天下西湖三十六 就中最好是杭州

陆遥 沈听雨 彭先国

天下西湖三十六，就中最好是杭州。

约在孟夏的午后去找潘沧桑，一路沿着南山路徐徐前行。路两旁是郁郁葱葱的法国梧桐，随便走一条小路穿到西湖边，山清水秀，绿树成荫，心旷神怡。

“讲西湖，我们该从哪里开始呢？”坐在办公室里，潘沧桑抛出了问题。

的确，西湖能说的故事太多了。她是千百年来文人墨客竞相歌颂的灵感之源;她是获得全球认同的世界文化遗产;她是外地游客心向往之的打卡胜地;她是杭州百姓代代相传的城市记忆……

西湖之美，不仅在山水，更在于人。你很难想象没有白居易、苏东坡、章太炎的西湖，那里有中国文化最完整最精粹的风雅。

“先到馆里看看吧。”潘沧桑带我们走进了西湖博物馆的展厅。

置身其中的审美共鸣

一走进西湖博物馆展厅，目光就被巨大的西湖全景沙盘所吸引。

青山环抱之中，“一湖两塔三岛三堤”的景观尽收眼底，光是在沙盘上看，都觉得美不胜收。抬起头来，巨大的西湖雨丝幕帘营造了烟雨朦胧的唯美意境。

潘沧桑说：“这是1：1000的西湖实景沙盘。我们可以先在这里纵览西湖山水，把西湖‘三面云山中涵碧水一面城的自然地貌与城湖格局尽收眼底。”

很多人都以为所谓西湖就是一个水体，其实自古以来西湖的概念就涵盖了湖体和周边群山的范围，是一个巨大的山水群落。西湖南西北三面古老的群山由于地质运动的作用，由东向西逐级缓缓抬升，重重叠叠、舒展起伏，与环抱其中的西湖湖体，构成绝佳的视域效果。湖中的堤岛，则巧妙地将西湖分割为外西湖、里西湖、北里湖、小南湖、岳湖大小五个部分。

潘沧桑同时点开显示屏，上面有详细的景点介绍、文化史迹、旅游线路、公共场所等信息。在沙盘周边有4个这样的显示屏，参观者可以通过点击屏幕，直观地感受西湖美景。

潘沧桑说，西湖是一泓奇特的水，淡妆浓抹总相宜。几乎每个季节里都能感受到它的美。

西湖的美不仅是阳春里夹岸相拥的桃柳，夏日里接天连碧的荷花，秋夜中浸透月光的三潭，冬雪后疏影横斜的红梅;更是那烟柳笼纱中的莺啼，细雨迷蒙中的楼台。

但西湖的美不仅仅停留在风景上，更是一种文化的积淀。我们登上飞来峰，能看见五代至宋、元时期的200多尊摩崖石刻;流连在六和塔或保俶塔下，能感受到凝聚在这些建筑和雕塑中古人的智慧;孤山南麓的文澜阁，还是珍藏《四库全书》的七大书阁之一……

“人们逛西湖，最大的感受是什么？是一种审美共鸣。西湖作为一个文化湖泊，文化和审美一以贯之地融合着。”在潘沧桑看来，西湖的独特魅力和精神内核便在于此。

对于她来说，最难忘的日子莫过于2011年6月24日了。那一天，“杭州西湖文化景观”成功列入《世界遗产名录》。

“西湖能成为世界文化遗产，最核心的就是它的文化含量，这不是一朝一夕形成的。”潘沧桑介绍，西湖文化景观是中国最早的湖泊类文化遗产，它丰富了世界文化遗产的种类，这个文化含量特别厚重的东方“文化名湖”，自公元9世纪开始就在世界文化交流史上具有广泛的影响力。

几个世纪以来，人类与西湖形成良性互动，形成了不可分割的文化体;而不断积累的人类活动，又逐渐增加了她的文化内涵。

潘沧桑说，西湖山水是大自然的杰作，但是湖中的堤岛景观格局则是由后代人类活动叠加而成的，都是疏浚的产物。而且最神奇的是，这种景观格局的形成，是一种持续了上千年的集体有意识行为，是历代有识之士遵循中国传统哲学和美学的思想设计而成的。

