The ancient celestial capital of Beijing is the embodiment of the traditional Chinese world-view.
In the middle of Beijing lies the Forbidden City, from where the emperor ruled “tianxia” or “all under heaven”. Here was the centre of the world, the Chinese empire and the various Asian vassal and tributary states and, beyond, the wilds where the barbarians lived.
The city today is a sprawling gridlocked traffic jam of concentric ring roads that ripple out from the Forbidden City and the vast Tiananmen Square, where the remains of former dictator Mao Zedong lie in state. His portrait hangs on the Tiananmen Gate.
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