Collection of Ji Xianlin - Volume 14: Prefaces, Postfaces, Miscellaneous Writings and Others (II)

Author: Chief Editor: Zhou Rongfang
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1998-06-01
Features: Preface to the Publication "The Collected Works of Ji Xianlin" began to be edited and published in 1992. It includes the author's creations, reviews, essays, monographs, and translations to date. Based on content or genre, "The Collected Works of Ji Xianlin" is temporarily divided into the following twenty-four volumes: Volume 1: Prose (I); Volume 2: Prose (II); Volume 3: Ancient Indian Languages; Volume 4: Sino-Indian Cultural Relations; Volume 5: Indian History and Culture; Volume 6: Chinese Culture and Eastern Culture; Volume 7: Buddhism; Volume 8: Comparative Literature and Folk Literature; Volume 9: The History of Sugar (I); Volume 10: The History of Sugar (II); Volume 11: Translation and Interpretation of the "Maitreya Meeting Account" in Tocharian; Volume 12: Tocharian Studies; Volume 13: Prefaces, Postfaces, Miscellaneous Writings, and Others (I); Volume 14: Prefaces, Postfaces, Miscellaneous Writings, and Others (II); Volume 15: Translations of Sanskrit and Other Language Literary Works (I); Volume 16: Translations of Sanskrit and Other Language Literary Works (II); Volume 17: The Ramayana (I); Volume 18: The Ramayana (II); Volume 19: The Ramayana (III); Volume 20: The Ramayana (IV); Volume 21: The Ramayana (V); Volume 22: The Ramayana (Part 6, Upper); Volume 23: The Ramayana (Part 6, Lower); Volume 24: The Ramayana (Part 7). Except for the prose and translation volumes, the articles in the other volumes are arranged in chronological order of writing or publication. Some personal names, place names, country names, and terms in the articles differ in translation across different periods; some punctuation marks and numerical usage also differ from current standards. To preserve the original form, no uniform treatment has been applied. All works in "The Collected Works of Ji Xianlin" have been carefully proofread this time, mainly including correcting traditional characters, variant characters, printing errors, and punctuation marks, standardizing the usage of terms, and verifying citations. For some citations that are difficult to find in China, we had to leave them open for future correction. For articles with repeated content, only the most complete and detailed one is retained, while the rest are omitted. Although we have made our utmost effort in collecting the articles, omissions are inevitable. If any omitted articles are found in the future, they will be included along with the author's new works. We sincerely hope for the guidance and assistance of the readers. "The Collected Works of Ji Xianlin" Editorial Committee, December 1994
Excerpt: A Note on Some Issues in the Review of Certain Works by Shen Xiaolong After reading the article by Wu Tieping and Fan Junjun on "Some Issues in Certain Works by Shen Xiaolong" in Issue 36 of our journal (Hong Kong "Journal of Language Construction" – editor's note), I benefited greatly. They discussed many issues in their article, but whether they are right or wrong is not the point here. These issues are all open to discussion. For any discipline, serious, realistic, and principled discussions are essential and harmless. The progress of human scholarship and its continuous advancement depend on discussion, even debate. If one is complacent and confined to their own territory, academic progress will never be achieved. Therefore, for those who dare to propose new insights within a discipline, the correct attitude should be encouragement rather than criticism. Encouragement does not mean admitting that everything they say is entirely correct. That is impossible. Like all new things, new insights in academia cannot be perfect from the moment they emerge. It is our duty to promote the correct aspects and correct or even completely reject the incorrect ones. When commenting on a new insight or an opinion different from our own, we should be realistic, calm, present facts, and reason, and absolutely not do the opposite. More importantly, we should not, like we did for a long period in the past, resort to name-calling. Name-calling solves nothing. Unfortunately, I found instances of name-calling in the article by Wu and Fan. First, I quote a passage from their original text: Western linguistic works are far more numerous than those in China, and the language research teams are also much stronger. Except for the study of Chinese and minority languages within China, our linguistic science is lagging behind the West. Due to the language barrier, few Western linguists can read Eastern linguistic works, such as those in Chinese, Japanese, or Hindi. They have little understanding of the state of language research in the East, especially in China. How can Shen Xiaolong casually claim, "The pendulum of contemporary linguistics is swinging toward the East"? This is similar to some people in China saying, "In the 21st century, Western culture will gradually give way to Eastern culture," or "The center of world language and script research may shift to China." This reflects a kind of big-country or, to put it differently, big-Eastern chauvinism. We must not, in the name of criticism, promote the idea of "orientalizing the world" just because we have criticized the wrong view of "completely Westernizing China." (Pages 37-38) With a light or heavy "big-country or, to put it differently, big-Eastern chauvinism" label, this is how it was done! The tactics that were popular during the Cultural Revolution are now making a comeback! I truly feel very regretful! "Western linguistic works are far more numerous than those in China, the language research teams are also much stronger our linguistic science is lagging behind the West." Even if these words are entirely true, can we accept them as the natural order of things? If I were to follow Wu and Fan's example and raise a label like "national nihilism that bows down to Western linguistics and is obsessed with foreign affairs," may I ask Wu and Fan, can you bear it? Such extreme and vicious behavior should not be adopted by us! Fortunately, Wu and Fan showed mercy and did not mention my name. I am now surrendering and taking responsibility. The "domestic people" Wu and Fan refer to are me. My views are open to discussion, and I welcome discussion. However, it is necessary to first shed the labels and avoid fabricating accusations to gain a comprehensive and realistic understanding of my ideas.
Postscript: Postscript I started writing the draft for this book on March 4, 1988, and continued intermittently until April 5, 1989, spending over a year to complete it. This spring, I suddenly felt inspired and decided to copy it out. By June 3 of this year, it took about three months to finalize the manuscript. The difference between the draft and the final version is enormous, almost like rewriting it from scratch. I had originally set myself a rule: to write without sharp edges or hostility, simply to describe things objectively and completely. However, I am a person with emotions, and as I wrote, I couldn't help but get angry and shed tears, and the sharp edges and hostility also appeared. I had no choice but to do it this way. Otherwise, I would have had to lie. The biggest difference between the final and draft versions is that there are fewer sharp edges and less hostility in the final version. In reality, I did not want to do it this way. I had to do it to avoid further conflict. I mentioned many people in the book. A careful reader can see three situations: naming only the surname, naming only the first name, and naming both the first and last name. The first two purposes are to protect the individuals involved, while the latter applies to only a couple of people whom I believe are extremely harmful to socialist society. I named them fully to ensure they are remembered as a warning to future generations. I did not retaliate against any of them. The facts are clear, and my conscience is clear before heaven! After the Cultural Revolution, I resumed my position as department head and later "rose in rank," achieving success in the country's power structure. I am not lacking in the ability to retaliate. I only hope that those I have mentioned, whether directly or indirectly, will forgive me. I am writing historical facts. We must cherish our friendships before and after the Cultural Revolution. Now, I have counted that my life's writings and translations amount to about eight million words, of which 70-80% were produced after the Cultural Revolution. If I had truly achieved my wish of "cutting myself off from the people" during the Cultural Revolution, these works would naturally not have been produced. Is this a great fortune or misfortune for me? I really can't answer that right now. — Let it be. Written on June 3, 1992.