Green Mountains Are Naturally Red: Xiong Zhaozheng's Reflections on Reading History

Author: Xiong Zhaozheng
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-07-01
Features: Following the masterpiece The Rise of Li Zicheng by his predecessor Yao Xueyin, the 6th Mao Dun Literature Prize in 2005 was awarded to Xiong Zhaozheng's new four-volume historical novel Zhang Juzheng. Xiong Zhaozheng's win was no coincidence. To write a long historical novel, he immersed himself in studying history for a full decade. Ten years of effort is no ordinary feat—it not only produced this magnificent work Zhang Juzheng but also sifted through the sands to find gems, blending sparks of thought, insights from reading, anomalies of history, and soul-searching questions into Green Mountains Are Red, a collection of Zen-inspired historical reflections.
Reading history is not difficult, but the challenge lies in delving into it without losing oneself, in immersing oneself without losing one's wisdom. It requires not being trapped by historical facts or confined by preconceptions, but instead making new discoveries and insights. It is not just about filling gaps in history or offering dialectical perspectives, but also about guiding social life. In this book, whether it is his fresh understanding of the "virtuous prime minister" Zhang Juzheng or his unique insights into emperors, powerful ministers, eunuchs, monks, and scholars, all strike the reader as refreshing.
Reading history is not extraordinary, but what is extraordinary is not only reading history but also practicing Zen, and even merging history and Zen into a single path of reading and enlightenment. In fact, Zen itself is not just the ethereal construct or empty wind that ordinary people imagine. It has always been rooted in the wisdom of the human mind and born from history, especially the chaotic history and bewildered souls. The ordinary fail to grasp this, so they often see Zen and history as two separate things, making Zen increasingly mysterious and so obscure that many modern people dare not or are unwilling to recognize or contemplate it. This is not Zen's fault, but rather a failure of understanding. The brilliance of Xiong Zhaozheng's writings on Zen and Buddhism lies in grounding the mysterious and profound Zen in the solid soil of history. In this way, history gains a spiritual depth, and we, as readers, can view history, understand society, and contemplate life with greater clarity and perspective.
Xiong Zhaozheng is a poet by origin. Twenty-five years ago, his shocking political Lift Up Your Hands Like a Forest, Stop! won the first National New Poetry Award during the peak of the New Period literature. Twenty-five years later, his stirring historical novel Zhang Juzheng topped the Mao Dun Literature Prize. Over these twenty-five years, the world has changed, and life has ebbed and flowed. Xiong Zhaozheng has immersed himself in practicing Zen and reading history, "grinding a sword for ten years," with all his enlightenment contained in this volume. Green Mountains Are Red is undoubtedly the extraordinary work of this extraordinary writer with an extraordinary will.