科举：唯有读书高 Education as a Social Ladder: Chinese Imperial Examinations

我们注意到中华文化是身份文化。孔子之前的封建制度就已经把人民分为六级：四个统治阶级的是高高在上的王族，接着是诸侯，大夫与士。最底层的是普通庶民与奴隶。

自古以来，强大的中国王朝通常是由一般平民出生的皇帝靠着有组织的军队推翻前朝而组成。但是，一旦控制了国家，这些皇帝立刻使体会到真正的治理需要上万的官僚。科举制度的成立就是为了制造这一群人。科举制度是中国独有的任人唯贤的策略，从605年隋朝开始，直到1905年清末废除为止，共有大约1300年的历史。

科举的基本目的是要以个人的能力而不是特别的或嫡传的因素来取士。历史上流传不少书生如何苦读，最终考取到功名而获得官职的故事。这些故事一代传一代，鼓舞了书生勤力苦读。读书于是成了一种传统。

所以自古以来， 华人把教育当成是提升社会地位的梯子。宋朝（960-1279）汪洙著名的《神 童 诗》就说“天子重英豪，文章教尔曹；万般皆下品，惟有读书高。”这首诗句成为千年中国人的金科玉律。它鼓励人们读书。

宋朝另外一首鼓励人们读书的诗说，“富家不用買良田，書中自有千鍾粟；安居不必架高堂，書中自有黃金屋；娶妻莫恨無良媒，書中自有顏如玉。”意思是好好地读书就能给你带来丰足的食物、完美的屋子与漂亮的妻子。

科举造就了士的阶级。非贵族或商家的读书人渐渐成为改变社会与推翻封建贵族的主力。这些读书人协助与维持了中国封建社会，与农业社会及统一皇族政权共存长达两千年之久。

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We noted that Chinese culture is the ‘Status Culture’. In pre-Confucian China, the feudal system divided the population into 6 classes. Four noble classes are the king at the top, followed by the dukes, then the great men and finally the scholars. Below the noble classes were commoners and slaves.

Since the ancient time, the might of China was established militarily, often by emperors from humble origins who had toppled existing dynasties. However, once in control, these emperors soon realized that the actual governance of China would require the administrative services of thousands of bureaucrats. The imperial examination system was thus introduced as a means for creating such a body of men. The Imperial Examination System was a unique a meritocratic strategy in China that lasted for 1300 years, from its founding during the Sui Dynasty in 605 to its abolition near the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1905.

The fundamental justification for the Chinese Imperial Exams was that appointees to civil service positions were not to be chosen through special or inherited privilege, but through an individual's own abilities. There were numerous stories about how the scholars worked very, very hard, and finally passed the examination and succeeded in getting official positions. These stories encouraged generations of generations of youth in China to study hard, making it into a tradition.

It is therefore natural that Chinese has regarded education as a ladder of social ascendancy since ancient time. The most famous saying about "study" in China is from a poem in Song Dynasty (960-1279) by Wang Zhu, literarily translated as "The emperor values heroes, book can teach you (how to be). Everything else is low-grade, only study is above all." This poem has been considered as the golden rule in China for thousands of years. It encourages people to study.

There is also a poem persuading people to study from the Song Dynasty that says, "There is no need for the rich to buy land (to produce food), as plenty of food can be found in books. There is no need to invest in building a good house, as golden house can be found in books. There is no need to worry that no matchmaker is willing to introduce you a wife, as pretty girls can be found in books." It implies that studying can make you have enough to eat, a fancy house, and a beautiful woman.

It was the imperial examination system that created the scholar class. The scholars who were neither nobles nor merchants gradually became the main force of transforming society and uprooting the feudal nobles. These scholars helped to build and maintain a Chinese feudal society that lasted for 2000 years and co-existed with agricultural economy and unified royal power polity.

身份与平等 Status and Equality

通常说，华人的文化是‘身份文化’，而西方文化是‘平等文化’。

华人社会就基于阶层身份。这真情况有儒家思想的背景，所以华人把阶层结构当成是自然而然的事，自然如此。作为一个孩子，你生来就自然的有了阶层。父母有发言的权力，很自然地应用于孩子身上，就算是孩子已经长大成人。

就此而言，‘权威’一词有不同的理解。它并不是一个负面的名词，反而与正面的素质，如关怀、仁慈、责任、成熟，等联系。长者与父母受尊敬，以长辈为尊的原则控制了中国（包括东亚）人的生命与工作环境。既然国家与社会被看成是个大家庭，身份就随时随地变成很重要（名片就说明了身份，让你自我调整行为）。
一般上，华人领袖被赋予权力来决定什么是对族群与其成员最有利。事实上，他们的权力来自他们声称他们所拥有的高人一等的道德洞察力与政治智慧、他们对善政的知识。

在西方，看来最有名的语录是：‘人人生而平等。’作为政治的原则，平等表明在法律之下，没有一群的公民拥有特别的待遇。这种法律本身被视为治理的执行机制之一。就是说，不管哪一种信仰、族群与身份，这个法律都有效，没有一个人在法律之上。就算是在家庭里，父母与孩子是平等的。华人对家庭的每个成员有相同的权利的理念是不能理解的。

西方人却认为这些是这不证自明的真理，他们的创造者给予不可夺取的权利，这些权利还包括了生命、自由与快乐的追求。

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It has often been said that the Chinese culture is a ‘status culture’ and the Western culture is an ‘equality culture’.

The Chinese society is a society which is based on hierarchical conditions. The background is the Confucian family thinking, that's why in China hierarchical structures are usually regarded as natural, as naturally given. As child you are namely born into a natural hierarchy. Parents have the saying, and they keep it towards their children, even though these grow up.

The term 'authority' has in this respect a different rank. It is not associated with something negative but with positive qualities, such as care, kindness, responsibility, maturity. Elders / parents are respected and the principle of seniority controls the life and working sphere of China (and generally in Eastern Asia). And since state and society are seen like a family, it is always and everywhere the respective status that matters (visiting-cards inform about it and let you accordingly adapt your behaviour).

Chinese leaders are normally credited with the ability to determine what is in the best interests of society and its members. Indeed, much of their authority to rule is based on their claim to superior ethical insight and political wisdom, their knowledge of the best way to govern. Even in a family, parents and children are equal. The Chinese will never understand this mentality of equal rights of family members.

In the West, arguably the most well known quotation is ‘All men are created equal’. Equality as a political principle implies that there is no class of citizens with a right to more favourable treatment under the law, which itself is seen as the enforcement arm of governance. In other words, it means that regardless of faith, creed and status all laws should apply equally to everyone and no-one was above the law.

But the Westerners hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

总统的客人 All The President's Guests

在美国，一对配偶在奥巴马总统为招待印度总理曼莫汉所设的白宫第一次国宴上，由于是不速之客而成为媒体宣传的对象。这对40多岁的配偶，塔里克与米雪，被他们的朋友形容为爱好喜乐、不畏惧追求成为众人关注的焦点、不回避扮演认识或被有所裨益的人认识的殷勤有礼的情侣。

白宫所发布的相片显示奥巴马总统迎接这对配偶。负责保护总统与高官安全的部门正在全面检讨有没有安全漏洞，虽然这对配偶申诉这项调查令他们为难，因为他们相信他们是真的被邀请的客人。

看来这对配偶相当享受公众的注意。在‘面簿’(Facebook) 上出现了不少他们与晚宴贵宾所拍的照片，包括与副总统拜登、华盛顿市长奋题、新闻主播库丽、白宫办公厅主任伊曼纽尔所拍的照片。

在中国，另一个人在十一月十六日会见总统奥巴马是，也得到了很多的媒体宣传。和这对配偶不同的是，她是为了一件外套。

美国总统访问上海与年轻人的对话会上，坐在总统背后的上海交通大学学生王紫菲被人拍到了相片。

她穿着一件黑衣加上红色的外套。她被拍到脱掉外套。网上论坛大谈她的美丽与沉着，网民详细介绍了她的容貌与穿衣品味。但是，王紫菲看来不大情愿成名。她在她的博客上说：‘希望快快恢复平静。希望此事过后我能继续做简简单单的自己。’

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In USA, a couple who attended President Barack Obama’s first White House state dinner for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 24 Nov, has received a lot of publicity for being uninvited guests. The couple, Mr Tareq and his wife Michaele, who are in their 40s, were described by their friends as fun-loving and unabashed about pursuing the spot-light and playing debonair couple who know and are known by all right people.

A photo released by the White House has shown President Obama greeting the couple. The agency charged with protecting the president and other high-level officials is conducting a comprehensive review of the security breach, although the couple complained that the investigation was hard on them because they believed that they really were invited guests.

The couple seems to have enjoyed the publicity. A dozen pictures posted on Facebook appear to show the couple posing with dinner guests including Vice President Joe Biden, Washington Mayor Adrian Fenty, CBS News anchor Katie Couric, and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.

In China, another person who met President Obama on 16 Nov is also getting a lot of publicity, but unlike the couple, it’s about the coat she wore.

Shanghai’s Jiaotong University student Wang Zifei was snapped by photographers sitting behind the US President when he met Chinese young citizens at a town-hall style forum, while on his visit to Shanghai.

Clad in a black dress and red coat, she was photographed taking off her coat. Online forums have been gushing over her beauty and poise, with netizens describing in details her look and dress sense. Ms Wang, however, appears to be a reluctant celebrity. She said on her blog, ‘I’m hoping to quickly restore it to normal. I hope after all this, I can continue to be my simple self.’

書法治療 Calligraphy Therapy

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据说，书法不但是一门高雅的艺术，练习书法还可以修身养性，延年益寿。
香港的一项研究看来好像证明这个观点是正确的。

It is said that Chinese calligraphy is not only a beautiful art, its practice is also an effective way to enjoy healthy life and longevity.

A study in Hong Kong seems to prove the above observation is correct.

欢迎，毛巴马同志！Welcome, Comrade Maobama!

