(A summary of an interview with Professor Tu Weiming (Do Duy Minh) by Trung Van published in the anthology of Confucianism, Tradition, Tradition, Modern Transformation, edited by Nhac Hoa (China's Quang Ba Dien Thi Publishing House, 1992), pages 173 to 191.) Vietnamese translation: Dr. Duong Ngoc Dung Formation of a unique solipsistic consciousness in Chinese culture Interviewer: When people mention a conservatism inherent in Chinese culture itself, it is common to raise an issue of "uniqueness" (only one is worthy of respect). From ancient times, Chinese culture has had a unique solipsistic consciousness, a kind of inhuman tendency (items are not necessary). This tendency not only attacks cultural flows coming from abroad, but also increases the character of Chinese culture. What do you think about this matter? Do Duy Minh: This issue has also been discussed by Phi Chi Khanh (John K. Fairbank). There is a view as follows: because China is a big country with the so-called “ traditional rites”, has a unique solipsistic sense, considers outsiders as ethnic groups who must pay tribute, because they have special interests. Because they have things to petition for us, and we have nothing to ask of them. Once they arrived in China, we had to use a series of rituals to transform them into gods who were tasked with worshiping the throne. From the Tang dynasty on, the situation was like that, until the Ming dynasty it developed into a relatively obvious kind of narcissism. This kind of egotistical extravagance makes it difficult for China to meet the challenge of Western culture in a realistic, definitive way. The so-called "Nam Man, Dong Di, Tay Nhung, Bac Dich" have nothing to say, only China is the nucleus of civilization. This represents a very intense culture, even a sort of racial chauvinism. I think that for the above statements, it is necessary to make a distinction at deeper levels. There's no denying that China does have a kind of self-centered cultural ideology, but behind the big screen the situation can be very complicated. During the Tang dynasty, Chinese culture developed to its peak, but the Tang dynasty did not have theism of considering Huaxia culture as the center, but had a great spirit of tolerance and synthesis. After the Tang dynasty, the Han ethnic group in China not only fell into the state of national weakness, but also suffered from a particularly great threat from the steppe peoples (such as the Mongols), the forest peoples (such as the Kim), China's central cultural perspective and the life-or-death experience it has to endure are closely related. Especially in the period of nearly a thousand years of history, the concept of solipsism is very difficult to convince. During the Song dynasty, for Lieu, Kim, and Nguyen many times, they had to accept the title "god". Chu Xi, a thinker with a very strong sense of Huaxia culture, but still with deep feelings of anxiety and fear, he fears that the dynamics of the center of the world are no longer within China. Moreover, China was invaded by outsiders and had to face national disaster. By the Nguyen dynasty, eighty years, completely subjected to the interference of foreign culture, the intellectuals were turned into a kind of "old-timer" (stale, stinky old man). Until the Ming dynasty, the situation of border defense was always complicated and tense. On the one hand, they had to worry about Mongolia, because Mongolia was able to recover, and on the other hand, they had to deal with Manchuria. The situation is unpredictable, even the emperor is arrested. In such a situation, it is not easy to want to have a sense of grandeur. A strong sense of danger is expressed in the work of Vuong Phu Chi and the slogan proposed by Co Viem Vo: "the world is dying, the commoner is responsible" (whether the nation is stable or broken, the common people are also partly responsible), all showing that is not a unique, self-centered solipsistic consciousness, but it should be said that it is a sense of anxiety about the survival of the nation.  The so-called unique solipsistic consciousness, mainly formed in the Qing dynasty. Manchu was a dynasty founded by invaders into China. With the aim of completing the control of internal affairs, the Qing government used a cultural strategy completely similar to that of Confucianism. Sun Confucius (revering Confucius, studying Confucian classics), those are the things that the Ming government could not do, but the Qing dynasty did. It can be said that the Qing dynasty has completely disarmed the Chinese intellectuals, and the intelligentsia's judgment on some major issues has also been disturbed by politics. At the same time, the intelligentsia, especially the Han intelligentsia, when they are no longer able to govern the country, feel that they are completely separated from the times and no longer belong to this era. Therefore, the so-called extravagant disease of the imperial dynasty has not yet fully developed after the Song dynasty, and the unique sense of solipsism of the Qing dynasty is also due to the hundred years of time without contact with foreign countries. Western culture is completely ignorant of the difficult situation created by itself.  