道可道，非常道 Dao That Can be Dao-ed

老子在道德经一开始就说：道可道，非常道。
一般上，第二个‘道’字被解为‘说道’的道，就是说，能够被说出来的道，并不是永恒的道。
把第二个道当成动词来解，一般没有异议。可是解为‘说道’，却是可质疑的。在先秦，并没有把道当作‘说道’的用法，所以把道当动词，是如何解释，就要费一点脑筋了。
如果道是一种法则，或者可以把这句话解为：有方法与法则的道，不是永恒的道。
而无就是不可名，有就是可名。
以这样的理解来读道德经的第一章，可能有新的领悟：
道可道，非常道。名可名，非常名。
无名，天地之始；有名，万物之母。
故常无，欲与观其妙；常有，欲与观其皦。
此两者，同出而异名，同为之玄。
玄之又玄，众妙之门。
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Laozi started its Daode Jing by saying: Dao that can be Dao-ed is not the eternal Dao.
There is no doubt that the second word Dao is used as a verb. The sentence is generally interpreted as ‘Dao that can be told is not the eternal Dao’. In this interpretation, Dao-ed means ‘told’. However, this interpretation may not be acceptable. This is because the word Dao used as a verb to mean ‘say’ happened only much later after Qin dynasty. It is also not easy to understand the word Dao used as a verb in Chinese.
If we agree that Dao refers to a way or a rule, then perhaps one can interpret the sentence to mean the Dao that can be referred to as a Way or Rule is not the eternal Dao.
Wu (无) means the unnamable, and You (有) means the namable.
With this, probably we can interpret the first chapter of Daode Jing as:
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The Dao that can be Dao-ed is not the eternal Dao,
The Name that can be named is not the constant Name.
The Unnamable is the origin of Heaven and Earth;
The Namable is the mother of the myriad things.
Therefore it is always from the Unnamable the subtlety of the Dao can be contemplated;
Similarly it is always from the Namable that the manifestation of Dao can be perceived.
These two have the same sources but different names.
They both can be called deep and profound.
The Deepest and Most profound is the doorway to all subtleties.

成语外交 The Proverb Diplomacy

先是‘乒乓外交’，现在是‘成语外交’。
‘乒乓外交’指1970年代中美的乒乓选手交流，标志中美关系融化，导致美国总统尼克松于1972年2月21日至28日访问中国。
希拉里上任美国国务卿以来由2月20 至22日首次访问中国，美国记者认为成功：‘她来了，她被喝彩了，她征服了。’这次访问被称为‘成语外交’。
希拉里的亚洲之行前，在纽约发表演讲时，曾借用中国古语来形容中美关系：‘当你在同一条船上，你就必须和平地一起度过这条河。’中国媒体把它译为‘同舟共济’。这句成语来至中国古代军事策略家孙膑的‘孙子兵法’。
2月21日，中国总理温家宝称赞希拉里引用中国成语，并介绍‘孙子兵法’里的下一句‘携手共进’。
这就鼓舞希拉里再说一句中国成语：临渴掘井，以示国际问题需要两国来共同解决。
好个希拉里，这次真的是有备而来。
可见，魅力外交的最易最好的方法之一就是引用对方国家的历史、诗歌和领导语录。
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First, there was a ‘Ping-pong Diplomacy’, now it is the ‘Proverb Diplomacy’.
Ping-Pong Diplomacy refers to the exchange of ping pong (table tennis) players of the United States and China (PRC) in the 1970s. The event marked a thaw in US-China relations that paved the way to a visit to Beijing by President Richard Nixon from 21 to 28 February 28, 1972.
Hillary Clinton’s first visit to China from 20 to 22 Feb 2009, as the US Secretary of State, was said to be a great success. The US journalists reported: ‘She came, she wowed, and she conquered.’ And her visit is known as the Proverb Diplomacy.
She had used an ancient Chinese saying in a speech in New York before her Asia trip to describe US-China relations: ‘When you are in a common boat, you need to cross the river peacefully together.’ The Chinese media translated it as tong zhou gong ji, a Chinese proverb which is from The Art of War by Sun Tze, an ancient Chinese military strategist.
On 21 Feb, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao praised her for using the Chinese proverb and shared another saying in the book with her: progress together, hand in hand, or xie shou gong jing in Chinese.
That encouraged Mrs Clinton to offer yet another Chinese proverb: ‘You should dig a well before you are thirsty’ or lin ke jue jing, which referring to the need for the two countries to work together on global issues.
Well done, Hillary. You were well prepared this time.

It shows that one of the easiest and best ways to charm in diplomacy is to make references to the other country’s history, poetry or leaders’ quotes.