美国总统奥巴马于十一月十五日至十七日访问中国。这次历史性的访问是亚洲八日访问中的一站。这也是这位总统第一次访问中国。

据报道，中国人，尤其是年轻人对他的印象很不错，因为他们期望他会维持对中国的温和政策。数据显示，在网民当中，奥巴马真的很受欢迎。在中国的谷歌网站，以‘奥巴马’来搜寻，所得到的搜寻结果超过七百八十万次，以此相比，‘胡锦涛’的搜寻结果少过四百万次。

奥巴马的受欢迎度也可以从以‘毛巴马’或‘奥巴毛’为标贴的产品在中国成为热门产品的这个事实看出来。这个设计是以奥巴马的脸带上毛主席的红卫兵帽和服装。这些展品，尤其是T-衬衫，自今年九月以来，在北京著名旅游区的礼品店大受欢迎。

奥巴马这次北京之行已经带来了‘毛巴马’与‘奥巴毛’旋风，虽然传说中国政府禁止这些产品在奥巴马总统访问中国期间售卖，以免得罪美国总统或导致难堪。

听到一个店员说：‘大多数中国人喜欢奥巴马。我觉得他是个好人，很幽默。况且，他是美国首个黑人总统。’

欢迎，毛巴马同志，您来到一个有创意的资本主义中国。

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U.S. President Barack Obama visited China from 15 to 17 Nov. This historic three-day visit to China was part of an eight-day tour of Asia. It was the president's first trip to China.

It was reported that the Chinese people, especially young people’s impression of him was quite good, as it is expected that he would maintain a moderate policy toward China. Statistics shows that Obama is indeed popular among the netizens in China. A search for Obama on the Google China Web site will result in more than 7.8 million entries as compared to less than four million entries for President Hu.

Obama's popularity in China is also evidenced by the fact that ‘MaoBama’ or ‘ObaMao’ labelled products are fast becoming a hot commodity in China. The design is President Barack Obama’s face dressed in Chair Mao’s Red Guards’ cap and uniform. The products, especially the T-shirt, were selling like hot cakes at small souvenir shops in famous tourist areas in Beijing since September 2009.

Obama's visit to Beijing has already started a ‘MaoBama’ and ‘ObaMao’ cyclone, although it was reported that the Chinese government banned the products during Obama’s presidential visit in China for fear of offending the U. S. President and causing embarrassment.

A shopkeeper was heard saying, ‘Most Chinese people like Obama. I feel he is a very good man, and humorous. Also, he is the first African American president.’

Welcome, comrade Maobama, to the creative capitalist China.

老子：负阴抱阳 Laozi: Yin and Yang as Vital Forces

老子认为‘道’是所有个别原理中的最高原理。至今，华人心理文化的深层结构中还可以寻找到这种道的功能的踪迹与影响。老子说：

‘道生一， 一生二，二生三，三生万物。

万物负阴而抱阳，冲气以为和。’

一是指天与地最终来源的整体。二是指阴与阳这两种主要力量。三是指阴阳相交之后所形成的调和之气。

气有三种。第一种阴气强于阳气，而第二种气刚好相反，阳气压倒阴气。第三种是调和之气，阴阳调和而形成之气。

在道与阴阳的概念中含有自然的概念。自然有着自然而然之意，也有自发性和自我显露的意思。自然就是‘自我如此’或‘我或其他物体之本然’。这个概念把世间自然形态与人类在其间的活动联系起来。自然并不把自然规律当成严谨而先决来看待，而是当成自然运作。

自然的秩序被看成是无目的、已经决定了的，因为自然就是物体本来的状态，而不是与某种神灵的关系。这就给予由个别物体构成的自然世界天生的价值。

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Lao Zi thinks that the Dao is the supreme principle of all individual principles. The function of the Dao in general can still find its traces and influences deep in the psycho-cultural structure of the Chinese people today. He says:

‘The Dao produces the One. The One turns into Two. The Two gives rise to the Three. The Three brings forth the myriad of things.

The myriad things contain Yin and Yan as vital forces, which achieve harmony through their interactions.’

The One refers to the Whole as the ultimate origin of heaven and earth. The Two refers to two vital forces known as Yin and Yang. The Three is usually supposed to be a harmonised type of Qi which results from the interactions between Yin and Yang.

There are three type of Qi. The first type of Yin Qi overwhelms the Yang Qi, whereas the opposite happens in the second type of Yang Qi, i.e. Yang Qi overwhelms Yin Qi. The third type of Qi is a well-balanced one, both the Yin Qi and Yang Qi form into a harmonious realm.

In the ideas of the dao, the One, and Yinyang lies the idea of Ziran, most often translated as ‘naturalness’, but also containing the ideas of spontaneity and self-unfolding. Ziran basically means ‘self-so’ or ‘the self (or any other object) as it is naturally.’ This concept is most often associated with the natural ways in which the world and the people within it move. Ziran is considered not a law in the strict and determinative sense, but as the way things operate naturally.

This natural order is to be considered non-teleological and determined, for Ziran is the way things are in and of themselves, not as they are in relationship to something divine beyond themselves. This gives inherent worth to the cosmos as they conform to the natural ways in which they are constituted.

子曰：一阴一阳之谓道 Confucius Said: The Successive Movement of the Inactive Yin and Active Yang….

我们可以很肯定地说阴阳概念是中国伟大哲理流派之一儒学的意识基础。

阴阳家虽然可能是最先讲述阴阳关心，而《道德经》是最先明确地说明道与阴阳协调的哲学阐述。

可是在中国历史里，并没有有关孔子明确阐述阴阳学说的记录，就算是《论语》里也没有提到阴阳。

最早采用道家意识形态的儒家学者可能是荀子（公元前312–230），因为他以天地与阴阳的合一为宇宙之开始。荀子以道家的最高与永恒的道之理来融入儒家所关心的政治行动与伦理教化。

同时期的其他学者亦通过《易经•十翼》来解释阴阳思想。就如庄子所说，‘《易》以道阴阳’，《易经》基本上是以阴阳为基础的二元系统。

虽然我们并不知道《易经•十翼》的作者是谁，《易经》还是被认为是儒学的代表作。事实上，它一直被看作是五经之首。历来，《易经》都被用来理解儒家伦理与哲学学说的途径。

所以，在《易经》中，孔子还是被引用来子曰：‘一阴一阳之谓道。’

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One may confidently say that the concept of yinyang forms the metaphysical foundation for Confucianism, one of the great philosophical schools of China.

While the philosophers of the Yinyang School may be the ones who first started to elaborate on the yinyang relationships, the first philosophical work which spoke explicitly about Dao and the harmony between yin and yang was the Daode Jing.

However, there is no written record in Chinese history to show that Confucius had elaborated in certain terms on yinyang, and even in the Analects of Confucius there is no mention of yinyang.

Probably the first known Confucian to adopt Daoist metaphysics was Xunzi (312–230 BC), as he made the unity of nature (tiandi) and yinyang the origin of the universe. Xunzi amalgamated the Daoist metaphysics of a supreme and constant rule of Dao with his Confucian concern for political action and ethical education.

Other intellectuals of this period such as the authors of the Ten Appendixes to the Yijing did much the same thing. As observed by Zhuangzi, ‘The aim of Yijing is to explain yin and yang’, at the root of the Yijing is the binary system known as yin and yang.

While the actual authors of the Ten Appendixes of Yijing were not known, Yijing has been regarded as the representative work of Confucianism. In fact, the Yijing is considered to be the best of the five classics of Confucianism. Historically, the Yijing has been viewed through the lens of Confucian ethical and philosophical commentary.

Therefore one can always quote Confucius to have said in Yijing, ‘The successive movement of the inactive yin and active yang operations constitutes what is called the Dao.’

华人的阴阳概念 The Chinese yinyang Concept

阴阳概念可以说是华人的基本世界观。

阴与阳代表宇宙所能找到的所有的对立事务的原则。阳代表雄、太阳、创造、热、光、天、支配等理则，阴代表雌、月亮、完成、冷、暗、地、顺从等理则。

天以阳理创造事物之理念，地以阴理产生事物之形态，天以阳理造之，地以阴理成之，以此类之。

阴中生阳与阳中生阴的过程周期性与不断地发生，以致没有一种理则能压倒或支配另一种理则。我们所体验到的对立 -- 健康与病痛、富贵与贫穷、权利与顺从 -- 都可以一种理则暂时支配另一理则作为参照来加以解释。既然没有一种理则可以永远占有支配地位，就是说所有的状况都会变换为其对立的状况。

阴与阳的周期性，宇宙中对立力量的转变，就意识着几样东西：

第一，所有事物周期性地逆转为他们的对立事务；第二，所有的现象都具有其对立现象的种子，就是说，病痛含有潜在的健康，健康潜伏着病痛，富贵会导致贫困，等等；第三，由于一个理则会导致另一个理则，虽然对立理则并没有显现，没有一种现象可以避免对立现象。一个人不可能永远健康，因为健康本身就含有其对立的理则，那就是病痛。

所以，阴阳学说中的各种力量并不是敌对的关系。了解这点是很重要的。

它和西方的‘二元论’是不同的。‘二元论’认为世界是由本质上分开的与敌对的力量所构成，例如：真与假、好与坏。

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The concept of yin and yang is often said to be fundamental to the Chinese view of the world.

The yin and yang represent all the opposite principles one finds in the universe. Under yang are the principles of maleness, the sun, creation, heat, light, heaven, dominance, and so on, and under yin are the principles of femaleness, the moon, completion, cold, darkness, material forms, submission, and so on.

Heaven creates the ideas of things under yang, the earth produces their material forms under yin, and vice versa; creation occurs under the principle of yang, the completion of the created thing occurs under yin, and vice versa, and so on.

This production of yin from yang and yang from yin occurs cyclically and constantly, so that no one principle continually dominates the other or determines the other. All opposites that one experiences - health and sickness, wealth and poverty, power and submission - can be explained in reference to the temporary dominance of one principle over the other. Since no one principle dominates eternally, that means that all conditions are subject to change into their opposites.

This cyclical nature of yin and yang, the opposing forces of change in the universe, mean several things.

First, all phenomena change into their opposites in an eternal cycle of reversal. Second, all phenomena have within them the seeds of their opposite state, that is, sickness has the seeds of health, health contains the seeds of sickness, wealth contains the seeds of poverty, etc. Third, even though an opposite may not be seen to be present, since one principle produces the other, no phenomenon is completely devoid of its opposite state. One is never really healthy since health contains the principle of its opposite, sickness.

