却透着股沉甸甸的实在。若论形体，它无疑是“小”的，是这黄土高原上千千万万个无名丘陵中极普通的一个。但我知道，在 1955 年的冬天，有一双雄视百代的眼睛，曾透过一份普通的报告，深情地凝望过它。那双眼睛的主人，正是毛泽东同志。他看到了什么呢？他看到了一群平凡的人，用最粗糙的双手，在这片被干旱和水土流失折磨了千百年的土地上，创造了一个奇迹。于是，他欣然提笔，将报告的标题改为《看，大泉山变了样子！》，并写下了那篇后来名动天下的按语。刹那
间，这座小小的丘陵，便被赋予了宏大的意义。它不再只是一座土山，它成了一个象征，一个火种。它的名字，随着《中国农村的社会主义高潮》一书的发行，传遍了神州大地。
I stood at the foot of Daquan Mountain, lifted my head, and gazed upon it carefully. It truly wasn’t tall, nor did its shape strike one as steep or imposing. Rather, it resembled an old farmer squatting by a field ridge taking a midday break—his back slightly hunched by the weight of years, yet exuding a solid, down-to-earth aura. In terms of physical size, it was undoubtedly “small”—just an unremarkable mound among countless nameless hills dotting the Loess Plateau. But I knew that in the winter of 1955, a pair of eyes that saw far beyond their time had gazed affectionately at it through an ordinary report. The owner of the eyes was none other than Comrade Mao Zedong. What did he see? He saw ordinary people, with their rough, calloused hands, creating a miracle on this land that had suffered from drought and soil erosion for thousands of years. With delight, he picked up his brush, changed the title of the report to Look, Daquan Mountain Has Taken on a New Look and wrote the postscript that later became famous nationwide. In an instant, this tiny hill was imbued with great significance. No longer just a mound of earth, it became a symbol, a spark of inspiration. Its name spread across the entire country with the publication of the book Socialist Upsurge in China’s Rural Areas.
中华人民共和国成立以来，大泉山在水土流失治理中承载了很不寻常的意义。大泉山人首创的水土保持经验，为全国一切有水土流失地方的治理和开发，提供了可鉴之策，被誉为“水土保持第一山”。它那朴素的、布满鱼鳞坑与梯田的身影，成为一种精神图腾，召唤着无数渴望改变家乡贫穷面貌的人们。从这小小的躯体里，迸发出了大得惊人的榜样力量，这“大”与“小”的辩证，此刻就清晰地呈现在我眼前。山石的实体是小的，但它所承载的理想与精神，却如这高原上的长风，浩荡无垠。
Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Daquan Mountain has carried extraordinary significance in soil and water conservation. The pioneering soil and water conservation methods developed by the people of Daquan Mountain has provided a valuable model for the governance and development of all areas suffering from soil erosion across the nation, earning it the title of “The First Mountain of Soil and Water Conservation”. Its simple form, covered with fish-scale pits and terraced fields, has become a spiritual totem, inspiring countless people eager to transform their hometowns’ poverty-stricken conditions. From this small hill burst forth an astonishing, exemplary power. The dialectic between “small” and “big” stood clearly before my eyes at this moment: the mountain itself was physically small, but the ideals and spirit it carried were as boundless as the winds sweeping across the plateau.
新与老
New and Old
我沿着新修的步道缓缓向上走。其实，我对大泉山的了解和认知，一直都是零碎断续的。大泉山位于阳高县黄土丘陵地区，北距县城 12.5 公里，总面积 18.37 平方公里，共有 8 座山头、74 条沟壑。最长的壕沟有 1500 米，最短的有 10 多米。大泉山既是山名，也是村名。大泉山村原名西岭村，1955 年毛泽东同志作出批示后，改名为大泉山村。
I walked slowly upward along the newly built footpath. Truth be told, my knowledge and understanding of Daquan Mountain had always been fragmented and intermittent. Daquan Mountain lies in the loess hilly region of Yanggao County, 12.5 kilometers south of the county seat. Covering a total area of 18.37 square kilometers, it comprises 8 mountain tops and 74 gullies, with the longest gully stretching 1,500 meters and the shortest spanning merely over 10 meters. Daquan Mountain is both the name of the mountain and a village. The village, originally known as Xiling Village (literally meaning West Ridge Village), was later renamed Daquan Mountain Village in 1955 after Comrade Mao Zedong issued a directive.
