Middle Ages Three Discernment

Author: Lin Wushu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-01
Features: The Three religions in ancient China were clearly not mainstream religions and did not spread to modern times. Without the inspiration of archaeological discoveries and the deliberate exploration by scholars, the true nature and influence of the Three religions in Chinese social and historical contexts would likely remain unknown. Thus, the study of the Three religions can be said to be a purely academic pursuit; it has little direct connection with current social life, whether in politics, economics, culture, or other aspects, making it difficult to produce the social benefits sought by fashion. As for its academic value, it is a matter of personal opinion. Even if one has some insights, they should avoid the appearance of hawking one's own produce. Moreover, being in the mountains, one cannot see the forest clearly. However, recalling my time as a graduate student, my supervisor, Professor Cai Hongsheng, instructed me to write a dissertation on this field. I then exhausted all means to search and collect bibliographies of relevant research, only to find that, whether in China or abroad, during peacetime or wartime, or the Cold War era, there has always been a group of scholars who have continuously pursued research in this field, including some truly globally renowned academic giants. This deeply inspired me, and I continued to work on it year after year.
For Chinese scholars, the study of the Three religions actually falls within the category of ancient Sino-Western cultural exchange. In this regard, Professor Cai Hongsheng, based on the academic principles of Chen Yinke and relevant insights, summarized the following core idea: The spread of cultural exchange in the medieval period was both gradual and tortuous. Due to the limitations of material and technological conditions at the time, direct transmission from the "original culture" could not play a dominant role; "indirect and winding" transmission was the common method. Therefore, to explore the spatial unfoldment of cultural connections—i.e., why a culture spread from one place to another—one must identify the intermediary links to avoid establishing theories in a vacuum.