It is therefore essential to understand that the nature of such forces in yin-yang thought is not an antagonistic relationship.

It is different from the western ‘dualism’, an assertion that the world is comprised of forces that are intrinsically separate and hostile, like ‘truth and falsehood’, or ‘good and evil’.

二元对立与二元论 Binary Opposition and Dualism

二元对立是用来表示一对相反的东西。在西方，这个观念可以追溯到西方传统信念，认为现实的本质是二元的。希腊哲学家柏拉图 (公元前429-347) 的哲学可能是最早的有系统的二元概念。

在柏拉图的哲学中，存在着的最终的二元是永恒存在与变易、心与物、物体与灵魂。柏拉图相信真正的本质不是物体而是理念，物体只是理念的非完美摹本。这些理念不但构成世界，也使这个世界可被理解。因为理念是理解的根据，学者在理解的过程中一定要了解理念。

笛卡尔开始了现代版的二元论。笛卡尔相信存在着两种物质：物体或身体的主要性质是空间的伸延，而心灵的主要性质是思考。笛卡尔声称思考的心灵与伸延的身体分开存在。所以，心灵的本质是思想，是与身体不同的物质。

笛卡尔的二元论使他很难阐述心物如何关联及互相沟通。以柏拉图而言，他认为灵魂在持续的轮回或转生的过程中先存在于物体，并于物体消灭后继续存在。对笛卡尔来说，心灵如何与物体相互联系的问题实际上无法解决，因为他假设心物代表两种不同的物质。

两种对立力量间的挣扎看来是西方社会的基本错觉。在西方历史里的矛盾纠纷中，它一直被用来当作消灭‘他者’的凭据。

我们可以这么说，如果西方今日用相同的托词来解决世界纠纷，这个世界会变得更加危险。

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Binary opposition is a term used to mean a pair of opposites. In the West, the idea can be traced to the traditional believe in western philosophy that reality is essentially dual in nature. Probably the earliest systematic concept of dualism stems from the philosophy of the Greek philosopher Plato (429-347 BC).

In Plato’s philosophy there is an ultimate dualism of being and becoming, of ideas and matter, of body and soul. Plato believed that the true substances are not physical bodies, but the eternal Forms of which bodies are imperfect copies. These Forms not only make the world possible, they also make it intelligible. Because Forms are the grounds of intelligibility, they are what the intellect must grasp in the process of understanding.

Descartes originated the more modern versions of dualism. Descartes believed that there were two different kinds of substance: matter or body, of which the essential property is that it is spatially extended; and mind, of which the essential property is that it thinks. Descartes argues that the mind, a thinking thing, can exist apart from its extended body. And therefore, the mind is a substance distinct from the body, a substance whose essence is thought.

Descartes’ dualism made it difficult for him to describe how the body and mind could relate and interact upon each other. In the case of Plato, he argued that the soul both pre-existed and survived the body, going through a continual process of reincarnation or "transmigration". For Descartes, the question of how the mind interacts with the body was virtually unsolvable because he assumed that mind and body represent two distinct substances.

The struggle between the two competing forces seems to be the standard delusion of the Western society and it has been used as the justification for the demonization of the "other" in almost all conflicts in their history.

One can assume that the world is getting more dangerous if the West today use the same justification to resolve war conflicts.

王维《九月九日忆山东兄弟》 Wong Wei: On the Ninth Day of the Ninth Lunar Month Thinking of my Brothers in Shandong

昨天（阳历十月二十六日）是农历九月九日。每年这一天，全世界的华人都在庆祝传统的重阳节。在这个节日，人们喜欢登高，所以重阳节又叫登高节。

很久很久以前，王维 (701-761) 就在这一天写了一首诗《九月九日忆山东兄弟》，立刻成为经典之作而传播全中国。

王维被认为是唐朝三大诗人之一，与杜甫及李白同列。虽然他没有杜甫的人工精致，也没有李白般的天才，可是他有丰富的想象力。他的诗歌常常包含奇妙的玄学意味，显示他对佛学的长期经营。

在唐代，重阳节登高是一种流行的风俗。对许多人来说，这是冬季来临前最后的一次户外活动。这个风俗演变到目前的形式，人们把登高当着是一种运动，和欣赏秋天美景。

对王维而言，登高远眺，是希望能够看到住在远方的兄弟与亲友。但是，他看不到他们，所以兴叹：

独在异乡为异客，

每逢佳节倍思亲。

遥知兄弟登高处，

遍插茱萸少一人。

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Yesterday (26 Oct 09) was the 9th day of the 9th lunar month. Every year, Chinese all over the world celebrate the traditional Chongyang Festival on this day. People like to climb mountains on this festival, so Chongyang Festival is also called “Mountain-climbing Festival”.

It was also on this day a long, long time ago, Wang Wei (701-761) wrote a poem ‘On the Ninth Day of the Ninth Lunar Month Thinking of my Brothers in Shandong’ which became an instant classic and spread all over China.

Wang Wei is sometimes classed as one of the three greatest poets of the Tang dynasty, along with Du Fu and Li Bai. While he was neither as brilliant a craftsman as Du Fu nor as exuberant a genius as Li Bai, he excelled in imagery, and his poems often hold a subtle metaphysical flavour testifying to his long study of Buddhism.

Mountain climbing was a popular custom on Chongyang Festival during the Tang Dynasty. For many, it was the last outing of the year before the onset of winter. The custom evolved into its present form, when people go climbing to get some exercise as well as enjoy the autumn scenery.

For Wang Wei, it was his hope that by climbing to the mountain top and looking far into the distance, he could see his brothers and other relatives who lived far away. But he could not, therefore he sighed:

All alone as a stranger in a strange land,

I am twice as homesick on this day.

When brothers carry dogwood up the mountain,

Each of them a branch, and mine missing.

华人书法：线条的艺术？ Chinese Calligraphy: The Art of Lines?

华人书法就是书写华文字。既然中文字是有意味的符号，所以华人书法可以说就是有意味的符号的艺术。

华人书法还有另一面。书法的基本工具是毛笔。就是这个由动物毫毛（包括羊毛、狼毫、兔毫、鸡毛，等等）制成的特别的圆锥体与灵活的书写工具。中国书法家也研发了独特的方法来应用毛笔（即‘书写法则’，‘用笔’、‘行笔’与‘执笔’等技巧）。

毛笔是简单的书写工具。它须配合以宣纸或丝绸，与展示阴影的墨计。这些工具都很简单，可是能够把这三样东西融合，适当地应用就能产生丰富与难以置信的艺术表现力。

除了视觉造型的规则之外， 以经实证方法所产生的美丽线条是展示书法的最重要途径。这就是为什么被称为‘线条艺术’。

传统上，书法家研发笔法的目的就是为了服务书写有意味的符号 —— 中文为唯一的目的。

可是，一些现代书法家对此提出了挑战：他们的激进看法把中国书法看成是纯粹以毛笔书学线条，而完全没有想到要写中文字。

就是说，现代书法问了一个令人想都不曾想的问题：书法应写中文吗？

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Chinese calligraphy is about writing the Chinese characters. Since Chinese characters are basically significant form of symbols, it is therefore said that Chinese Calligraphy is a fine art of significant form of symbols.

There is another aspect of Chinese calligraphy. The primary tool in Chinese calligraphy is the writing brush. It is this unique cone and flexible writing tool which made of animal hair (including sheep hair, wolf hair, rabbit hair, chicken hair, etc.). Chinese calligraphers also developed unique ways to use the brush (that is, ‘writing rules’ or the techniques of ‘using the writing brush’, ‘moving the writing brush’, ‘holding the writing brush’ etc).

The brush as a writing tool is very simple. It is used together with the writing rice paper (mainly is Xuan paper) or silk, the black ink which showed shades. The tools are simple, but the ability to integrate the three into one and use them appropriately will produce rich and unbelievable art expressive force.

In addition to the rules of visual modelling, the most important way to display Chinese calligraphy art is the beauty of lines generated by proven techniques. This is why Chinese called the Chinese calligraphy as ‘line art’.

Traditionally, Chinese calligraphers’ purpose of developing brush techniques is to serve the sole objective of writing meaning symbols – the Chinese characters.

However, this has been challenged by some modern calligraphers who have taken a radical view that treats Chinese calligraphy as purely an art of using brush techniques to draw lines without having in mind the need to write Chinese words.

In other words, the Modern Chinese calligraphers have asked an unthinkable question: Should the Chinese calligraphy be the art of writing Chinese characters?

中文：有意味的形式 Chinese Characters: The Significant Form

中文具有意、音、形三美。基于象形，中文以形状结合了声音与意思，形成了方块字来代表意念。

作为一种最早的文字之一，中文很明显的在发展中华文明方面扮演了重要角色。原本，也有古代苏米人与埃及人的符号，可是只有中国文字保留至今。

有一个著名的‘仓颉造字’的神话。根据这个神话，仓颉这个五千年前黄帝的史官，受到了动物形迹的启发，领会到不同形迹可用来作为分辨各种物体的标记，所以他就发明了许多符号来代表不同物体与事物，这就成为了最早的中国文字。

这些文字经过了长时期的严格的简化、概念化与具体化的过程，才成为代表物体与思维的目前的形式。

中文字目前的形式由点与线组成，这些点与线组成字的最主要构成部位，而这些部位结合成为完整的字。自古以来，发展与演变出了许多的结字原理与规则。我们只能在掌握了这些结字的原理与规则后，才能把字写对。世世代代以来，许多书法家终其一生研究与了解这些原理与规则，以便能够写出漂亮的书法来。

中国文字是一组有美感的美丽的符号，因为它的结构真实地代表了万物的有意味的形式。

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The Chinese characters are said to possess beauty in sense, sound and form. Based on pictographs, they combine shapes with sounds and connotations to form unique, block-shaped characters that carry meaning.

As one kind of the most ancient characters, it is obvious that Chinese characters have also played a significant role in the development of Chinese culture. Originally, ancient Sumerian and ancient Egyptian symbols existed, but only Chinese characters remain today.