记得在阳高制药厂和阳高农行工作时，尽管我当时还是一个临时工，但所有的活动都是参加的，其中就包括每年春季到大泉山义务植树。如今，我还常常想起当年与大家一起扛着红旗迎着风，人欢马叫的情景。所以，今天看到大泉山郁郁葱葱的树木时，我心里充满自豪。毕竟作为一个阳高人，自己还是在大泉山这片热土上植过树、培过土、浇过水、洒过汗的。虽然已经记不清，当年我是在哪个山头哪垄田地种植的哪几棵树木。
I still remembered working at Yanggao Pharmaceutical Factory and Yanggao Agricultural Bank. Though I was only a temporary worker at the time, I participated in all company activities, including the annual voluntary tree-planting at Daquan Mountain every spring. To this day, I often recalled those lively scenes: the red flags fluttering in the wind, people chatting merrily and horses neighing. Therefore, when I saw Daquan Mountain covered in lush greenery today, my heart swelled with pride. After all, as a native of Yanggao, I too had planted trees, turned over soil, watered seedlings, and sweated on this cherished land---even if I could no longer recall exactly which trees I had planted, on which hilltop or in which field all those years ago.
二十世纪二三十年代，大泉山水土流失面积曾达 96.5%。严重的水土流失带来了灾难性的危害。当时的大泉山山顶和沟壑岩石裸露，坡面土层越来越薄，缓平地带也因雨水长期冲刷形成了大大小小的沟壑，一眼望去满目荒凉。如今，再登上山顶，放眼望去——路是平整的，两旁是新植的松柏与各种观赏树木，规划得整齐有序。这是大泉山在新时代被赋予的新貌。
Back in the 1920s and 1930s, soil erosion plagued 96.5% of the Daquan Mountain area. This severe degradation brought catastrophic consequences: rocks lay exposed on mountain tops and in gullies, the soil layer on slopes grew increasingly thin and even flatter areas were carved into countless gullies by relentless rain. A single glance revealed nothing but desolation. Now, ascending to the mountain top once more and looking into the distance—the roads were smooth and level, flanked by newly planted pines, cypresses, and various ornamental trees, all arranged in an orderly manner. This was the new face Daquan Mountain had been given in the new era.
我的目光还想触摸它那颇为珍贵的老筋骨。我仿佛看见了，看见了张凤林、高进才那些大泉山最初的建设者们。在半个多世纪前，他们是怎样的一群人呢？定然是面孔黝黑，手掌皲裂如这山间的枣树皮，穿着打补丁的棉袄，腰间别着旱烟袋。他们或许没有高深的理论、不懂得花哨的技术，他们所拥有的，只是一股子不甘被穷山恶水摆布的心气儿和一双永不知疲倦的手。他们就是在这座当时还是“山山和尚头，处处咧嘴沟，旱天渴死牛，雨天水土流”的荒山上，开始了最原始的摸索。那该是何等艰辛的创作！一镐一镐地刨，一锹一锹地铲，用最土的办法，去理解、去驯服脚下这片暴躁的土地。他们发现了“挖坑、堵沟”能存水，“植树、固坡”能保土，认识到“想要治山，必先治水，欲求水利，先防水害”。他们把平时摸索的治山治水“门道”用顺口溜的形式记录下来，最终梳理总结出了“挖坑、开渠、培埂、堵沟”的八字经验。
My gaze longed to touch the Mountain’s precious ancient bones. It was as if I could see them clearly now: Zhang Fenglin, Gao Jincai, and all those early trailblazers of Daquan Mountain. More than half a century ago, what kind of people were they? Surely, their faces were sun-blackened, their palms cracked like the jujube tree bark that dotted these hills. They wore padded cotton jackets patched many times over, with dry tobacco pipes tucked at their waistbands. They might not have possessed profound theories or fancy technologies. What they had was simply a stubborn refusal to be at the mercy of barren mountains and unruly rivers, and a pair of hands that never knew weariness. It was on this desolate mountain, once described in a local rhyme as “bald hills all around, gaping gullies everywhere, oxen dying of thirst in drought, soil washing away with every rain”, that they began their most primitive exploration. What arduous creation that must have been! Digging with pickaxes, shoveling with spades, they used the simplest methods to understand and tame this unruly land beneath their feet. They discovered that “digging pits and blocking gullies” could retain water, and that “planting trees and stabilizing slopes” could preserve soil. They came to understand: “to manage mountains, one must first control water; to seek water’s benefits, one must first prevent its harm.” They recorded their hard-won insights on managing mountains and waters in the form of catchy and rhyming sayings, eventually distilling their experience into an eight-word approach: “dig pits, open channels, build ridges and block gullies.”
