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In
the Eyes of the Culturati
Mr.
Louis Cha is a famous writer. His wu - xia novels are works
of literature that earn popularity among the mass. He is at
the same time as a successful entrepreneur, who has founded
and built up the Ming Pao Daily News. He was a member of the
Basic Law Drafting Committee and devoted his wholehearted
effort and time to the job. Cha is among the few people who
can command the fields of academic, ethics with business.
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"The
advancement of knowledge and personal integrity is involved
in a long term process of accumulation. School education
is just a starting point. No matter good things or bad
things, they all accumulated with time until the end
of your life."
I
have long desired to interview Louis Cha. He is a talented
writer, a candid and outspoken media boss as well as
a carefree and gracious academic. To be able to interview
him is already an honour to me, not to mention the opportunity
to be benefited by his learned views on Chinese culture
and on life. I was attracted by his gentility and grace.
His smiles gave you warmth.
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Jin
Yong we - xia novels are the beloved of a lot of readers.
But which literary work is Cha's favourite? "Among Chinese
novels I like "Hong Lou Meng" (Dream of the Red Chamber).
You feel differently each time when you read it and re-read
it at different ages. Among foreign writers I like Alexandre
Dumas. His "The Three Musketeers" has influenced me the most.
It inspired me to write my wu -xia novels. My style is deeply
affected by Dumas."
Cha
also believes what makes up a great novel is the realistic
depiction of human characters, the power to create and portrait
a vivid character that people understand, have compassion
with and are touched by what he does. Cha is indifferent to
foreign contemporary novels.
"I
cannot understand contemporary novels. They fail to touch
me. I am surprised at why modern and contemporary critics
despise popular works and recommend only the high sounding
ones. I would say this looks like 'the King's new clothes'".
Does he feel pity for such literary development? He smiles,
"No! No! When people cannot understand high sounding novels,
they will turn to popular ones." Only works that stand the
challenge of time become classics. Jin Yong novels can sustain
popularity the stories depict a world of love and righteous
that captures the heart of the readers.
Jin
Yong novels bring readers joy, and Cha has equal fun in creating
them. "Writing gives you space for imagination and joy in
creating characters, making them do whatever you like. Just
like a director." Notwithstanding this, Cha said his real
aim in writing novels is to assert traditional Chinese ethics
and sublime moral qualities. "Wu - xia novels must depict
justice and righteousness. Good people fight off bad guys.
Good characters must not tell lies, be ungrateful and unfaithful
to friends. They must be just and affectionate, conduct no
violence and evil calculations. Traditional ethics are asserted
through the characters and their stories, not by preaching
with words." Literary works reflect author's beliefs. The
novels at the same time reflect Cha's personal sense of justice,
righteousness and sense of value.
Founding
Ming Pao Daily News reflects another side of Cha, his quest
for truth. "A newspaper must always be open and serves the
interest of most readers." Cha tells us his vision in founding
the paper, "You must always tell the truth. If you agree to
something, say it. If don't, say you don't. The key to Ming
Pao's success is its courage to speak up, disregarding the
pressures. I wrote editorials in Ming Pao Daily News to protest
against unjust phenomena."
Cha
never gives up to non-justice. The courage comes from his
deep beliefs, persistence and his sense of responsibility
to the society, demonstrating Chinese traditional virtues.
But to be a successful entrepreneur it requires completely
different qualities. It requires efficiency, delicate management
skills, accurate judgement of market information and flexibility.
Yet Cha is successful in both fields, mastering all these
qualities.
Cha
has contributed to the society in the role of literati for
several decades. Now he is retired and leading a carefree
life. "Now I concentrate on academic research. I am particularly
interested in the history of the Han dynasty and the Rome
Empire. Roman Empire has fallen while China is still here.
I believe it has to do with some elements in Chinese culture."
Cha remarks that the joy in writing novels comes from 'creation"
while that of studing history comes form "discovery". He finds
joy in evaluating history with new perspectives, concluding
new theories, getting inspirations, and advancing spiritual
civilization.
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On
the declining respect shown to traditional Chinese values,
Cha says, "Although we have accepted Western science and
technology, our deep rooted family values cannot be shaken.
Chinese Confucianism emphasizes harmony of human relationships.