There is a very popular myth named "Invention of Characters by Cang Jie". According to this myth, Cang Jie, a historical chronicler of the Yellow Emperor over 5,000 years ago, was inspired by the footprints of animals and understood that different prints could be treated as marks to discriminate different objects, so he invented a lot of symbols to represent different objects and affairs, and they were the oldest Chinese characters.

These characters have gone through a vigorous process of simplification, conceptualisation and crystallisation over a long period of time, before they finally become the current form that represents things and ideas.

The current form of Chinese characters are composed of a group of lines and points, which may form a single key component in a character; various components then combine together to form a character. Many rules and principles of structure have been developed and evolved since ancient times. It is only after one knows the principles of the structure of Chinese characters one can know how to write them correctly. Generation after generation, many calligraphers have spent their lifetime to study and understand these principles and rules so that they can find the best way to write them beautifully.

The Chinese characters are a set of aesthetically beautiful symbols because their structure truly represents the significant form of myriad things.

二元对立与对立互补 Binary Opposites and Complementary Opposites

西方人很难想象黑与白可以互相包含，因为他们一向以黑白对立为喻以构思议题与分析问题。这种思想形态一般称为‘二元对立’，与华人的‘对立互补’相对比。

西方‘二元对立’的概念是说人们以对立来思考。所有的物态都可以以他们之非所属来验明（天空阴暗而不是光亮）。世上有无限的二元对立，如始终、高矮、男性女性、显蔽、言文。除了两极之外，二元也有等级之分。我们的想法中，开始比终结好、显现比遮蔽好、灵魂精神比躯体好，语言比书写更重要。

对于华人来说，阴与阳虽然是相反的，可是一个不能独立于其它而生存。意思是自然中所有一切都应该和谐共存，就是说，相反的东西其实互补，因为一种东西显示另一种东西的存在与意义。有光就有暗，有上就有下，有冬天就有夏天。华文词汇如‘上下、左右、冷热’等等很自然地表达了这种思想。对立的平衡为和谐与平静制造最好的形势。

阴阳不是一种敌对或对立的关系，对这点地了解很重要。‘对立互补’不是如‘二元论’那样把世界所有的东西分为两种分开与敌对的，如‘真与假’，‘善与恶’。在中国，阴与阳一直被看成是和谐平衡的并存，就如俗语所谓，‘阳中有阴，阴中有阳’。

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It is hard for Westerners to imagine a compromise between the black and the white which they often use metaphorically to frame issues and analyze problems. Such thought patterns are typically called binary opposites as opposed to the Chinese concept of yin-yang complementary opposites.

The western concept of binary opposites says that people think in terms of opposites. All things are identified in part by what they are not (the sky is dark but not bright). There are countless binary opposites, such as beginning/end, tall/short, masculine/feminine, presence/absence, and speech/writing. In addition to being dichotomies, these pairs are also hierarchies. We think of a beginning as more important than an end, presence as better than absence, soul/mind as more important than body, speech as more important than writing.

For the Chinese, while Yin and Yang are opposites, both of which could not exist without the other. The idea is that everywhere in nature opposites must coexist harmoniously, that is, the opposites complement each other, because each gives existence and meaning to the other. Wherever there is light there will be dark, where there is up there must be down, where there is winter, so shall be summer. This is naturally reflected in the Chinese language such phrases as ‘up and down, left and right, hot and cold’, etc. A balance of opposites creates the best situation for harmony and calm.

It is essential to understand that the nature of such forces in yin-yang thought is not an antagonistic or opposite relationship. It is also not a ‘dualism’, an assertion that the world is comprised of forces that are intrinsically separate and hostile, like ‘truth and falsehood’, or ‘good and evil’. In ancient China, yin and yang were always understood as existing in harmonious balance, this is reflected in the saying, ‘yang is contained in yin and yin is contained in yang.’

小红点 Little Red Dot

印尼前总统哈比比（1936年出生，任期1998-1999）于1998年八月的一篇报道的言论使‘小红点’成为流行语。他说，他对新加坡作为一个朋友没有感情，并指着一幅地图说：‘我没什么，可是印尼有2亿一千一百万人口。所有绿色的范围都是印尼。而那小红点就是新加坡。’

这个话语被当作是对新加坡的一种打发，引起一片噪声。2003年五月3日，当时的新加坡副总理李显龙（现任总理）反映哈比比的话语时说：‘这个话语很生动及可贵地提醒了我们的确实是很小和很脆弱。小红点已经进入了新加坡人的心理中，成为我们常用词汇的一部分。我们为此而感激。’

2006年9月19日，哈比比向记者解释，他在1998年完全没有打发新加坡之意，他所要说的是虽然新加坡很小，可是成就却很大。他是当着印尼的一个青年团体前面，顺口来给他们精神鼓励。他说他告诉他们，‘如果你看一看东南亚的地图，印尼那么大，而新加坡只是个小点。可是，来到新加坡，你看到的却是有远见的人民。’他断言，‘我已经多次纠正，可是他们就是不听入耳。我没有记录证明因为我当时畅所欲言。’

其实，新加坡政治家与一般市民都以‘小红点’为荣，被看成是国家在国土限制下成功的象征。

对‘小红点’这个词语的积极态度并不令人惊奇，因为新加坡基本上是个华人社会，而华人对‘点’，尤其是红色的小点其实还算蛮有好感。中文的许多常用词语都反映出了这种情怀。这里有两个例子：

画龙点晴。这句成语有最后润色的意思。这一点可以把艺术品带来生命，或表示最后的一两字句赢得论点。

万绿丛中一点红。特出耀眼的意思。

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The term "little red dot" gained currency after the former Indonesian President Habibie (born 1936; held office 1998–1999) was reported as having remarked in August 1998 that he did not have the feeling that Singapore was a friend, and had pointed to a map, saying: ‘It's O.K. with me, but there are 211 million people in Indonesia. All the green area is Indonesia. And that red dot is Singapore.’

The remark caused an outcry as it was seen as a dismissal of Singapore. Reflecting on Habibie's remarks at a conference on 3 May 2003, the then Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister (and present Prime Minister), Lee Hsien Loong, said: ‘This (Habibie's remark) was a vivid and valuable reminder that we are indeed very small and very vulnerable. The little red dot has entered the psyche of every Singaporean, and become a permanent part of our vocabulary, for which we are grateful.’

On 19 September 2006, Habibie explained to reporters that far from dismissing Singapore in 1998, he had meant to highlight Singapore's achievements despite its small size. He said that he had made the remark while speaking off-the-cuff with members of an Indonesian youth group and trying to "give them spirit". He said that he had told them: "If you look at the map of South-east Asia, you (Indonesia) are so big, and Singapore is just a dot. But if you come to Singapore, you see people with vision." He also claimed that "I have corrected (myself) many times, but they have never put it (sic). And I could not prove it in writing because I was talking freely."

However, the term ‘little red dot’ has since come to be used by both Singaporean politicians and ordinary citizens with pride and with a sense of the nation's success despite its physical limitations.

The positive attitude towards the term ‘red spot’ is not surprising, as Singapore is basically a Chinese society and for the Chinese, a little dot, especially a red one can actually be viewed as something precious. There are in fact many popular Chinese sayings reflect this sentiment. Here are two examples:

Hualong Dianjing, which means ‘finshing touch’, or literally means ‘bringing the pained dragon to life by putting on dots (pupils) of its eyes’. The dot is to add the finishing touch that brings a work of art to life, or add a word or two to clinch the point.

Wanlu congzhong yidianhong, which means very outstanding or eye-catching, or literally a single red in the midst of thick foliage.

软硬兼施：美国巧实力 Carrot-and-Stick: The U.S.’ Smart Power

曾经是‘硬实力’和‘软实力’ ，现在是‘巧实力’。

总统奥巴马带着‘我们相信变革’的口号进入白宫，无可避免地美国外交政策的‘伟大改造戏剧’的帷幕必须拉起。这个戏剧的导演就落在国务卿希拉里的肩膀上。

新的剧目叫什么呢？就叫‘巧实力’吧。据说这个设计是冲着前布什总统的盛气凌人的单边主义而来的。这个单边主义一味强调‘硬实力’。‘巧实力’就是要结合硬与软实力。软实力是以吸引力而不是强迫来得到你所要的东西的能力。

引用希拉里的话：‘我们因该运用我所谓的巧实力，运用在外交、经济、军事、法律与文化各方面所拥有的各种工具，并选择其中最适合各别情况的工具或结合工具’来恢复美国在环球的领导地位。

可是，公开来谈‘巧实力’是否是明智之举呢？

很明显的，‘巧实力’与实力无关。它是一种策略。中国人有一句话形容它，那就是‘软硬兼施’。所以，现在的问题就是：公开来谈‘巧策略’是否是明智之举呢？

同样相当明显的是，不是每一个人都喜欢和灵巧的东西联系在一起。在西方，‘巧’可能传达正面的意思，可是华人可能不这样认为。华文比较倾向于把这个字同投机取巧或操纵技巧相联在一起。有一件事是肯定的，在两千五百年前，孔子曾说：‘巧言令色，鲜矣仁。’

现在，中国人已经对‘巧实力’起了疑心。他们已经问：美国对中国的政策如何地涵盖在‘巧实力’里？美国的新班子的行政策略和前布什政府有何不同？

看来，美国的决策者可以从耐克的广告套语中学到一两样东西：只管干吧。

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There was strong power, and the soft power. Now, it is ‘smart power’.

President Barack Obama entered the White House with the slogan ‘change we can believe in’ and it is inevitable that the curtain of the "great reform drama" in U.S. foreign policy has to be raised. The role of directing the drama falls on the shoulders of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the U.S. secretary of state.

And, what is the name of the new drama? Call it Smart Power. It is said to have been designed to direct at the foreign policies of former President George W. Bush's aggressive unilateral strategy, which one-sidedly stresses the "hard power". Smart power is the combination of hard and soft power. Soft power is the ability to get what you want through attraction rather than coercion.

Hillary was quoted as saying that "we must use what has been called smart power, the full range of tools at our disposal – diplomatic, economic, military, political, legal and cultural – picking the right tool or combination of tools for each situation", so as to resume the U.S.' global leading position.

However, is it a smart move to talk about ‘smart power’ openly?