人文主义 Humanism

我们注意到文化复兴所导致的现代科学的诞生，对后来现代哲学来说，十分重要。
当理性重新维护其任务，而新的科学方法从了解到改进与开始被应用，显现了人类对进步发展的乐观信赖；与此同时，人类对解决问题的能力的信心，与日俱增。因为这个原故，人类，人的力量与尊严日益被强调。
这是对一个正在沉睡中的巨人的搅拌。这个巨人在沉睡时，被捆绑与囚禁，直到不能移动。巨人慢慢的从囚禁中解脱出来，站起来，并向世界宣告他的势力。
人敢维护他控制世界的能力，要支配他所走的道路，并随他的心意而转移。因为强调的是人在这个世界，所以就叫做‘人文主义’。
作为一种哲学，人文主义发展于文化复兴时期，而在启蒙运动中获得了立足点。人的自由、平等、权力、理性与民主主义，都是他们的共同理念。
人文主义者相信民主与人权是普世价值，不论你生活于何处，它们都应该存在于所有人类当中。很明显的，西方人文主义者并没有办法从普世主义与理性主义中解脱出来。
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We noted that the birth of modern science was one thing that happened during the Renaissance that was of great importance for the later character of modern philosophy.
As the role of reason re-asserted itself and the new scientific methodology began to be employed, first to understand and then to improve it, an optimistic belief in progress arose, as well as an increasing confidence in the capacity of humans to solve problems. There was thus a growing stress upon man and his power and dignity.
This was the stirring of a giant who had been asleep and during his sleep had been tied and fettered until he could no longer move. Slowly the giant broke his bonds, stood up, and proclaimed his power to the world.
Man dared to assert his ability to control the world, to master his ways and turned them to his desires. It was an emphasis upon the human in the universe and, therefore, has been called ‘Humanism’.
As a philosophy, humanism started developing during the renaissance and gained ground during the enlightenment, sharing ideals such as human freedom, equality, rights, rationalism, and democracy.
The humanists believe that democracy and human rights are universal values and must exist for all people, regardless of where you live. It is obvious that western humanists are not able to think out of universalism and rationalism.

子曰：学而时习之 Confucius Said: To Learn with a Constant Perseverance and Practice

子曰：学而时习之，不亦悦乎？有朋自远方来，不亦乐乎？人不知而不愠，不亦君子乎？
第一句里的‘习’，并不是指温习，而是指习惯。这个‘习’与他所说的‘性相近也，习相远也’的习是一样的。以动词来读，就是多多实践以成为习惯。就是说，我们学习了新的东西，能够时常应用，那不是件愉快的事吗？
第二句的‘朋’，固然可指朋友，亦可说是知我者。‘远’是远方，指空间之远，亦指时间之长。人生能有一知己，实在是不易，在远方或久久能得到一个知己，自是一大乐事也。
第三句，不愠就是不感到烦恼。有大学问而不为世所知，并不觉得有所烦恼，那才算是君子。
这三句话都是有关作学问的态度。学了就要有所应用，就要有知音人，但不要显耀。
In the Analects, Confucius started by telling the correct attitude of learning. He said that with three sentences.
In the first sentence, the word xi习means practice. This is the same word when he said ‘Men are close in human nature but far apart in practice’. It is used here as a verb, to mean one must always practice or apply on what one has learned.
In the second sentence, the word ‘peng 朋’ means friends, or those who understand and appreciate you. The word ‘yuan远’ refers to far away place in terms of distance or once in a while, a long time. If there is someone who lives far away or once in a while someone understands you, is it not delightful?
The third sentence says that as a true gentleman, one should not be troubled if his wisdom is not noticed by anyone.
So Confucius said: ‘Is it not pleasant to learn with a constant perseverance and practice? Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters? Is he not a man of complete virtue, who feels no discomposure though men may take no note of him?’
These three sentences summarise the way of learning. A person must always apply what he learns, will be delighted that some ones appreciate him and will not be troubled if nobody takes note of him.