Interviewer: But we fear that it would be difficult to use the state's decaying situation to deny the existence of a unique solipsistic consciousness. During Emperor Wu's reign, Dong Zhongshu demanded "decommissioning of all masters and uniqueness of Confucianism," which was indeed a slogan against all kinds of ideas that differed from him academically or culturally. After Dong Zhongshu's so-called Confucianism became the official culture of China, the spirit of "denunciation" and "uniqueness" was feared to have become a distinctive feature of Chinese culture. Even when the country is in decline, it is easy to provoke feelings of "uniqueness" to take a step forward, because people who are weak in regard to self-esteem sometimes also have guilt, not only that. but this guilt sometimes becomes too much. I'm afraid that this is the phenomenon of "low self-esteem turns into self-esteem complex" (return target emotion)? Do Duy Minh: Regarding the issue of "single and unique" I think it can be explained from two angles. From the first perspective, Confucianism assumes the morphological function of a kind of state religion, which, after all, has been maintained in China for a very long time and has great influence. The second angle, Confucianism in China, in addition to playing the role of an official form of consciousness, for Chinese society, especially for many classes of the people, through many different ways that it develops. influence generation. I think we have overstated the influence of orthodox Confucianism on the state domain. Although the issue of the Han dynasty promulgating the "unique Confucianism" is true, Emperor Wu was not an acceptor of Confucian thought, he was completely like Qin Shi Huang, very fond of creating wars. He was a great man, was fascinated by the magicians, and had a very strong legalist ideology, for example, his use of Tang Hoang Duong was a victory of the Pharisee sect, this is reflected in the work of Yan theory. Moreover, Wei Jin and Sui Tang were not dynasties that worshiped Confucianism, and it was not until the Yuan dynasty that the Four Books of the Five Classics became the standard for the examination system. I do not deny the great influence of Confucianism in Chinese political culture, serving as a standard principle in governing the country, but in the final analysis there is still an osmosis in which many factors of French thought. I just want to be wary of the views of many people: The reason that Confucianism can permeate all aspects of social life and all classes of people is not entirely political, but also for many factors. As we can recall, Confucianism in the Han dynasty, despite having a very high position, still could not be arbitrarily criticized for the Hoang Lao theory prevailing in society. Wei Tan can be said to be the period when Confucianism gradually grasped its position, at the time respected the clan, taught and studied family law, and made Confucianism, especially Kinh Do and Ritual School, develop in the architectural structure. society. But it is very difficult to explain this from a politicized perspective. Due to the invasion of China by foreigners, a large number of clans fled to the South, and because of the desire to maintain the clan status, certain norms and ideals were necessary. During the Tang Dynasty, the Confucian studies and rituals were more widely developed. But there is no doubt that, from the Wei Jin Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, the dominant ideology was still Buddhist and mystical thought, if considered in terms of ideology, it was not until the Song and Confucian dynasties that it was established. Revival and revival, the new theories of body, mind, nature and destiny proposed by everyone, for Buddhism become a strong creative counterpart. Therefore, when considering the issue of Confucianism, it is not possible to explain only from the perspective of "unique Confucianism" or "single branch of excellence" (only one beautiful branch) to explain, but must consider the The meridians of Confucianism permeate all walks of life. From the Han dynasty until now, regardless of the dynasty, if you want to carry out the establishment of political structures, the role of Confucianism is needed. This can play an important role in political culture along with Confucianism, clearly reflecting the Chinese people's distinctive historical consciousness and cultural sensibility. I don't know if this will increase the sense of uniqueness of the Chinese people or the disease of egotism? I think that in this regard there are many specific circumstances that we are completely unaware of. Indeed, in the Qing Dynasty, we already knew that, but there must be deep causes and causes originating from previous eras.