It is obvious that ‘smart power’ is not about ‘power’. It is about strategy. There is a Chinese saying to describe such strategy, i.e. the carrot-and-stick strategy. Therefore, the question now is, is it a smart move to talk about ‘smart strategy’ openly?

It is also quite obvious that not everybody likes to be associated with things smart. In the west, the word ‘smart’ may have conveyed something positive – but this may not be the case for the Chinese. In Chinese, the word seems to associate more with ‘speculative’ and ‘manipulative’ rather than ‘clever’. One thing for sure, two thousand five hundred years ago, Confucius had said, ‘Smart (fine) words and an insinuating appearance are seldom associated with virtue.’

And the Chinese are already sceptical about smart power. They have already asked openly: What kind of the U.S.' China policy is contained in the "smart power"? Or how the new administration's policy towards China would differ from the preceding Bush government?

Probably the U.S. policy makers could learn one or two things from Nike’s tagline: Just do it.

李白：静夜思 Li Bai: Night Thoughts

李白 (701 – 762) 提倡恢复传统作为复兴诗词的依据。他的诗清新而风格独特，世世代代为人们所传颂。

让我们读以下这首诗：

床前明月光，

疑似地下霜；

举头望明月，

低头思故乡。

诗人李白远离家乡，一个月圆之夜，在奇异的旅馆里，他躺在床上，月亮从窗口照到地上，令他想起了他的故乡，因而写了这首著名的诗。它简短、易读、易记。它也轻易地使读者和他一样进入相同的思乡之情。

这首名为‘夜静思’的诗用简单的语言来表达思乡之情。李白就提倡这类的诗。他反对用华丽的词藻，和提倡恢复传统诗词的陈子昂的想法是一致的。

‘夜静思’画出一个想家而半夜起床的人。所用的语言简单，而思乡之情深刻。李白能够写出这样的诗，固然是因为他有写诗的天才，加上他能从民间文学，尤其是民间歌曲的语言中索取材料。
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Li Bai (701 – 762) advocated the revival of tradition in poetry as the basis of reforming poetry. His poems are refreshing and unique in style. They've been read by generations of people.

Let’s read the following poem:

The white moonlight in front of my bed;

I wonder if that can be frost on the ground.

I look up to see the moon.

I lower my head to think of my hometown.
Poet, Li Bai left his home far away to a strange hotel during a full moon night; he lay on the bed, the moon light flooded down on the floor through the window, that rose his thinking about his own home town village, so he wrote this famous poem. It is very short, easy to be read and remembered. It is so easy to bring reader to fall into the same thought about him village.

This poem, entitled "Night Thoughts," uses very simple language to describe homesickness. It's exactly this kind of poem Li Po advocated. He was opposed to using elaborate language when writing poems, and was in favour of the views of another poet, Chen Zi Ang, who advocated the revival of tradition in poetry.

‘Night Thoughts’ pictures a man thinking of his home town and waking up at night. The language is simple yet the feeling of homesickness is profound. Li Po was able to come up with poems like this because he not only had a gift for poetry but also borrowed ideas from folk literature, especially a language used in folk songs.

子曰：乐节礼乐 Confucius Said: Find Enjoyment in Ceremonies and Music

孔子最终的目的是要达到一个以周朝社会为模范的和谐社会。所以孔子把自己看作是衰退中的周朝礼乐文化的保存者与恢复者，那时不令人惊奇的。所有其它的一切都是为了要达到这个目标的手段。

之前，礼乐是用来服务神鬼，而神鬼又被认为是服务社会的重要手段。孔子把礼节并入世俗关系来制造一个理想的和谐社会。

周礼应受尊敬因为它为安稳与文雅社会提供了基础。它们界定了各类职责的任务与为行动提供了准则。依次，它们又为自我约束提供了社会框架。

乐被认为是关键的手段，因为它是礼节中重要的部分。所以，乐需要来实现和谐社会中的两个互相关联的目标：自我修养与社会和谐。

所以，早期儒学者认为道德与艺术是交错于中的，因为实践它们可以自我修身并最成为完美的人。这个过程对形成与维持一个和谐社会很重要。

《论语》里说：‘礼之用，和为贵。先王之道，斯为美。小大由之，有所不行，知和而和，不以礼节之，亦不可行也。’

孔子的劝告是：乐节礼乐。
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The ultimate goal of Confucius was to achieve a harmonious society which was exemplified by the Zhou dynasty. It is therefore not surprising that Confucius saw himself as the preserver and restorer of the declining Zhou culture. All others things were to be considered as means to achieve this goal.

The rituals and arts that previously had been used to serve the spiritual things were seen as instrumental in serving mankind. Confucius incorporated the rites into secular relationships in order to make the ideal of social harmony.

The Zhou Ritual (li) was to be respected as it provided the foundation for a stable and culturally refined society. They defined various roles and provided normative guidelines for action. In turn, they also provide social framework necessary for self-mastery.

Arts were considered as instrumental as they were seen as an important component of ritual. Therefore, arts were needed in actualising two interrelated goals of a harmonious society: self-cultivation and social harmony.

Hence, the early Confucians viewed moral and good arts as intertwined, for practising them allowed one to cultivate the self and to ultimately become a good person. This process was essential for establishing and maintaining a harmonious society.

The Analects says, ‘In the application of the rituals, harmony is most valuable. In the ways of the former Kings, the achievement of harmony made them elegant. While harmony is a guiding standard in all things large and small, if you keep pursuing it just because you know it, and do not use the rituals to regulate it, it will not work.’

And Confucius’ advice is ‘to find enjoyment in the discriminating study of ceremonies and music’.

易经：圣人以神道设教 Yijing: The Spirit-like Way

如果康德与孔子能够见面，交流一下对事物的看法，他们可能会发现，他们对精神世界方面的看法，可能有不少是相同的。
康德相信我们只能认识经验的东西，所以我们不能够以推理来知道上帝的存在。可是，我们需要上帝这个理念来作为我们道德生活的基础。所以，上帝是一个必要的理念，为了过个好日子的必要，为了道德的必要。
可以说，孔子很可能并不相信神灵这些东西。他就被引述说他没有兴趣谈怪力乱神。所以，“季路問事鬼神，子曰：‘未能事人，焉能事鬼。’問死，曰： ‘未知生，焉知死。’”
可是，孔子并没有明确地说他反对神灵的事，因为他相信为了教化道德，那是一个必要的理念。所以《易经》说：‘观天之神道，而四时不惑，圣人以神道设教，而天下服矣。’
一个人不可能精确地知道什么是神道。可是，接受圣人的教化才是重要的。所以，为了有效地教导道德，可以神道设教。
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If Kant and Confucius had a chance to meet and exchange their views on various topics, probably they would find out that they actually shared some common views on the subject of spiritual world.
Kant believed that we can know only our experiences and as such we cannot know by our reason that God exists. However, we need the idea of God to serve as a foundation of our moral life. Therefore, God is a necessary idea, necessary for the living of good life, for morality.
Confucius, it is said, probably did not believe in spiritual things. He was quoted as saying that he was not interested in talking about devil, violence, disorder, or deities (gods and goddesses). So when Ji Lu asked about serving the spirits of the dead, Confucius said, 'While you are not able to serve men, how can you serve their spirits?' Ji Lu added, 'I venture to ask about death?' He answered, 'While you do not know life, how can you know about death?'
However, Confucius did not say explicitly he objected to spiritual things, probably because he thought it was a necessary idea for the sake of teaching morality. That is why Yijing says: ‘When we contemplate the spirit-like way of Heaven, we see how the four seasons proceed without error. The sages, in accordance with this spirit-like way, laid down their instructions, and all under heaven yield submission to them.’
It is impossible for anyone to know what exactly the spirit-like way is. However, the focus point is on conveying the sage’s instructions. Therefore, in order to effectively teach morality, we can lay down instructions in accordance with the spirit-like way.

礼生乐 Chinese: Rites Gave birth to Arts

据说把礼节与乐（特别是音乐与书法）结合起来，在商朝（公元前1766-1122）就开始了。当时礼器以动物的形象来装饰，还铭刻了象形字 -- 书写文字的古老前身。所以中国美学理论的一个要点就是礼生乐。意思是从第一天开始，艺术品就为它的社区与国家服务。

实际上，乐本来就是《论语》的主题。孔子以音乐来比喻，遵照传统礼节就是把社会次序安排好：‘乐其可知也：始作，翕如也；从之，纯如也，皦如也，绎如也，以成。’

当整个音乐队表演好，它可以毫不费力地达到统一与和谐。没有人需要为了玩得好而受限制或被说服，或需要通过他与乐队的合作。老实说，这就是遵守传统礼节而造就的社会和谐的形象。在这样的社会里，没有人需要被强迫去配合整体；一个人只要参与礼节，他就已经在和谐之中。孔子的政治哲学就很好地被说成主要是美学的，它强调美好地安排传统构成元素。

荀子谈到礼乐时说：‘故乐行而志清，礼修而行成。耳目聪明，血气和平，移风易俗，天下皆宁，莫善于乐。故曰：乐者，乐也。’

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It is said that the association of rituals and Chinese arts, music and calligraphy in particular, begin in the Shang Dynasty (1766 BC – 1122 BC), when ritual vessels were decorated with images of animals and inscribed with pictographs, the ancient precursors of written language. Therefore one salient feature of the Chinese aesthetic theory is that Rites gave birth to Arts. That means right from the beginning, art objects have always serve the interests of the communities and states that they inhabit.

Indeed, music is central to the Analects. Confucius uses music as a metaphor for a social arrangement kept in place by the observance of traditional li:

‘This much can be known about music. It begins with playing in unison. When it gets into full swing, it is harmonious, clear, and unbroken. In this way it reaches its conclusion.’ (3:23)

When a musical ensemble is playing well, it achieves unity and harmony effortlessly. No one has to be constrained or exhorted to play well or to combine his efforts with that of the group. Again, this is an image of a state of social harmony created by the observance of traditional rites. In such a state, no one has to be forced to act harmoniously with the whole; by virtue of one's participation in li, one is already in harmony. It has been well said that Confucius' political philosophy is essentially aesthetic, emphasizing a beautiful arrangement of traditional elements.