华人的横向超越观念 The Chinese Idea of Horizontal Transcendence

我们注意到中国哲学中并没有超越这个概念。
对柏拉图而言，我们感官所看到的和经验的世界是不真实的。在这个世界里，我们发现事物一直在改变、来了又去，可是它们并不真实。同可视世界分开的是一个理念世界。在理念世界里，一切完美，它们不会有任何改变，永不退色或死亡，保持永恒。
换句话说，西方哲学家告诉我们不能相信我们说看到的。我们只能以理性能力来发掘真实与永恒世界，而这个永恒世界超越我们每天所看到的世界。
我们说华人不认同这个超越概念，是否意味着华人相信我们所看到的世界是真实的？很明显的，答案是‘不’。
华人以经验观物，以人常所见之物来观物。既然事物在变，我们需要把事物改变前的状态与将变成的未来状态加以联系。过去与未来的事物并不在我们的眼前出现，可是它们是真实的。
换句话说，华人相信言外之意与弦外之音。要了解所显现的，就要知道所隐蔽的；而隐蔽可在过去与未来中找到。
就是说，华人观物，其实从显现超越到隐蔽。而隐蔽是无限与永恒的。我们叫这种超越为横向超越。
为了把华人的超越和西方的超越划分界限，我们把西方的超越称为纵向超越。
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We noted that the notion of transcendence is not part of the Chinese philosophical thinking.
For Plato, the world which we see and experience through our senses are not real. In it, we find things changing, coming and going, but they are not real. There is a world of ideas that is separated from our perceivable world. In the Idea World, things are perfect; they do not change in anyway, never fade or die, and remain forever.
In other words, the western philosophers say that we cannot trust what we see. We can only trust our reasoning power to discover the real and eternal world, which transcend the physical world that we see every day.
When we say the Chinese do not subscribe to the idea of transcendence, does it imply that they trust what they see and trust their experience as real? The answer is obviously no.
Chinese view of things is based on experience and what they see in their daily lives. Since things change, there is a need to relate the past state of things before they change and the future state to which they will transform. Things in past and future are things that are absent from our view, but they are real.
In other words, Chinese believe that one must read what is implied but not expressed on the surface, or the meaning behind what is said. To understand the present, one must know the absent, which can be found in the past and the future.
That is to say, the Chinese view of things actually transcend from the present to the absent. The absent is unlimited and eternal. We can call this transcendence the horizontal transcendence.
To draw a line between the Chinese idea of transcendence and the western transcendence, we shall call the western transcendence the vertical transcendence.

苏轼: 不识庐山真面目 Sushi: No way to know Lushan’s true face

世界各地的人把他们当成世界中心，是相当自然的事。看来，种族中心主义是确定与维持人类族群的一般过程。所以说，每一个文化都有倾向于以该文化最注重的观点来批判其他文化，因而往往看到其他文化在该方面不足之处。
承认种族中心主义的这个现实是迈向文化间良好沟通的第一步，而这沟通正是今日这个多元世界所迫切需要的。对本身文化的自豪感并不是一种罪过，但是否认其他文化的正当性却是。
我们也应该对本身文化的形成构造有很好的了解。要看一看我们所处的位子，我们应该站得远一点，好好地远观。
苏轼的诗‘题西林壁’就很好的阐述了这个精神。这首诗文字精炼而含蓄，可是哲理、脱俗精神与顿悟的感受甚远。它也显现了作者从各个角度的柔情观察。
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苏轼：题西林壁
横看成岭侧成峰，远近高低各不同。

不识庐山真面目，只缘身在此山中。
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It is natural that people all over the world see themselves at the centre of the world. Ethnocentralism seems to be a normal process of identifying and maintaining boundaries between human groups. It is therefore said that every culture has a tendency to judge other cultures from a point of view that it values the most, and to see other cultures as falling short of that respect.
Admitting the realty of ethnocentralism is the first step towards better intercultural communication, which is badly needed in today’s multicultural world. Being proud of one’s culture is not a sin, but denying the legitimacy of other cultures is.
One also needs to have a good understanding of one’s own cultural formation – and to see where one is, one must step aside far enough to get a good distanced view.
This spirit is encapsulated in Su Shi’s poem ‘Written on Wall of West Forest Temple’. With few words but extensive connotation, the poem is far reaching in the sense of admonishment, unconventional spirits and sudden enlightenment. It also demonstrates the author’s affectionate observation from all angles.
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Sushi: Written on wall of west forest temple

Sideways a mountain range, vertically a peak.
Far-near, soaring-crouching, never the same.
No way to know Mount Lushan’s true face
When you are in the middle of this mountain!
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Note: Lushan is a beautiful mountain in China, where the river, lake and mountain integrate perfectly.

中国书法何以能成为艺术？What Makes Chinese Calligraphy Possible?

