Lotus Pond

Lotus Pond

Lotus Pond

The Lotus Pond is located to the east of the Zhou Yu Military Command Platform, adjacent to Bingyu Run to its southeast, bordering the Film Company to the north, and situated 1,020 meters due south of Poyang Lake. The pond is square in shape, encased in granite on all sides, measuring 48.84 meters in length, 34 meters in width, and 3 meters in depth, with a total area of 1,661.24 square meters. At the center of the pond stands a viewing platform built of granite, filled with layered earth, standing 2.8 meters high and measuring 11.1 meters in both length and width, covering an area of 123.21 square meters. On the platform sits the Lotus-Viewing Pavilion, which has a square layout, supported by columns with lotus-petal-patterned bases.

The roof features a double-eave hip-and-gable design. In front of and behind the pavilion, there is one lotus pond bridge each connecting to the pond—both have three piers and four spans. The piers are constructed from granite, with the spans between them measuring 1.23 meters in length and width, and 2.78 meters in height. The rear bridge is a zigzagging curved bridge, 10.55 meters long, 1.23 meters wide, and 2.78 meters high. Beneath both bridges, there are two smaller lotus ponds on either side. In the peak of summer, strolling through the lotus ponds, with a gentle breeze and the refreshing fragrance wafting through the air, feels like stepping into a cool, serene world that brings peace to the mind and joy to the heart.

According to the Xingzi County Annals, during the Xining era of the Northern Song Dynasty (1068–1077), Zhou Dunyi served as the military governor of Nankang. At a time when the court was corrupt and the bureaucracy was in decline, he was moved to dig a pond and plant lotuses to the north of the military headquarters, where he also composed the essay "In Praise of Lotuses" as a personal inscription. Later, during the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhu Xi, while serving as the military governor of Nankang, renovated the pond and pavilion, and obtained the original calligraphy of Mr. Lianxi’s "In Praise of Lotuses," which he had engraved on stone and erected within the pavilion. In the eighth year of the Ming Dynasty's Chenghua era, Prefect Cao Kai rebuilt the pavilion. Then, in the forty-fifth year of the Jiajing era, Prefect Zhang Chun renovated it thoroughly, introduced water, replanted lotuses, and re-erected the engraved "In Praise of Lotuses" text in the pavilion.

Over the dynasties, the Lotus Pond has experienced many rises and declines. Today, it has been included in the county’s tourism development plan, and its redevelopment is already underway. Before long, it will re-emerge before the world in a new and revitalized form.