Xunzi has this to say about music and ritual:

Therefore when music is performed, the inner mind becomes pure; and when ritual is cultivated, conducted is perfected. The ears become acute and the eyes clear-sighted; the blood humour becomes harmonious and is balanced, manners are altered and customs changed. The entire world is made tranquil, and enjoys together beauty and goodness. Therefore it is said, ‘music is joy.’

中华礼乐文化 The Chinese Culture of Rites and Arts

通常说，在古代中国，社会与政治的秩序是二而一的；统治者与君子的个人品德保证国家健全。礼与乐是良好秩序的关键，因为当时的音乐是民间与官方礼仪的重点。

所以，政府如果重视实践最适宜的、在历代传统中选用的礼与乐，自然会产生有德行与快乐的百姓；律法已不必要，因为争论根本就不会发生。

在古代中国，最早的礼节是指律法条文与祭拜上天之灵的正式仪式。周朝就有了成熟仪式来规化人们的行为、协调冲突、人际关系与确保完好的人事管理。以礼促进社会秩序，终止纷争与惩罚战乱，调节奢侈与损耗。礼是人们对他的生活与工作的满意的前提。

孔子提倡礼为一种理想的准则与典范。他崇拜周礼，曾说：‘周監於二代，郁郁乎文哉！吾從周。’可是，在他那时候，人们渐渐地偏离周礼，这就是他开始再度提倡周礼的原因。

《周礼》中的《文王世子第八》（约公元前1073）就这么说：‘凡三王教世子必以礼乐。乐，所以修内也；礼，所以修外也。礼乐交错于中， 发形于外，是故其成也怿，恭敬而温文。’

就是说，所有先王都同样重视礼与乐的教育。两者关系密切，礼融于乐而乐参透所有礼节。它们纵横交错，各有重点。

这就是中国的礼乐文化。

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Generally speaking, in ancient China, social and political orders were the same, and the personal virtue of rulers and gentlemen ensured the health of the state. The keys to good order were rites (li) and music, for Chinese music of the period was central to customary and official rites.

Therefore, a government that pay great attention to practice the most fitting rites and music, selected from the various available traditions, would automatically produce virtuous and happy citizens; laws would be almost unnecessary because disputes would never arise.

The earliest rites (li) in ancient China refer to regulations on the articles and ritual formalities for offering sacrifice to heavenly spirits. A sophisticated system of li came into being in the Zhou Dynasty to regulate people’s conducts, reconcile conflicts, coordinate interpersonal relationship and ensure perfect management of personnel affairs. Li makes social order, puts an end to contentions and scourge of war and moderates extravagance and dissipation. Li is the premises of people’s happiness about their lives and work.

Confucius advocates li as a desirable standard and norm. He admired the li of Zhou and once said, 'Zhou had the advantage of learning from the two past dynasties. How complete and elegant are its regulations! I follow Zhou.' However, during his time, people gradually drifted away from the rites of the Zhou, and this is the reason why Confucius began to advocate it once more.

The Records of Rites depicts the education of Wen Wang (Civil King, c.1073 BC):

The kings of the three dynasties (Xia, Shang and Zhou, c.2100-c.771 BC) taught their princes li (rites) and yue (music). For music is used to cultivate one’s mind, and rites, to train one’s manners and behaviours. For those have internalised both Li and Yue, the result will be reflected in their pleasant appearances, respectful and gentle behaviours.

That is to say, all the early kings paid equal stress on the education of rites and music. The two are closely related to each other with rites dissolving in the form of music and music permeating through the field of rites. They are interwoven and each has its particular stress.

Such is the Chinese culture of Rites and Arts.

书法线条素质 The Qualities of the Brush Strokes

我们注意到笔画是中国书法的两个主要构成元素之一。

普遍被接受的是，书法家的作品应反映组成中国文字的线条的力度、朴质与优美。你必须能够掌握用笔的技巧才能控制笔力。

能手所出必能显示所传递的笔画所蕴藏的踏实、精确、流畅、气势与力度。这里所说的力度意味艺术家所创造出的笔画所显示的高度集中力与完美控制。一条精细与富有韧性的线条应该具有传达新鲜与活力的力量。

笔画给予书法节奏与优美，显露书法家的个性与风格。就算那些不懂得中文的人，他们也可以对每一条线条的运转与富有表情的素质有所反应。允许眼睛跟着毛笔的轨迹，我们参与了书法家本身的脉搏活动与决定。

中国传统的美学鉴定笔画的四个素质。在完美的书写中应该精确地平衡这些素质。

骨：骨力要令人感到笔画不可分裂而不感暴躁。

肉：富有滋养的线条，而不觉放纵与肥胖。

筋：无形的韧带把字与字间联系起来。

血：就是墨的质地，不可似水或泥浆。

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We noted that one of the two key elements of Chinese calligraphy is the brushstroke.

It is well accepted that the calligrapher’s works must attest to the strength, simplicity and beauty of the lines or strokes that form the Chinese characters. In order to control the strength of this stroke well, you may need to master the proven techniques of operating the brush.

The result from a master’s hand bespeaks sureness, precision, fluency, vigour and strength underlying its delivery. Strength in this particular connection denotes the intense concentration and perfect control of the brush on the part of the artist as reflected in the brushwork created by him. A fine and supple line must possess strength to impart freshness and vitality.

The brush strokes give the calligraphy rhythm and beauty, and reveal the individuality and style of the calligrapher himself. Even those who do not understand the meaning of the Chinese characters could respond to the movement of the brush, and to the expressive qualities of each stroke. As allowing the eyes to follow the path of the brush, one engages the impulses and decisions of the calligrapher.

The Chinese traditional aesthetic theory has valuated individual brush strokes according to four Qualities, which should be perfectly balanced in flawless writing:

Bone: Such a feeling of strength in the strokes that it appears impossible to break them, yet without bitterness.

Flesh: A well-nourished quality in the strokes, without, however, self-indulgence or fatness.

Sinew: The appearance of one stroke being joined to the next by invisible ligaments, and also one character to the next.

Blood: A full texture in the ink, which should resemble neither water nor sludge.

后现代主义：人类一无所有 Postmodernism: Nothing Remains in One's Hands

后现代主义照字义是指现代主义之后的运动。现代主义一般被是对确实、原理、系统化思考、理性、个人思维的理论能力的信任的一种哲学门径。

后现代主义，一般而言，对现代主义对理性、原理、系统化思考的信心提出质疑。很多后现代主义者认为没有普世知识与道德这回事。他们也深深地怀疑能够推理与以思考来代表现实的‘自我’。

一般认为德国哲学家尼采是后现代主义之父，随之还有海德格尔、利奥陀、德里达、福柯，等等。

‘上帝已经死亡’是被广为引用的尼采之言。或者尼采这句话应该更适当的解释为‘上帝’这类的潮流（宗教的或精神的）已不足以当作道德的准则或精神了。

上帝之死可能是人类不再相信宇宙秩序的其中的一种述说，因为人类不再承认这种秩序了。尼采说，上帝之死不但会导致对宇宙或物质秩序的信仰的舍弃，也会导致对绝对价值本身的舍弃 – 那些把所有人类个体相连起来的客观的、普世的道德法则的舍弃。就这样，失去了道德的绝对依据，导致虚无主义。这虚无主义正是尼采重新评估人类价值的根基所要寻找的解决方案。对尼采而言，那是寻找比基督价值还要深刻的根基。

在西方历史里，这是思想家首次对理性与宗教严重的质问。当这些问题开始被广泛注意，人们开始绝望，虚无主义跟着蔓延。

看来，那些习惯于哲学始于惊异的人，现在应该认真地关注忧患的智慧了。

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Postmodernism literally means 'after the modernist movement'. Modernism is usually portrayed as a philosophical approach that has a faith in certainty, principles, systematic thinking, rationality, and the theoretical powers of the thinking individual.

Post-modernism, generally speaking, puts into question modernism's confidence in rationality, principles, and systematic thinking. Many post-modernists think that there cannot be universal knowledge or ethics. There is also a deep suspicion of the ‘self’ who is able to reason and represent reality through thought.

German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche is often called the father of post-modernism, and is followed by other thinkers such as Heidegger, Lyotard, Derrida, Foucault, etc.

‘God is dead’ is a widely-quoted statement by Nietzsche. It may be more appropriate to consider the statement as Nietzsche's way of saying that the ‘God’ of the times (religion and other such spirituality) is no longer a viable source of any moral code or spirit.

The death of God is a way of saying that humans are no longer able to believe in any such cosmic order since they themselves no longer recognize it. The death of God will lead, Nietzsche says, not only to the rejection of a belief of cosmic or physical order but also to a rejection of absolute values themselves — to the rejection of belief in an objective and universal moral law, binding upon all individuals. In this manner, the loss of an absolute basis for morality leads to nihilism. This nihilism is what Nietzsche worked to find a solution for by re-evaluating the foundations of human values. This meant, to Nietzsche, looking for foundations that went deeper than Christian values.

For the first time in the western history, the rationality and religion are being questioned seriously by the thinkers and when these questions do begin to become widely acknowledged, people would despair and nihilism would become rampant.

It looks like the people who are used to the philosophy that began in wonder will now need to have a serious look at the wisdom of concern.

农夫与商人 Farmer and Merchant

从历史上看，中国人是农夫，而西方人是商人。就是说自古以来，中国人与西方人不但生活在不同的地理环境，而且经济环境也不同。现在的情况可能有所改变，可是不同的历史背景很大的影响了他们的文化与哲学思想，直到今日。

中国是个大陆国家，很自然的中国人主要以农为生。在中国的哲学思想里，有所谓的‘本末’之分。本就是指农业，末为商业。这是因为农业有关生产，而商业却只管交易。必须有了生产才能有交易。

所以在中国历史中，社会与经济的学说及政策倾向‘重农轻商’，那就不足为奇了。

另一方面，希腊人居住于海洋国家，主要通过商业来维持国家的繁荣。就是说，他们基本上是商人。商人应用数字，也居住在城镇。所以他们的社会组织并不是基于家庭的共同利益，而主要是基于城镇利益。他们也有很好的机会会见具有不同风俗的人与不同的语言。所以，他们习惯变动，不畏惧新奇的东西。

所以海洋经济有助于防止狭隘的地方主义。相反地，中国的农业社区给予人们的世界观是较偏狭的。此外，贸易产生了一群有能力提供他们孩子教育的商人，因而为专业教育制造了需求。

据说农夫倾向于单纯与率直，所以他们的思考依赖他们目光所见，因此中国哲学是‘提示性的而不是明述性’，缺少指出我们所见到的桌子是否真实或只是我们脑里的理念这类的抽象思维。另一方面，商人在商业账目依赖抽象数字，所以他们具有很好的抽象推理与演绎逻辑的应用。

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Historically speaking, Chinese are farmers and Westerners are merchants. This is to say that since ancient time, the Chinese and Westerners not only live under different geographic conditions, but economic as well. Things might have changed nowadays, but the different historical backgrounds have greatly influenced their culture philosophical thinking till today.