人与自然的和谐共生

走出西湖博物馆，沿着南山路西行，潘沧桑带我们来到苏堤。一路湖水与群山紧密相依，群山层叠而舒展，天际线柔和委婉，湖水盈满平静，宛若一幅写意的山水長卷徐徐铺陈。

“西湖处处皆是景，为什么选这里？”我们有些不解。

潘沧桑解释说：“如果将今日西湖景色看作一幅山水画，那苏堤的修筑，便是早早为这幅画作打下了粉本。”

“你看，从这里向东望，眼前一片豁然开朗，山峦叠嶂，城区聚集，特别清晰。”站在苏堤上，潘沧桑赞叹地说，这片山水是自然风光和人类劳动共同叠加的结晶。

说起西湖，就绕不开西湖的治理历史。苏堤，正是西湖治理文化的标志。这条横跨西湖南北岸的长堤，由疏浚挖出的葑草和湖泥堆筑而成，为纪念苏东坡治理西湖的功绩而得名。

不知不觉走到望山桥，苏堤春晓御碑赫然在目，作为“西湖十景”之首的“苏堤春晓”家喻户晓，而这座碑是当年康熙南巡时钦定十景题名留下的原物，可谓弥足珍贵。一边观赏着石碑，一边听着潘沧桑的讲述，当年苏东坡疏浚西湖时的一幕幕仿佛就在眼前：宋元祐四年（公元1089年），西湖淤塞严重，葑田占湖面大半，春来骤雨成灾，入夏又遇大旱，早稻无法下种，晚稻收成无望。苏东坡看在眼里，急在心头。他向朝廷上奏请求疏浚西湖，并非只为观景，更攸关民生利害。于是，20多万人挖淤泥、除葑草。此后，为解决大量淤泥无处堆放的问题，也为便利百姓出行，横穿西湖南北的长堤横空出世。

“六桥横绝天汉上，北山始与南屏通。”苏东坡留下的这句诗，足见他对杭州苏堤的情感。

西湖水域原是与钱塘江相通的浅海湾，后在钱塘江的大量泥沙冲淤下，大约在2600年前堵塞了湾口，逐渐变为泻湖。经过上游溪流及雨水长期冲刷，又成为淡水湖泊。西湖与江海阻隔后，其易沼泽化的特性就显露无遗。

潘沧桑感叹，“若没有历代的人工疏浚治理，西湖恐怕早已湮灭不存。”如今，当我们游走在西湖山水中，处处可见人与自然和谐共生的印记。

潘沧桑告诉记者，隋唐时期杭州城由于地下水咸苦，老百姓只能到西湖取水，生活不便。唐德宗建中年间李泌任杭州刺史，在西湖沿湖开凿水口铺设暗渠将西湖水引向人口聚集地，形成六井，同时也在湖东慢慢形成了城市聚落。李泌是第一个开发了杭城的地下引水功能的“老市长”，也奠定了湖东城市的格局。

此后，唐长庆二年白居易增高堤坝，蓄水灌溉农田，疏浚六井，以利民用;吴越王钱镠置撩湖兵，专事治湖，疏通涌金池，引西湖水通运河;北宋苏东坡除修筑长堤外，还在湖中立三座石塔，严禁湖内种植菱藕，再现西湖秀色……据统计，从唐代至清代，对西湖的疏浚从不曾间断，其中重要的治理不下20次。

梳理历史，潘沧桑还发现了一个有意思的现象，不同年代间在杭州主政的官员都有一个共识，即“保护西湖，还湖于民”。

“从古至今，杭州和西湖的和谐关系从未被打破。”潘沧桑回忆，2001年，西湖综合保护工程正式动工，保护修缮、恢复重建了180多处自然和人文景观，恢复西湖水面0.9平方公里。自2002年开始，杭州实行“西湖免费开放”，迄今已免费开放的公园景点共130余处。每逢大小长假，杭州市民和外地游客蜂拥而至，游西湖成了最时髦的事，这不正是还湖于民的最佳实践吗？

文化基因的沿袭传承

山环湖，湖映山，看着一派“城湖合璧”的图景，潘沧桑思绪万千。

西湖，是杭州的根与魂。综观杭州的历史，西湖兴则杭州兴，西湖衰则杭州衰。杭州的变迁与西湖的盛衰紧密相连。

“早在南宋时期，西湖就已经有了旅游的概念，出现了一些相对固定的游玩景点和路线。”潘沧桑说着，带我们去了当时的“市中心”——南宋御街。

据《西湖游览志》记载，古时的南宋御街全长约4.2公里，一共使用了一万多块石板铺设。南起皇宫北边的和宁门外，向北经朝天门略向西侧，接着向北段延伸，经今天的众安桥、观桥，到达新庄桥，是南宋皇城达官贵人出行的必经之路。