毛泽东同志的亲笔批示和口头赞扬，如同春风化雨，滋润着大泉山人的心田。受到巨大鼓舞的大泉山人在原有的八字经验基础上，又创新实施了“八连环”模式。那漫山遍野、状如鱼鳞的土坑，不就是他们写给黄土高原最朴素也最深奥的论文吗？那层层叠叠、挽臂相连的梯田，不就是他们用汗水刻在大地上的、永不磨灭的誓言吗？这精神诞生于火红的年代，它的内核却又是如此的新。他们用行动早早诠释了何为“尊重自然、改造自然”，用成果早早证明了何为“绿水青山就是金山银山”。这样的生态文明思想，其精神源头不正是在千千万万个如同大泉山一样的中国农民最朴素的实践中，早已深深埋下了吗？这“老”与“新”的流转，在此刻浑然一体。老榜样的内核，正与新时代的脉搏，共振出同样强劲的声响。
The handwritten instructions and verbal praise of Comrade Mao Zedong were like a spring breeze and gentle rain, nourishing the hearts of the people of Daquan Mountain. Greatly inspired, they innovated upon the original eight-character approach, implementing the “eight-interlinked model” of soil and water conservation. Were not those fish-scale-shaped pits scattered across the mountainside the plainest yet most profound thesis they wrote to the Loess Plateau? And were not those terraced fields, layered and connected like linked arms, an indelible oath they carved into the earth with their sweat? This spirit was born in a passionate era, yet its core remained remarkably new. With their actions, they long ago embodied what it meant to “respect nature and reshape it”; with their achievements, they demonstrated, decades ahead of their time, that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets”. Was not the spiritual source of such ecological civilization thought deeply rooted in the simplest practices of countless Chinese farmers like those of Daquan Mountain? In this moment, the flow between “old” and “new” became perfectly integrated. The essence of this old model now resonated in harmony with the pulse of the new era, their combined forces producing a powerful rhythm.
远与近
Far and near
问渠那得清如许头活水来。在一片较为开阔的平台上，立着一块石碑，镌刻着毛泽东同志的题词。字迹在高原明亮的阳光下，熠熠生辉。我用手轻轻抚过那冰凉的碑石，触到的却是一段滚烫的历史。
“How can the canal water be so clear and pure? Because it is continuously nourished by fresh water from its source.”[ This line is from the poem "Reflections on Reading" by Zhu Xi, a renowned Neo-Confucian scholar of the Song Dynasty.] On a relatively open platform stood a stone stele, engraved with the inscription by Comrade Mao Zedong. The characters shimmered brightly under the brilliant sunlight of the plateau. As I gently stroked the cold stone surface, I felt as if I were touching a scorching chapter of history.
我闭上眼，风声灌耳，那风声里，似乎夹杂着当年劳动号子的回响，夹杂着铁器碰撞土石的铿锵，夹杂着雨水被鱼鳞坑成功拦截后渗入干渴大地时那一声满足的叹息。当年毛泽东同志的按语发表后，全国掀起了学习大泉山的大热潮，大泉山成为全国水保领域、生态建设、农业战线的一面旗帜，迅即蜚声全国。先后有 23 个省、自治区、直辖市的 3 万多人到大泉山参观学习，其中就有时任山西省委书记陶鲁笳，中科院副院长竺可桢以及陈永贵、申纪兰、李顺达等当时全国农业战线上的著名劳模。截至1957 年，全国出现 455 个新的“大泉山”，培养了像张凤林、高进才式的专家 6600 余人。这些数字背后，是无数人的心血与汗水，是大泉山经验在全国范围内开花结果的生动体现。
Closing my eyes, I let the wind rush past my ears, and within that wind, I seemed to have heard echoes of labor chants from bygone days, the clanging of iron tools against earth and rock, and even a contented sigh as rainwater, successfully intercepted by fish-scale pits, seeped into the parched land. After Comrade Mao Zedong wrote his postscript, a nationwide wave of learning from Daquan Mountain emerged. Daquan Mountain became a model banner in soil and water conservation, ecological restoration, and agricultural development across China, quickly gaining national renown. Over 30,000 people from 23 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government visited Daquan Mountain to study its practices, including Tao Luojia (the then Secretary of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee), Zhu Kezhen (Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences), and renowned agricultural model workers of the time such as Chen Yonggui, Shen Jilan, and Li Shunda. By 1957, 455 new “Daquan Mountain-style” models had emerged nationwide, nurturing more than 6,600 experts like Zhang Fenglin and Gao Jincai. These figures represent the painstaking efforts and sweat of countless individuals, and stand as a vivid embodiment of how the Daquan Mountain experience has blossomed and borne fruit across the nation.