As China is a continental country, it is natural that the Chinese people make their living mainly by agriculture. The Chinese philosophical thinking has made a distinction between what the philosophers called ‘The Root’ and ‘The Branch’. The Root refers to the agriculture and the Branch to commerce. This is because agriculture is concerned with production, while commerce is mainly concerned with exchange. One must have production before one can exchange.

It is not surprising that throughout Chinese history, social and economic theories and policies have attempted to ‘emphasise the root and slight the branch’.

On their hand, the Greeks lived in a maritime country and maintained their prosperity mainly through commerce. In other words, they were primarily merchants. While merchants deal with numbers, they also live together in towns. Hence they have a form of social organisation not based on the common interest of the family but so much on that of a town. They also have great opportunity to see different people with different customs and different languages. Therefore, they are accustomed to change and are not afraid of novelty.

A maritime economy therefore helps to prevent parochialism. In contrast, the farming community in China gave the people a more insular view of the world. In addition the trade produced a merchant class that could afford to educate their children, creating the need for a teaching profession.

It is said that farmers tend to be simple and straightforward, hence their thinking often relies on what they could see, and Chinese philosophy is therefore ‘suggestive but not articulate’ with no room for such abstract reasoning such as whether a table one sees is real or just an idea in one's mind. On the contrary, merchants rely on abstract numbers in their commercial accounts, hence their abstract reasoning and extensive use of deduction.

中国不高兴 China Is Unhappy

这些天，如果你认为中国人很快乐，没有人会怪你。毕竟，他们已经超越德国成为美国与日本后的世界第三大经济体；2008年，他们成功的主办了奥运会，同时即将举办上海世博2010；2008年他们也第一次完成太空漫步。就算是2008年五月发生的巨大破坏性的四川地震也具有正面的一面 – 中国人一致全面自愿援助他们的同胞。

但是，你可能没想到，根据一本新的畅销书，中国不高兴。其理由包括：

1。拉萨“3•14”事件背后鬼影憧憧，西方世界对中国的战略围堵越来越具体化和明目张胆。

2。三鹿奶粉事件对中国国民心理的‘精神撕裂’，使一个大国理应秉持的多项核心价值受到威胁甚至动摇。

3。萨科齐（法国总统）之类对中国的屡屡侵犯，是卑鄙下流的机会主义作祟。

4。一些‘知识精英’或所谓‘优秀的中国人’正在戕害中国国家的精神品质。

中国需要厘清的若干个“为什么”,包括：

1。为什么中国人‘现在挺爽’是巨大假象，西方阵营的‘拖垮’战略乃中华弥久大患？

2。为什么同西方‘有条件决裂’是必须筹划的未来选项之一？

3。为什么新儒家的‘感化论’，‘拯救世界说’是白日梦呓？

4。为什么行‘失败主义’之实的‘王小波神话’是当代最丑陋的文化蛊惑？（王小波，1952-1997，作家）

中国应持何种新主张？

1。中国应该成为抱负远大的英雄国家。

2。持剑经商，崛起大国的制胜之道。

3。解放军要跟着中国核心利益走。

4。不能听‘金融战士’忽悠，产业升级才是国之根本。

5。认清西方‘轮盘赌’式的外交玄机，把中法关系实质性降低。

6。应勇于在国际社会上除暴安良，在强国道路上扫清颓风。

7。在当代社会的各个层面，都需要‘去文艺腔’。不惟此，我们就无法准确指称政治及经济现实，无法实现大目标。　

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These days, no one will blame you if you think that the Chinese are happy. After all, they have surpassed Germany to become the world's third-largest economy behind the U.S. and Japan, they have hosted a successful Olympic Games in 2008 and are going to host another major event, World Expo Shanghai 2010, they have conducted their first space walk in 2008. And even the devastating Sichuan earthquake in May 2008 had positive aspects—Chinese volunteered en masse to help their stricken countrymen.

Yet, for all you know, according to a new bestseller, China is unhappy. And here are some of the reasons:

1. There are ghosts behind the Lhasa 3.14 incident; the strategic encirclement of Western World towards China has become more concrete and obvious.

2. Sanlu milk power incident has result in a ‘psychological tear’ among Chinese people. It threatens a strong nation's core values.

3. People like Nicolas Sarkozy (the French President) have been offensive to China out of nasty opportunism.

4. The so-called ‘knowledge elites’ or ‘excellent Chinese people’ are harmful to China’s national spirit.

The book further clarifies a number of issues, including the followings:

1. Why the ‘feeling great’ among Chinese people are just fake phenomena. And Western strategy in dragging China down has been a hidden illness to China.

2. Why China should consider it an option to break up with the West under a certain conditions.

3. Why the ‘reform theory’ and ‘world salvation theory’ of neo-Confucianism has become day dream talk.

4. Why ‘Wang Xiao Bo's myth’, which embraces ‘defeatism’, is the most ugly culture lie. (Wang Xiao Bo, 1952-1997, writer.)

Finally, what should China advocate?

1. China should become a country with heroic mission.

2. China should hold sword to protect its business, this is a way to build a strong nation.

3. The National Liberation Army should protect China's core value.

4. China should not listen to the sweet talk of ‘finance warriors’ and industrial upgrade is the fundamentals.

5. Get to know the ‘Russian Roulette’ nature of western diplomatic strategy, lower the concrete diplomatic relation with France.

6. China should be brave in protecting international security and clear its path towards a strong country.

7. Avoid high-art's culture for affecting Chinese social life or else China’s political and economic goals cannot be realised.

百分之一主义 The One Percent Doctrine

据说，美国前副总统切尼的的国安政策很简单：‘宁可杀错，不可放过；宁可信其有，不可信其无’。其背后的思维是： ‘不怕一万，只怕万一。’
对其采取强硬手段对付恐怖分子，切尼的解释是，只要恐怖事件有百分之一的机会发生，‘我们的反应就应该是坚定无疑的。’
这就提醒我们‘百分之一主义’，一本由记者萨斯金德所写并获得普利策奖的有关美国在911事件后追捕恐怖分子的非小说类的书。在2006年7月24日，这本书在纽约时报最畅销排名榜上排名第三。
‘百分之一主义’ （又称切尼主义）其实是源于2001年11月（日期不详）的一个会议中。当时中央情报局长向切尼及当时的国家安全顾问赖斯汇报时，对担心巴基斯坦科学家在911后为奥萨马的基地组织提供发展核武器援助的反应。
根据哪本书的说法，切尼这样形容布什政府对付恐怖主义的策略：
‘巴基斯坦科学家援助基地组织发展核武器之事，即使只有1％的可能性，我们也应把它当作确有其事来给予反击。这与我们的分析无关……这是我们的反击。’
这就令我们想到曹操在190误杀人后的名言：‘宁我负人，毋人负我！’
注：曹操 (155-220)为东汉末年掌握实权的丞相。死后追缢为魏武帝。
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It is said that the former Vice President Dick Cheney’s national security strategy is simple: ‘Better to be sure than sorry. Prepare for the worst, and hope for the best.’ And the thinking behind it is that ‘we don’t fear hard work, we just fear failure.’
The justification for taking a hawkish approach to terrorism was explained by Cheney that if a terrorist event had even a one percent chance of happening, ‘we have to treat it as a certainty in terms of our response.’
That brings us to the One Percent Doctrine, which is a nonfiction book by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Ron Suskind about America's hunt for terrorists since September 11th. On July 24th, 2006, it reached number 3 on the New York Times Best Seller list.
The One Percent Doctrine (also called the Cheney doctrine) was actually created in November 2001 (no exact date is given) during a briefing given by then-CIA Director George Tenet to then-U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney and then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice in response to worries that a Pakistani scientist was offering nuclear weapons expertise to Al Qaeda after the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attack.
Accordingly to the book, this was how Vice President Dick Cheney described the Bush administration's doctrine on dealing with terrorism:
‘If there's a 1% chance that Pakistani scientists are helping al-Qaeda build or develop a nuclear weapon, we have to treat it as a certainty in terms of our response. It's not about our analysis ... It's about our response.’
This reminds us of the famous or infamous statement made by Cao Cao in 190, after he wrongly killed someone, ‘I'd rather betray others, than have others betray me.’
Note: Cao Cao (155-220) was a Prime Minister of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during its final years in ancient China. He was posthumously titled Emperor Wu of Wei.