我们注意到中国书法是汉字的第二形式，或者依王国维的说法，是古典优雅的艺术。
作为中国书法的第一形式，汉字是图画造型；它的构成元素结构地与和谐地与其他组成分子结合在一起。汉字也具可塑性，因为它可以不同的书体形式写出。
读过中国乐舞的人都会听过诗经《毛诗大序》所形容的诗与舞的关系：
‘诗者，志之所之也，在心为志，发言为诗，情动于中而形于言，言之不足，故嗟叹之，嗟叹之不足，故咏歌之，咏歌之不足，不知手之舞之足之蹈之也。’
这句话的意思是说，舞蹈呢，实在因为仅仅是说话还表明不了心意，嗟叹也不能充份的表达情感，甚至咏歌仍嫌不足，不知不觉中就手舞足蹈了。
相同的，这个比喻也适用于汉字与书法的关系。汉字原是用来表达思想与感情的。可是平淡书写并不足以表达感情的目的。所以，熟练的应用独特的中国毛笔与墨水可以把中文字转换为有生命的个体单位，拥有骨、筋、肌与血；这就允许书法家自由地展示他们的美学意象与艺术才能。
一个熟练的书法家在达成高度艺术意境时，能把观赏他的书法作品的观众带入深刻的世界观里。
中国毛笔与翰墨使书法可能成为一种艺术。
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We noted that Chinese calligraphy is the secondary form, or using Wang Guowei’s term, a fine art of classical elegance, of Chinese words and characters.
As the primary form of Chinese calligraphy, the Chinese character is a graphic composition, the elements of which are structurally and harmoniously integrated with all component parts. It is also malleable as it can be written in many forms.
Those who study the origin of Chinese music and dance would have heard of this quote from the Preface to Poetry that describes the relationship between song or poem and dance:
‘Song is where the mind is going to. In the heart, it is called "mind", spoken out, it is called "song". The motion is moved in the heart and takes shape in words; if words are not sufficient, sighing can be better; if sighing is not sufficient, songs can be better; if songs are still not sufficient, motions can be expressed with hands, by dancing, with feet, by springing.’
The same can be said about the relationship between Chinese characters and calligraphy. The Chinese words are supposed to express thinking and feeling. The plain writing is insufficient to achieve the objective of expressing the feeling fully. Therefore, skillful use of the unique Chinese brush and ink would be able to convert Chinese characters into life-units consisting of bone and muscles, fresh and blood, which would allow calligraphers to display their aesthetic imagination and artistic ability freely.
A highly skilled calligraphy master, in achieving deep artistic vision, may even be able to bring about great sense of worldview to the viewers of his calligraphic works.
It is clear that the Chinese brush and ink play a major part in making it a form of fine art.

中国龙与西方龙 The Chinese Dragon

中文字‘龙’在英语叫‘Dragon’。可是我们都知道西方龙与中国龙其实是两个不同的想象动物。
龙是神化动物。世界所有文化中，几乎出现有关于龙的一些叙述或描写。在不同的文化中所出现的龙的形体描述与所谓力量是有很大不同的。但是，几乎都有蛇形，或爬行怪兽的这类共同描述（或最少有蛇/爬行兽的成分或特征），通常还拥有魔力和精灵技能。
在西方文化中，龙是会喷火的邪恶野兽。它有廋颈，恐龙般的大身体，和一对无羽毛的翅膀。
可是，中国龙却是精力充沛、果断、乐观、有智慧和雄心勃勃的。华人喜爱与崇拜它。不少寺庙与神庙以龙为名或供养龙。一般认为龙控制雨、河流、湖泊与海洋。
事实上，中国龙与西方龙是没有直接关系的。
为了西方观念上有对龙有坏的错误印象，有人提议该掉中国龙的英文名字，音译为‘Loong’ 或 ‘Long’。可是，‘Loong’ 不是一个正确的拼音，而拼音‘Long’ 可能又会与英语‘长’字相混乱。
为什么不就直接称为‘中国龙’呢？
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The English word ‘dragon’ is known as ‘long’ (龙) in Chinese, but we all know the western dragon and Chinese ‘long’ (龙) are actually two different imagery creatures.
The dragon is a mythical creature of which some interpretation or depiction appears in almost every culture worldwide. The physical description and supposed abilities of the creature vary immensely according to the different cultures in which it appears. However, the unifying feature of almost all interpretations is it being a serpentine or otherwise reptilian monster (or at least possessing a serpentine/reptilian part or trait), and often possessing magical or spiritual qualities.
The dragon in western culture is a kind of evil animal that can spray fire from its mouth. It has a thin neck, a big dinosaurs-like body and a pair of featherless wings.
However, Chinese dragons are energetic, decisive, optimistic, intelligent and ambitious. They are loved and worshiped by the Chinese. There are temples, and shrines named for and honoring dragons. They are believed to control the rain, rivers, lakes, and seas.
There is actually no direct connection between the Chinese dragon and the western dragon.
In order to avoid the wrong impression of something bad in western people's point of view, some Chinese has proposed to change the English name for Chinese Dragon to ‘Loong’ or ‘Long’. However, ‘Loong’ is not a valid pinyin and ‘Long’ can be confusing as it is a valid English word.

Perhaps, just call it the Chinese Dragon……