Journey of Pilgrimage (Essays by Zhou Guoping, Volume 2)

Author: Zhou Guoping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-10-01
Features: In my memory, Zhou Guoping only acknowledged himself as a philosopher in a broad sense, and he was cautious in his words. However, he once had a definition of a "thinker": First, one must have fundamental and truly personal problems with significant spiritual meaning; second, one must have a philosophical and truly personal perspective. Although he did not boast, he was already a profound thinker. Each Person's Pilgrimage is a collection of essays published by Zhou Guoping a few years ago. Regarding the title, the author explained that it was partly because most of the articles he was relatively satisfied with were inspired by reading the books of those spiritual pilgrims; and partly because he often kept in mind those hidden among the crowd who are today's pilgrims while writing. Zhou Guoping said that his greatest passion in life is reading and writing. Reading and writing are fundamental tasks for any writer or amateur, but many lack a comprehensive understanding of their importance and sacredness. In Zhou Guoping's view, among reading and writing, reading always takes the place. Writing may bring him great joy, but this joy cannot replace the joy of reading. He said, "Sometimes I even feel that writing takes up my reading time, causing me to suffer losses. Writing is after all a labor and expenditure, while reading is pure enjoyment and income. I vow to myself that in the future, I should write less and read more. How short life is, I shouldn't treat myself unfairly." Compared to traditional "useful books" like textbooks and professional books, Zhou Guoping prefers to read what he calls "idle books," or "useless books." He believes that while reading "useful books" can certainly provide social and professional skills, "useless books" are not truly useless—they are precisely the realm of spiritual growth. To this, he once said in astonishment—"A person's growth is basically due to their own reading, while the gains in the classroom are negligible." Feuerbach said, "Man is what he eats." At least when it comes to spiritual food, this sentence is true. One's reading habits can largely reveal their spiritual level. Truly good books are without exception honest records of the inner lives of excellent souls. The birth of a good book is a pilgrimage of the soul—a pilgrimage that is both the author's and the reader's. Walking Side by Side in the Dark was one of the articles I admired before the collection was published, and it is also my favorite piece in the collection. This article is Zhou Guoping's reflection on reading Hermann Hesse's My Youthful Years, and the title is quoted from Hesse's words. In the article, Zhou wrote, "Loving people are also just 'walking side by side in the dark,' all they can do is strive to pursue the light in their hearts and encourage each other, and 'do not need to look at each other's faces or probe each other's souls.'" It was through reading that Zhou Guoping found resonance with Hesse's thoughts and a spiritual "mutual appreciation," which led to new elevations and developments—"In the most inner spiritual life, each of us is alone, love cannot eliminate this loneliness, but it is precisely because we understand others' loneliness from ourselves to others that our hearts will be filled with the most sincere love for others." As a prose writer, Zhou Guoping is non-professional but outstanding. Regarding writing, he advocates "talking to oneself." He cherishes a truly free writing mindset and believes that writing without the intention of publication is a necessary condition for such freedom. To the extremely popular small essays of today, Zhou Guoping bluntly summarized their formula: small stories + small sentiments + small philosophies. Formulaic small essays are the easiest to write and are easily published in mass media, but these have astonishing similarities. Reading many of them leaves no definite impression. Zhou Guoping is not interested in this, and he "firmly believes that this is harmful, as it tends to make readers' senses and understanding shallow, losing the ability to grasp the essence of life and the truth of society." Therefore, he "refuses to join today's chorus of small essays." Zhou Guoping's philosophical essays hold an important place in contemporary prose. His spiritual value and literary standards are beyond the reach of those who are eager for quick success, like to teach others, interpret life arbitrarily, and "experience" life. As an independent thinker, his "unfashionable reading" philosophy and non-materialistic writing attitude are worth learning from; his lonely yet persistent journey is worth respecting.