Reviewing the Past to Know the New — A Collection of Research Papers on Chinese Philosophy

Author: Written by Lou Yuli
Publisher:
Publishing Time: Not available
Features: With the care, supervision, and assistance of my students, I have selected and compiled some of my writings on Chinese philosophy and culture over the past two decades into this collection, titled "Wenggu Zhi Xin." Although I have long been engaged in the research and teaching of the history of Chinese philosophy and have delivered numerous related lectures, frankly speaking, I have never had a systematic or comprehensive plan in my writing. As a result, I have not written a monograph to this day, nor have I produced a finalized set of lecture notes on a specific topic. The more than 30 articles in this collection are simply a compilation of writings without a systematic or comprehensive plan. The name "Wenggu Zhi Xin" is chosen with the hope that readers, after reading these old articles filled with outdated and unrefined views, will be inspired to generate numerous enlightening and insightful new ideas. For myself, looking back at some of my past writings and reflecting on my academic and intellectual journey, I also hope to gain new perspectives and insights. In the classroom, I never ask students to take down everything I say, nor do I expect them to memorize what I teach as standard answers during exams. I only hope that students can grasp the essence of my lectures while forgetting the words themselves. If they can understand the underlying meaning, simply jotting down a few notes for future reference will suffice. Similarly, when reading my articles, I hope everyone can grasp the essence while forgetting the words, and thereby derive their own new and profound writings from these old ideas. This is my sincere expectation.