大泉山水土保持的首创精神，早已融入 26 万阳高儿女的血脉，成为激励阳高儿女昂扬奋进、砥砺前行的不竭动力。在大泉山纪念馆里，我看到了市县乡村四级书记在大泉山“公仆林”里劳动的场面。2000 年以来，每年春天植树造林季节，阳高县委、县政府都要号召组织全县各级干部到大泉山上植树，这项活动一直保持到现在，目的就是要全县各级干部从大泉山水土保持先进典型事迹中汲取精神养分，大力发扬斗争精神。新时代以来，阳高县委、县政府深入践行“绿水青山就是金山银山”的理念，率领全县干部群众全面加快推进县境内“三山五河”流域治理，着力构建“水保＋”经济发展模式，让大泉山水土保持的首创精神在新时代再放异彩。如今，阳高县全县森林覆盖率由 1949 年的1.1%到 2012 年的 19.8%，再到 2024 年的 29.1%，自然生态环境发生了质的变化，也赢得了“全国生态文明先进县”“国家水土保持示范县”等诸多荣誉。
The pioneering spirit of conserving soil and water at Daquan Mountain had long been integrated into the lifeblood of Yanggao County’s 260,000 residents, becoming an inexhaustible driving force inspiring them to forge ahead with courage and perseverance. In the Daquan Mountain Memorial Hall, I saw scenes of Party secretaries from four levels—city, county, township, and village—working together in the “Public Servant Forest” on Daquan Mountain. Since 2000, every spring during the afforestation season, the Yanggao County Party Committee and Government have called on all cadres at all levels to plant trees on Daquan Mountain, a tradition that continues to this day. The purpose is to enable cadres to draw spiritual nourishment from Daquan Mountain's exemplary deeds in soil and water conservation and vigorously carry forward the spirit of struggle. Since the new era, the Yanggao County Party Committee and Government have earnestly implemented the concept that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets”, leading the county’s cadres and people to comprehensively accelerate the governance of the “Three Mountains and Five Rivers” within the county’s territory, and strive to build a “soil and water conservation +” economic development model. This has allowed Daquan Mountain’s pioneering spirit of soil and water conservation to shine with new splendor in the new era. Today, Yanggao County’s forest coverage rate has soared from 1.1% in 1949 to 19.8% in 2012, and further to 29.1% in 2024—a remarkable qualitative transformation of its natural ecological environment. The county has also won numerous honors, including “National Advanced County in Ecological Civilization” and “National Model County for Soil and Water Conservation”.
站在这平台上极目远眺，大泉山的近景与远景在我心中交织。近处，是它治理后的清晰肌理：草木葱茏，梯田如带，小径蜿蜒。它的经验、它的模式，在过去几十年里，无疑是全国水土保持与生态建设的一座近在咫尺的丰碑，一个可以触摸、可以学习的典范。它解决了那个时代最迫切的生存与发展问题。
Standing on this platform and gazing far into the distance, the near and far views of Daquan Mountain merged within my heart. Up close, the post-governance contours were clear: lush vegetation covered the slopes, terraced fields wound like ribbons, and footpaths meandered gently through the landscape. Its experience and model had undoubtedly been a close-at-hand monument to national soil and water conservation and ecological development over the past decades—a touchable, replicable example that solved the most pressing problems of survival and development in that era.
