TRADITIONAL Chinese culture is as extensive as it is profound, but it has often proved to be difficult subject matter to encapsulate in print. Chinese author Wang Meng uses vivid stories drawn from his understanding of traditional Chinese culture to help interpret its essence for younger generations. Born in 1934, Wang is a former culture minister who also worked as editor-in-chief of People’s Literature and as vice executive chairman of the Chinese Writers’ Association. He is also a prolific author of literary works, including novels, essays and poems. Wang’s book “Zhongguo Tianji” (“God Knows China”) was published five years ago. The work demonstrated his profound understanding of Chinese history. Now Wang is bringing his audience a companion piece — “Zhonghua Xuanji” (“Chinese Recondite Principle”) — which provides deeper insight into Chinese philosophy and traditional culture. The book is a collection of Wang’s 36 lectures and articles about traditional Chinese culture, which are categorized into five sections: personality, soul, social environment, the world and people’s feelings. The fewer words used in a philosopher’s texts, the more open to interpretation it can be — that’s Wang’s understanding of Chinese philosophy. “The ‘Tao Te Ching,’ or ‘Dao De Jing,’ a text written by Chinese sage Laozi around the sixth century B.C., only has 6,000 characters, but it’s one of the most influential philosophy books in the world,” Wang says. With a limited number of words, the principles set out in it are open to a variety of interpretations, and researchers are always finding ways to dig deeper. “So, it could take you more than a lifetime to finish studying Chinese culture,” says Wang. Taoism, Confucianism and Mencius’ thought are not the only representations of Chinese culture. Chinese poetry from the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties are just as valid. (China Daily) |