There are deep passions between father and son, brothers
and friends. The westerners are too detached. Even the
son goes Dutch with his father when dining out together.
We Chinese think it impossible." |
Cha
is also optimistic about Hong Kong's future. " Hong Kong is
an international city. Hong Kong people are knowledgeable
and have great exposure. But they share no passion on traditional
Chinese culture. Upon Hong Kong's returning to the Mainland
China and more frequent communications between the two places,
Hong Kong people will get to know more about China and the
greatness of the Chinese culture. It cannot happen overnight
but I am optimistic on the outcome."
Cha
has faith in the future of the society. He understands that
faith and trust is the cornerstone of the society, of the
country's future, and the continuance of the cultural heritage.
He believes community leaders should set up examples of sublime
moral qualities, promote Chinese traditional values so as
to enhance the overall ethical standard of the society.
Finally
Cha encourages us to improve our knowledge and moral qualities.
He kindly gave me his new book, Compassionate Light in Asia.
It is a dialogue between Cha and Mr. Daisaku Ikeda, the well-known
religious thinker, on topics of literature, politics, culture,
Buddhism and life. The book illustrates the unique views of
these two famous persons.
Cha's
gracious manner and amiability in this short interview impressed
me. His sincerity and passion towards people made me feel
wonderful.
"Culturati"
reports
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The
Northern Route of the Silk Road
The
northern route starts from Yiwu (now Hami) , stretching along
the northern slopes of Tian Shan, bypasses Urumqi and Yining
to the West. This route was established in the Western Han
dynasty and became increasingly important since the Sui and
Tang dynasties. This route that runs along Tian Shan is full
of picturesque landscapes. The splendour natural scenery in
the Junggar Basin, which lies in the north of Tian Shan, marks
the unique beauty of the northern route.
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Urumqi
Urumqi
in Mongolian means "beautiful pastures". It was a rich oasis
where people settled along the waterfront and led a nomadic
way of life. During the Western Han dynasty, Chinese troops
were garrisoned in Urumqi to open the grasslands to agriculture.
The Tang government once setup small cities in this area and
this fostered the development of the northern route of the
Silk Road. In the 18th century, the Qing government started
to build military barracks in Urumqi and the town grew in
importance as the political, economic, cultural and communication
centre of Xinjiang. Urumqi today is the capital of the Xinjiang
Uygur Autonomous Region and is inhabited by over 1.3 million
people comprised of 36 different local minorities.
Southern
Pastures (Baiyang Gou)
Southern
Pastures cover the pasture area from south of Urumqi to north
of Tian Shan. There are tens of gullies running parallel form
west to east. Baiyang Gou is the most famous gully among all.
This gully is surrounded by snow-capped mountains covered
in tall dragon-spruce trees. Yurts are dotted on the grassland
while folk songs echoing in the air. You can visit the Kazakh
families, drink milk tea, watch horse-racing and traditional
Kazakh dancing to experience the ethnical lifestyles on the
grassland.
Heavenly
Lake (Tian Chi)
East
to Urumqi, amidst of Tian Shan snow-capped peaks lie the Heaven
lake. It is a glacial lake formed two million years ago during
the glacial epoch. Like a piece of green jade, the lake reflects
as a mirror that of the blue sky, colourful clouds, snow-capped
mountain covered in fir and pine in its crystal clear water.
It is a fairyland always praised by literati from now and
then. Higher up the mountain grows a rare plant called Snow
Lotus, which often figure in the wu - xia novels. The plant
that blooms in summer grows form rock crevices and has a pleasant
scent. It is only found on the Barren snow-capped peaks in
the extremely cold region. Snow Lotus is thus a symbol of
endurance. Its dried pistils are popularly believed to relieve
arthritis and menstrual cramps.
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Yining
Yining,
the capital of Yili Kazakh Autonomous prefecture, was the
Wusun kingdom during the Han dynasty. Since it lies along
the frontier and thus being developed into the communication
focus between the east and west. This rich pasturelands were
trampled by many Central Asian powers and the faces of its
people are a mixture of Chinese, Kazakh, Mongol, Tajik, Uzbek
and others. Yining was famous for horse ranching. The Wusun
horse had earned the name of "heavenly" horse by Emperor
Wudi of the Han dynasty. Yining also has clearly defined seasons,
with fine weather and abundant rainfall. Flowers can be seen
planted in every house while poplar lined up at every street.