“当时的南宋御街是政治中心、商业中心和购物中心，两旁集聚了朝廷中枢机构。”潘沧桑说，不远处的西湖，就是南宋王朝的一座大型皇家园林。南宋王朝在西湖边大建御花园，南有聚景、真珠、南屏，北有集芳、延祥、玉壶，层楼叠阁，藏歌贮舞。

走在南宋御街，流水绕古街，小桥连老铺，清池围旧宅，仿佛一部南宋史的缩影，一砖一瓦都散发着历史的气息。若不是曾经的儿时记忆，很难想起整治之前这里破败不堪的景象。

“南宋御街的改造提出了‘城市复兴的概念，历史街区的保护是要有延续性的，看似破破烂烂的街道具有城市文化的价值，守护着城市的灵魂。设计团队在不动迁任何一户居民的前提下，原地改造所有老旧建筑。”潘沧桑回忆，2009年国庆节，经过改造后的南宋御街开街迎客。光是鼓楼到西湖大道的1公里路，第一个星期就吸引了超过100万人前来游览。如今，南宋御街已经成为杭州城市文化的标签，保留完整的近代历史建筑群是游人沿街欣赏的一道风景。

如今我们耳熟能详的西湖十景，滥觞于南宋，景名源自南宋画院画家马远、陈清波的西湖画卷题名。康熙多次来到杭州，为西湖的秀丽景色所陶醉。在他的倡导下，“西湖十景”重修园林，题写景名、建造碑亭。乾隆即位后，又为十景亲笔题诗，刻于碑侧。2018年，杭州西湖风景名胜区管委会启动恢复“双峰插云”景观，弥补西湖十景“十缺一”的遗憾。

西湖的文化基因和风骨，也在这样的街区和景点恢复中代代传承、沿袭至今。西湖申遗成功后，从政府到老百姓对西湖做的只有一件事：保护。

潘沧桑说起了一个故事。当年西湖申遗的主考官、国际古迹遗址理事会（ICOMOS）专家朴素贤在西湖边走了一圈后，立马就明白了历代政府和百姓对西湖的珍爱。她惊叹于城市发展与湖泊保护处理得如此完美，这无疑是历届政府与本地居民共同努力的结果。“原住民本身就是文化景观的构成要素，他们与管理者共同担负着遗产保护的责任。”朴素贤说。

潘沧桑自豪地说：“当时专家直言，没想到西湖的景色和保护管理比文本描述的还要好！”

如今，申遗成功已过去十年，城市的面貌日新月异，西湖也变得更美了。漫步湖邊，我们不禁感慨，千百年来，正是“亲民”才造就了今天的西湖，成就了今天的杭州。

The One and Only West Lake

By Lu Yao  Shen Tingyu  Peng Xianguo

It is always said that of all 36 West Lakes in China， the one in Hangzhou is the best.

Eager to learn more about Hangzhous West Lake， we paid a visit to Pan Cangsang， director of the West Lake Museum. Walking along the heavily shaded Nanshan Road to the bank of the beautiful West Lake was enjoyable， even on a scorching summer afternoon like this.

“So， where should we start？” Pan greeted us in her office with a question. There are just too many to choose from： its natural and culture landscape， as well as the historical literati who lavished praises on the West Lake， contributing to the elegance of Chinese culture. No wonder it is recognized as a world cultural heritage， attracting visitors from all over the country and cherished by local residents.

“Maybe we could start from our museum，” she led us into the West Lake Museum.

The moment we walked into the exhibition hall， our eyes were instantly caught by a giant sand table of the West Lake panorama. The unique layout featuring “One Lake， Two Pagodas， Three Isles and Two Causeways” was already breathtaking as a miniature.

“This is a 1：1000 sand table showing the real West Lake，” introduced Pan. “It gives you a general view about the landscape， ‘hills on three sides and a city on the fourth.”