A summary of an interview with Professor Tu Weiming (Do Duy Minh) by Trung Van published in the anthology of Confucianism, Tradition, Tradition, Modern Transformation, edited by Nhac Hoa (China's Quang Ba Dien Thi Publishing House, 1992), pages 173 to 191. Vietnamese translation: Dr. Duong Ngoc Dung Inventing philosophy by interpreting tradition Interviewer: Do Duy Minh, you have repeatedly emphasized "consensus understanding" (consensus understanding) for the ancient seers, thus proceeding with the traditional interpretation on a large scale. However, I feel that one of the worst diseases of Chinese culture is the strong will to interpret tradition, regardless of time, place, or any kind of challenge. any puzzle, always find ways to seek answers from tradition, find ways to absorb strength from tradition. In such a style, for more than two thousand years, the intelligentsia could only stand in front of a few cult classics, lose both its creative power, lose its ability to adapt, and finally create something new. "injecting poison into oneself" (self-poisoning), causing the entire society to be bogged down and stagnate in the midst of a serious illness. How do you explain this matter? Do Duy Minh: I think this event is related to the problem of historical consciousness of the Chinese people, that is, the issue of cause and effect and reform. From the Xia to the Shang, from the Shang to the Zhou, there is always a causal and reforming relationship between the latter and the former, which is closely related to inheritance in Chinese culture. . First we need to distinguish two types of creativity. The first type of innovation is disruptive. This property manifests relatively clearly in the field of science. Science develops, sometimes with breakthroughs in previous theories, negating previous theories, sometimes collapsing previous authorities, then a new kind of model emerges. This type of internal stratigraphic fault is very natural, with the meaning of progress and leap. But it is not uncommon for observers to think that the faulting of the stratigraphy is not as serious as we thought. There is also a second type of creativity, such as literary creativity, no matter how new a literary work is, the use of language must be consistent with the rules or the grammar that exists. available, these rules cannot be violated. He can only use language inconsistent with the grammar to create new things within a limited range of self-discipline. This is similar to the ancient literature movement of the Northern Song Dynasty, during this period there appeared a number of writers such as u Duong Tu, To Thuc or Hoang Dinh Kien, all of whom masterfully used ancient literature, really reached the level of "completing the wind and peeling off the image" (catching the wind to chase the image) that modern white dialogue literature has not yet been able to reach. Therefore, using extremely fluently and flexibly the language people often use is also a form of creating new things. This type of creativity is not the same as the type of creativity in science. It has a certain inheritance. The Chinese tradition, in Western terms, creates philosophy through interpretation, that is, from the point of view of hermeneutics. He must definitely absorb nutrients from the traditional scriptures before he can express his own unique point of view. These unique points of view can also help you or someone else with respect to the problem of vindication in the scriptures to make a step forward in promoting and promoting it. This is a kind of cyclical progress in which the circle is expanding more and more widely. The Chinese tradition is a kind of tradition with a very strong sense of history. I cannot accept the view of some people towards Chinese culture that it is a culture that is oriented towards the cult of the past, and refuses to look to the future. I think that Chinese culture is a culture of "thinking out of the new" (exploiting the old, making the new appear), which has always had a very strong vitality. Otherwise, Chinese culture cannot be both ancient and precious. In the world, there are many ancient and ancient cultures, but ancient cultures are relatively rare. Traditional culture has a strong vitality like that of Trung Hoa culture which is a unique historical phenomenon. China's cultural tradition is inherited and has shown its flourishing power for a long time. If we put it in the language of the I Ching, this is the result of "self-restraint" (self-efforts to progress without stopping), it is not possible to simply say that Chinese culture is a "self-defeating" phenomenon. poison." There are many who believe that the vitality of Chinese culture, especially the creative power in the field of philosophy, reached its peak during the Xian Qin period, and then gradually declined. (To be continued)