但大泉山的意义，绝不止于此。它的目光，投向的是更远的未来。人类与自然的关系，是一个永恒的话题。从原始的敬畏到近代的征服，再到如今的和谐共生，我们走了太多的弯路。而大泉山，早在几十年前，就用它沉默而坚定的存在，指明了那条正确的道路——不是一味地索取与对抗，而是巧妙地顺应与引导；在给予自然尊严的同时，也为自己谋得生存与发展的空间。大泉山之所以成为“水土保持第一山”，因为它是人民的创举、科学的贡献、实践的丰碑。它所蕴藏的“尊重规律、群众首创，科学规划、系统治理，苦干实干、久久为功”的内涵，值得我们学习、思考和借鉴。这种智慧，穿越时空，历久弥新。只要人类还在思考如何与脚下这颗星球相处，大泉山就将永远是一盏不灭的灯。它的“远”，远及千秋万代，远及人类文明永续发展的最深处。
But Daquan Mountain’s significance extended far beyond this. Its vision reached toward a much more distant future. The relationship between humanity and nature was an eternal topic. From primal reverence to modern conquest, and now to harmonious coexistence, we took far too many detours. Decades ago, however, Daquan Mountain, with its silent yet steadfast presence, charted the correct course: one not of blind exploitation and confrontation with nature, but of skillful adaptation and guidance; while we honored nature’s dignity, we could also carve out a space for our own survival and development. Daquan Mountain earned the title of “the First Mountain of Soil and Water Conservation” precisely because it was a pioneering endeavor by the people, a contribution of scientific wisdom, and a monument to practical action. The essence it embodied—respecting natural laws, valuing the people’s pioneering spirit, formulating scientific plans, pursuing systematic governance, working hard with solid dedication, and persevering with unwavering resolve—was worthy of our study, reflection and emulation. This wisdom transcends time and space, remaining fresh and vital through the ages. As long as humanity continues to ponder how to coexist with the planet beneath our feet, Daquan Mountain will forever remain an undying beacon. Its vision stretches far—across millennia, reaching into the very essence of humanity’s sustainable development.
风更大了些，吹得我的衣袂猎猎作响。我回过身，准备下山。在下山的路上，我的脚步是轻快的，我的心是充盈的。我来时带着的疑惑，已被这山风吹得烟消云散。
The wind grew stronger, fluttering my clothes. I turned around, ready to descend the mountain. On the way down, my steps were light, and my heart was full. The doubts I had carried upon arriving were swept without a trace by the mountain wind.
大泉山，它无须与三山五岳比高，它的伟大，正在于它的“小”，在于它从最微小的地方，生长出了最磅礴的力量。它无须粉饰自己的“老”，它的价值，正在于这“老”中所孕育的、永不褪色的新意。它更不惧岁月的流逝，因为它的目光，从一开始，就落在了最远的将来。
Daquan Mountain has no need to compare its height with the renowned mountains in China. Its greatness lies precisely in its “smallness”—in how it has nurtured monumental power from the humblest beginnings. It has no need to embellish its “age”; its value lies in the enduring, unfading vitality nurtured within that age. Nor does it fear the passage of time, for its gaze, from the very start, has been fixed upon the farthest future.
回望大泉山，它依旧沉默地矗立在黄土高原的怀抱里，披着一身的绿意，在夕阳的余晖中，像一个古老却又永远年轻的巨人。
Looking back, Daquan Mountain still stood silently, cradled by the Loess Plateau and robed in greenery. In the glow of the setting sun, it looked like an ancient yet forever youthful giant.
是的，看，大泉山又变了样子！
Look! Daquan Mountain has taken on a new look again!
它变了，确实变了，从荒芜到葱茏，从贫穷到富裕。沧海桑田，人神共惊。
IIt has changed, truly changed: from barrenness to lushness, from poverty to prosperity. The profound transformation of this land astonishes all who behold it, mortal and divine alike.
它又没变，真的没变。那份初心与精神，如山上的基石，亘古如磐。
Yet it has also remained unchanged, truly unchanged. That original aspiration and spirit stand as firm as the mountain’s bedrock—eternal and unshakable.
（译者：刘佳）
（Translator: Liu Jia)
默认
时光
水墨
冬季
美好
春节
岁月
星空
前行
回忆
2元
举报