The city is hence called "the city of flowers" and "city of
poplar".
Sayram
Lake
About
70 million years ago, the geomorphic movements in Euro-Asia
continent formed the Himalayas. The Tian Shan emerged and
a lake with an area of 457 square metres (hundred times of
Heaven Lake), and some 2,000 metres above sea level, has been
formed among the snow-capped peaks. This lake is known as
the Sayram Lake. Due to the existence of minerals, the lake
water is in sapphire blue. In spring, the lake shore is bloomed
with colourful flowers. In summer and autumn, the lake is
as quiet as a mirror, appearing indistinctly in the fog. With
snow-capped mountains and pine forest as background, the sight
is fascinating.
The
City of Almalik
Almalik
had its glory diring the Song and Yuan dynasties. Upon the
death of Genghis Khan in 1227, his four sons inherited the
Mongol Empire. Chaghatai, the second son, made his capital
in Almalik. Because it lies between Mongolia and the four
Khans, it also has the name as "the capital of the Central
Empire" in the European history. This ancient city was established
in the 12th century. It was then developed into an important
political and military centre in the Western Region, causing
the land the target for scrambling. The city decline with
its importance since the mid of the 16th century and is now
remained as a ruin with an area of 25 metres only. What have
left are the precious relics which have recently been unearthed
to remind us of its past glory.
The
Guozi gou
During
the period of late Southern Song, Genghis Khan commanded 600
thousand troops to conquer the Middle Asia. He ordered his
second son, Ghaghatai Khan, to open up the Guozi gou and built
48 wooden bridges for the sake of transportation of food and
military supplies. Merchants later took on this path, making
it become the communication focus. The Guozi Gou lies at the
Taleqi Mountain, running from south to north with 70 metres
long. This gully is dotted with pines and flowers. Various
kinds of fruit such as apple, apricot, cherry grow along the
mountain slopes. There are also herbs like Chinese angelica.
No wonder it is also known as "Treasure Gully".
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Karamay
The
Junggar Basin, between the Tian Shan and the Altai Mountains,
not only is a place for adventurers, it is also a natural
treasure trove. Karamay, the well-known "City of Oil" lies
in the Basin. Karamay means "black oil" in Uygur which tells
the undetachable relationship of the growth of the city with
its petroleum industy.
The
City of Oil
The
Black Oil Mountain lies 1 kilometre from the northeast of
Karamay. It has over ten oil springs being opened up with
oil pouring out in intervals. Oil springs are of 1 metre in
diameter and shaped like rounded washing basins. When oil
overflows down the hill, it forms the black oil streams. The
crude oil produced here is thick, dark and sticky with frozen
point as low as 60 degree below Celsius. With this special
characteristic, the oil is suitable for producing oil products
that can withstand extremely cold weather and fetching a high
price. Since the starting of the oil extraction in 1955, its
scale continued to expand. At present, it has been developed
into an industrial city with plenty of oil wells and well-established
communication networks, contributing much to the country's
economy.
The
City of Devils
A
Hundred metre from the northeast of Karamay lies unique landscape
- the City of Devils. It is believed that at about 100 million
years ago, this area was a large lake. The earth movements
later changed it into a plateau, and the land was eroded by
wind into different strange shaped hills. The whole site is
reddish in colour, with a belt of strange shaped hills stretching
along for over 30 square kilometers. Gales blow out strange
"wu¡Kwu¡K" sounds like the terrible howl of devils.
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Genghis
Khan
Genghis
Khan's name was Tiemuzhen. In 1206 he unified all Mongolian
tribes and was crowned as Genghis Khan, meaning the King of
Ocean. The Kingdom of Mongolia was established and had great
influence in the history of China and Europe. Genghis Khan
was a great ruler and militarist. During his reign he set
up military, administrative and legal systems. He also conquered
the Liao, Western Xia, Jin, Huacizimo, Arabian, Russia and
Eastern Europe. In 1271 he conquered the Song government and
China was under his rule as the Yuan Dynasty. He then became
Yuantaizu. Under his leadership, Mongolia became a vast empire
of 30 million square kilometers straddling across Europe and
Asia. His heroism, bravery and determination are still widely
admired.
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