The Scarlet Letter is a masterpiece of 19th century American literature. The author is Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), a customs officer in the state of Massachusetts. The setting of the above novel is also located in the state of Massachusetts. Plymouth Harbor, in the 17th century, many times welcomed the British Puritans who crossed the sea in search of freedom of religion, today still retains the old scenery to attract visitors. The story is simple but also dramatic: Hester Prynne, married in England, came to America to settle down. Karma is nowhere to be seen, "debt": Hester fell in love with the young pastor Arthur Dimmelsdale and became pregnant. This is a serious sin in the Puritan community. The guilty can be executed by hanging. The state governor offered Hester leniency if she would give the name of the "author" of the child in her womb. But Hester adamantly refused. The court ordered her to wear a red A on her chest for the rest of her life. "A" means "adultery". The suffering and regretful Arthur also silently carved a similar letter A on his body. Hester's husband later also crossed the sea from England and when he learned that his wife betrayed him, he used a fake name to settle in the same town as Hester and Arthur to "search" for the culprit who gave him horns and avenge. really worthy. This work has just been adapted into a movie (with the same name as the work) with two stars Demi Moore and Gary Oldman. Demi Moore is so beautiful in the role of a woman who is determined to fight for love that the audience forgets that if author Nathaniel Hawthorne was allowed to come back to life to see this film, he would surely cry and die. Monday. In the movie, Arthur and Hester turned into America's Romeo and Juliet, falling in love with the scent of the sky. Gary Oldman plays a manly hero, while the cuckold victim, Hester's husband, is portrayed as a sinister, evil Satan. In the end, "he" linked up with all the Indians for "the devil to grow horns" a battle, saved her from the hanging ropes, went straight to California and lived happily there. Audiences inevitably leave gloating for a happy ending, unaware that the author Hawthorne is swearing at the other side of the world.   In the novel it is different. Arthur died in a state of regret full of torment when he strayed from the path God had outlined for a monk. Even the husband, after taking revenge, also died in regret, so he left the entire estate to little Pearl, the child of Hester and Arthur. The ending was heavy and sad. Many scholars have discussed this work but still have not come up with a satisfactory explanation: which side does Hawthorne take: Hester's side that fights for freedom of love or the Puritan ethnocentrism that condemns it all Are all romantic feelings immoral, immoral? In fact, Hawthorne has avoided bringing up a very transparent subject. In the character of Hester we find the eloquent argument for a burning love that defies all social norms, defying the foundations of religion. But in the character of Arthur we find an affirmation to the contrary: love is an evil sin, his fall only proves that the Puritan doctrine is absolutely correct: every human being is a sinner in the eyes. God. It takes a firm grasp of Puritan teachings to understand the mood of Arthur or the character of Goodman Brown in the Young Goodman Brown short story, which every critic considers Hawthorne's finest short story. Arthur did not think that what he did was right, while Hester insisted that the truth must come from the heart, where passionate passions reside, despite the sober voice of reason. Analyzing this novel we have to separate this couple into two opposing thematic lines: Hester symbolizes love understood as a strong desire beyond all control. Arthur symbolizes religious sentiments assimilating the closeness of man and woman, which only proves the inherent animality in man and prevents him from reaching lofty spiritual goals. And of course Hawthorne isn't on anyone's side. He did not give the final answer because in life there are no final answers, definitive solutions once and for all. Every human being has to find the answers to the riddles in life by himself. Just as Hester believes that a bright world will come in the future when the relationship between man and woman is established on a foundation of mutual happiness, but she does not consider herself qualified to be a fairy. tri.   An angel will bring good news in a distant future, but that angel is pure and pure, not dirty and sinful like her. In these thoughts of Hester we seem to have witnessed the sad end of a fervent heart. The life she lived, was living, had no answer and no door to an answer. The one who closes the door from the outside is the morality of Puritanism.