音乐：古代中国美学之灵魂 Music: The Soul of Ancient Chinese Aesthetics

如果说数学是古代希腊美学的灵魂，那么音乐就是古代中国美学之灵魂。这可能是居于孔子本身就狂爱音乐的这个事实吧。比如，当他与人相遇，如果对那人的歌唱很喜欢，他会要求他重唱，然后他自己加入同唱。他也精通乐器，在卫国玩罄（古代乐器），边唱边玩古筝，跟襄子学鼓。据《论语》所载，孔子在齐国听到了韶乐，他陶醉到三个月之内吃肉不觉得有肉的味道。还说：‘不图为乐之至于斯也。’想不到这乐曲竟达到了如此的境地。
《乐记》详细说明了孔子的音乐学说。《乐记》可说是最有系统的陈述儒家美学。它一开始就讲解了音乐的起源与功能。
‘凡音之起，由人心生也。人心之动物使之然也。
感于物而动，故形于声，声相应，故生变，变成方谓之音。比音而乐之，及干戚羽旄，谓之乐。乐者，音之所由生也；其本在人心之感于物也。
是故其哀心感者，其声焦以杀；其乐心感者，其声啴以缓；其喜心感者．其声发以散；其怒心感者，其声粗以厉；其敬心感者，其声直以廉；其爱心感者，其声和以柔。六者非性也，感于物而后动。是故先王慎所以感之者。
故礼以道其志，乐以和其声，政以一其行，刑以防其奸。礼乐刑政，其极一也。所以同民心而出治道也。’
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If mathematics is the soul of ancient Greek aesthetics, then music is the soul of ancient Chinese aesthetics. This could due to the fact that Confucius himself was almost crazy about music. When he was pleased with the singing of someone he was with, for instance, he would always ask to have the song repeated and would join in himself. He was also good at playing musical instruments: playing qing at Wei, singing while playing zither, learning drumming from Xiangzi. And as is recorded in the Analects, when Confucius was in the State of Qi, he heard the music of Shao; he was so intoxicated with the sweetness of its tone that he for three months did not know the taste of flesh. ‘I did not think that music could have been made as excellent as this.’ he said. (7:13)
This Confucian doctrine of aesthetics is elaborated in Yue ji or Record of Music which is perhaps the most systematic literature on aesthetics in the tradition of Confucianism.
From the very beginning, Yue ji gives an explanation to the origination and function of music:
‘All the modulations of the voice arise from the mind, and the various affections of the mind are produced by things (external to it).
The affections thus produced are manifested in the sounds that are uttered. Changes are produced by the way in which those sounds respond to one another; and those changes constitute what we call the modulations of the voice. The combination of those modulated sounds, so as to give pleasure, and the (direction in harmony with them of the) shields and axes, and of the plumes and ox-tails, constitutes what we call music. Music is (thus) the production of the modulations of the voice, and its source is in the affections of the mind as it is influenced by (external) things.
When the mind is moved to sorrow, the sound is sharp and fading away; when it is moved to pleasure, the sound is slow and gentle; when it is moved to joy, the sound is exclamatory and soon disappears; when it is moved to reverence, the sound is straightforward, with an indication of humility; when it is moved to love, the sound is harmonious and soft. These six peculiarities of sound are not natural; they indicate the impressions produced by (external) things. On this account the ancient kings were watchful in regard to the things by which the mind was affected.
And so (they instituted) ceremonies to direct men’s aims aright; music to give harmony to their voices; laws to unify their conduct; and punishments to guard against their tendencies to evil. The end to which ceremonies, music, punishments, and laws conduct is one; they are the instruments by which the minds of the people are assimilated, and good order in government is made to appear.’

中国书法重笔法 Chinese Calligraphy: The Brushwork

我们注意到中国书法其实是漂亮地写美丽的中文。所以自汉代以来，构成中国书法的两个主要元素从未改变，那是完全不令人惊奇的。这两个主要元素就是：中文的结字与笔法。
我们也注意到，中国文字是书法的第一形式。所以，书法家对中文结字所能做的改变是有限的。
然而，用笔是中国艺术的特点。所以对笔法的重视就不足为奇了。
笔画给了中国书法节奏感与美感，它们表达书家的内外品质。同时，它们显现了书法家本身的个性与风格。
只有那些掌握了毛笔的运作与原则的秘密的人才可以被当作出色的书法家。
元代赵孟頫曾说：‘学书在玩味古人法帖，悉之用笔之意，乃为有益。’他还说：‘书法以用笔为上，而结字亦需用工，盖结字因时相传，用笔千古不易。’
自钟繇与王羲之以来，不管中文的结字如何改变与新书体如何创新，钟王所设下的规范并大多没有被违背。要创造一种新的书体并不容易。它需要艺术的洞察力与灵感。书体的创造和毛笔、空间及节奏的运用与情感是有密切关系的。
所以，书法家穷其一生来研究笔法，那时完全可以理解的。
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We have noted that the essence of Chinese calligraphy is actually to write the beautiful Chinese character beautifully. It is therefore not surprised that two key elements of Chinese calligraphy have not changed much since Han dynasty. The two keys are: the structure of the Chinese character and the techniques of using the brush.
We have also noted that the Chinese character is the first form of Chinese calligraphy. Therefore, there is a limit that calligraphers can do to change the structure of Chinese characters.
However, the use of brush is unique in the Chinese art. It is not surprising that the brush techniques are so much emphasized.
The brush strokes give Chinese calligraphy rhythm and beauty and they depict the subject's outward and inner qualities. At the same time, they reveal the individuality and style of the calligrapher himself.
Only those who master the secrets of operating a brush and principles of structuring a character can be considered to be outstanding calligraphers.
Zhao Mengfu of the Yuan Dynasty once said, ‘In learning Chinese calligraphy, one must chew on and study the ancient masterpieces and comprehend the operating principles of brushes of ancient calligraphers so as to benefit from them.’ He also said, ‘Chinese calligraphy should focus on operating brushwork as well as character structures. The character structures may change over time but the principles of operating brushes never change.’
Since Zhong Yao and Wang Xizhi, no matter how the structure of Chinese characters changed and new styles of writing were invented, the norms set by Zhong and Wang were not violated in most cases. To create a new style of writing is not an easy task. It requires artistic insights and inspirations. The style of writing is also closely related to operation and disposition of strokes, spacing, rhythm, and etc.
It is no wonder that calligraphers would spend their life time to master the techniques of operating the brush.

前不见古人 Ahead, I see no ancestors

陈子昂(661–702) 是唐朝诗人。他的老家射洪也就是今日四川的遂宁市。二十四岁就考中进士。
陈子昂提倡汉魏诗歌形式。他的38首感遇诗就清楚地反映了他的复兴精神。
他认为诗歌应该反映现实，并为唐朝诗歌发展奠下基础。基于他对政治的热诚，他的不少诗歌含有批评社会的意味。
然而，他最为人所知的一首诗却是《登幽州台歌》，强健而直接。
华人有明显的历史意识，他们的社会可说是活在历史的指引下。在华人的心目中，历史描述了我们对时间流动的存在的意识。这种流动就在我们从事世间各种活动中。由于‘流动’包含了方向，知晓时间的存在就表示有了方向的意识。
这种确定方向给了我们希望与生命的目标。孔子（公元前551-479）曾站在川上，感慨时间的长河，‘逝者如斯夫，不舍昼夜’。
相同的，陈子昂也登上幽州台而长叹：
前不见古人，

后不见来者。
念天地之悠悠，

独怆然而涕下。
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Chen Zi'ang (661–702) was a Chinese poet of the Tang Dynasty. A native of Shehong County in what is today Suining, Sichuan, he completed the national Jinshi level of the Imperial Examination at age twenty-four.
Chen Zi'ang advocated the poetry styles of the Han and Wei dynasties. His representative works of 38 poems known as Ganyu (stirred by my experiences) explicitly manifest his spirit of renewal.
He felt that poems should reflect reality and he helped lay the groundwork for the development of Tang Poems. With his active interest in politics, much of his work has undertones of social commentary.
However, he is chiefly remembered for his poem ‘Climbing the You Zhou Building’ which is vigorous and straightforward.
Chinese have been noted for their historical-mindedness, and their society is said to have lived under the tutelage of history. In the Chinese mind, history describes how aware we are of being in time that flows as we engage in various activities in the world. Since the ‘flow’ includes its direction, to be aware of being in time means to have a sense of direction.
Such a definite direction gives us the prospect and purpose of living. Confucius (551–479 bc) stood at the river bank and sighed about the ‘river of time’, ‘Oh, how it flows day and night, without ceasing!’ In contrast, to lose this sense of time-direction is to be exiled out of living itself, to feel ‘out of place,’ unspeakably lost and lonesome in the world.
Similarly, Chen Zi’ang also went up the Youzhou tower and gave a long sigh,
Ahead, I see no ancestors;

Behind, I find no followers.

Contemplating the limitless of the universe;

I can't help but weep, feeling sad and lonely.

不与圣人同忧 Dao Does Not Get into the Same Worries that the Sages Have

我们说，忧患意识在华人的心中是挥之不去的现象。正是这种忧患意识产生了华人的道德意识。忧患并非杞人忧天。所忧的是德之未修与学之未讲。
天地人是华人的宇宙观。天生之，地养之，人成之。
天地道是无是无非的。有阴必有阳，世上有好人，但也有坏人。天地对万物是平等的，下雨的时候好草与毒草同样得到滋润。万物一律平等，没有分别。
人，尤其是圣人，则不同。圣人忧国忧民。正如范仲淹所说：‘先天下之忧而忧，后天下之乐而乐。’
天地是无心地成就万物，它当然就没有圣人的忧患。
所以《易经》说：显诸仁，藏诸用，鼓万物而不与圣人同忧，盛德大业至矣哉。
这就说明了为什么华人的忧虑是关于人，人类，他们的生命与生活。
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We said that the worrying mentality is an on-going thing in the hearts of the Chinese. It is this worrying mentality that results in the Chinese moral value system. Worrying mentality is not about groundless fear or merely imagining things. It is concerned about one’s moral values not cultivated and knowledge not thoroughly discussed.
Heaven, Earth and Humanity form the Chinese view of a three-tier universe. Heaven gives birth to things; Earth nourishes things and provides for their material needs; and Humanity completes or perfects all things by maintaining proper patterning (i.e., through rites and music).
However, Heaven and Earth are neutral and they do not take sides. When there is Yin, there must be Yang. There are good people and bad people. Heaven and Earth treat everything equally. The rain waters both non-poisonous and poisonous grass. All myriad things are equal, and there is no differentiation made between them.
But human being, especially the sages are different. The sages always concern for their country and people. As pointed out by Fan Zhongyan of Song dynasty, the government officials ‘worry before all others have worries, rejoice after all others have rejoiced.’
Since the Heaven and Earth produce the myriad things naturally as they are, they of course do not have the sages’ worrying mentality.
That is why the Yijing says, Dao (ie Heaven and Earth) ‘manifests various benevolent expressions, and hides the various practical applications. It encourages all creations, but does not get into the same worries that the Sages have. Its manifold power and great work are indeed perfections!’
This explains the concern of the Chinese. It is about people, human beings and their life and living.