In fact， the so-called West Lake is not just the lake itself. It has been enriched conceptually since a long time ago to further include the surrounding mountains and hills， and now points to a huge cluster of mountains， hills and waters. Due to geological movement， the age-old mountains in the northwest of West Lake undulate gently from east to west， creating an excellent visual effect. The causeways and islands cleverly divide the lake into five parts： the outer West Lake， the inner West Lake， the north inner lake， the small south lake， and the Yuehu Lake.

While explaining， Pan tapped on a display screen to show us more detailed information such as attractions， cultural and historical sites， tourist routes， and public places. There are four of them around the sand table to serve curious visitors.

The West Lake is renowned for its seasonal beauty. Yet in Pans eyes， the magical charm goes further to a cultural level. In Feilai Peak， for example， there are more than 200 cliff carvings from the Five dynasties to the Song and Yuan dynasties; the wisely constructed Six Harmonies Pagoda and the Baochu Pagoda; and the Wenlan Pavilion at the southern foot of Solitary Hill， one of the seven major imperial libraries， where the Siku Quanshu （the Complete Library of Four Treasures） were stored.

“For people visiting West Lake， the best part is to resonate aesthetically. As a ‘cultural lake， it integrates cultural and aesthetic connotations perfectly well，” said Pan， who believed the spiritual core of the West Lake lies uniquely in its aesthetic value.

For Pan， June 24， 2011 was a day to remember. On that day， the West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou was inscribed on UNESCOs World Cultural Heritage List.

“The cultural reputation of West Lake， which is the core of a world cultural heritage， is not built overnight，” explained Pan. It is the earliest lake cultural heritage in China， which diversifies the cultural heritages worldwide. Since the 9th century， this oriental cultural lake has already been influential in the history of world cultural exchanges.

Its cultural reputation has been built by human activities as well. It is true that the lake and the hills were crafted by the hands of nature， but the designing and building of the overall landscape， as well as lake dredging， took generations of collective effort for over a thousand years.

Walking out of the West Lake Museum， we were led westbound along Nanshan Road and found ourselves on the Su Causeway， upon which the landscape of West Lake began to take shape. This causeway spanning the north and south of West Lake was named in honor of the achievements of Su Dongpo （1037-1101）， an official who managed to dredge the lake for the wellbeing of the local people.

Listening to Pans narration and watching the stone monument inscribed with the Chinese characters Su Di Chun Xiao， or “Spring Dawn of Su Causeway”， an authentic calligraphy from Emperor Kangxi （1654-1722）， we were impressed by how hard Su Dongpo was working in lake dredging and how deeply he was in love with the West Lake and Hangzhou.

The West Lake was originally a shallow bay connected to the Qiantang River， whose massive sediment caused siltation and gradually turned the bay into a lagoon about 2，600 years ago. And it would not have become the West Lake today but for the continuous water management throughout history. According to statistics， there were at least 20 major water-managing projects from the Tang （618-907） to the Qing （1616-1911） dynasties.

Thanks to Hangzhou officials throughout history who knew well enough to “protect the West Lake and return it to the people”， the harmonious relationship between Hangzhou and the West Lake has never been broken. In 2001， the comprehensive protection project of West Lake officially started， protecting and repairing more than 180 natural and humanistic landscapes， and restoring 0.9 square kilometers of water surface of the West Lake. Starting in 2002， the West Lake was opened to visitors for free， and so far more than 130 parks and attractions have the same path.

“Back in Southern Song dynasty （1127-1279）， the West Lake already saw the dawn of tourism， and some relatively fixed sightseeing spots and routes began to appear，” Pan took us to the “downtown area” of the time， the Southern Song Imperial Street.

According to Xihu Youlanzhi （or West Lake Excursions）， the ancient Southern Song Imperial Street was about 4.2 kilometers long， made of more than 10，000 stone slabs. It was then the political and commercial hub， and also a necessary route for the officials and nobles to travel in the imperial city.

It is worth mentioning that the concept behind the renovation of the Southern Song Imperial Street is “urban revival”， for the seemingly dilapidated streets are believed to contain the value of urban culture and guard the soul of the city.

Nowadays， the Southern Song Dynasty Imperial Street has become a cultural label of Hangzhou， and the well-preserved modern historical building complex a popular scenic spot for visitors to enjoy along the street.

Similarly， thanks to the protective restoration of such neighborhoods and tourist attractions around the West Lake， its cultural genes have also been passed down from generation to generation， making the West Lake， as well as Hangzhou， what it is today.