◆By Manfield Zhu

　　Some typical ancient Chinese scholars such as Laozi, Confucius, Mencius, Hanfeizi, Liezi, Sunzi, etc have been introduced respectively in different issues of Chinaweek in 2002. Presumably, most of them are unfamiliar to our foreign readers; however, such a precisely brief introduction to each scholar may be helpful for some readers to find a hint or an index to understand both the ancient Chinese traditional culture and China's today.

　　Nobody could deeply understand China if he did not know anything about the Chinese traditional culture. Nobody could deeply understand the Chinese traditional culture if he did not know anything about the ancient Chinese typical scholars who had created a thriving and prosperous culture with their advanced thoughts and wisdom in human history. Like a grand magnificent mirror, the Chinese traditional culture expresses China's history and her relatively stable social essence. We have every reason to make some scientific research on its origin or sources. No matter how long and how wide a great river is, it must originate from its fountainhead. As time goes on, great changes of the river may take place, with its course now turning left and then turning right, but its general tendency is the same, that is, its main stream is still flowing forward and forward, finally reaching the ocean. The Chinese new cultural tide is also like a great river that could not be separated from its very affluent wellspring. In other word, our ancient Chinese scholars contribution is like a root that could produce something new in culture. At least for more than 3000 years the ancient Chinese scholars thoughts have been deeply rooted in the Chinese people's mind. Especially those who were born in the Spring-Autumn period of time (770BC-476BC) or the Warring-State period of time (475BC-221BC) were called zhu-zi-bai-jia that played an extremely important role in China's history with rich civilization. The Chinese characters zhu-zi means more scholars and bai-jia means ?00 Schools that is, a brilliant long-term academic controversy appeared in Cathay for a hundred schools of thought restlessly contended at that time.

　　From a historical point of view, all of them were winners and none of them was a failure in the Chinese ideological controversy. All of them had had great contributions both to China and to the world. When we say, actions speak louder than words we never deny the Chinese ancient scholars words or their ever-lasting speech in history because their theoretical writings or words came from their social practice. to practice, no theory Once a correct theory was used to guide man's social practice, it would be mightier than any materialist weapon. In a sense, our ancient scholars pen is mightier than the sword.

　　It is unnecessary to take much more examples to illustrate such a conclusion, but necessary to reread what they wrote and research more carefully on what they offered to us all.

　　First of all, we Chinese people were taught by their fundamental world outlook in philosophic way. We started to know being and non-being grow out of one another.?(LAO-ZI)

　　Laozi was roughly a contemporary of great Greek philosopher Heraclitos (approximately 540BC-470BC) who viewed that he could hardly wade the same river twice which means no water of the river will wait for us to wade again. Although two ancient philosophers were far away from each other, both of them drew a very similar philosophic viewpoint that everything is changeable in the world. However, Laozi not only drew a general conclusion but also predicted the alternative rule of objective changes. He pointed it out that the soft overcomes the hard, and the weak, the strong.?Such an idea is the Chinese people's spiritual weapon. Even at any hard time it will lighten our way to our great goal. That is why the Chinese Red Army men feared nothing during their Long March, for they believed in our ancient scholars words.

　　Secondly, the Chinese people have benefited very much from our ancient talented scholars military theories. Perhaps much more wars had broken out in the mainland of China than any other great country during over 5000 years in humankind history. Hence much more military experience had been accumulated in ancient Chinese scholars mind. Sunzi is an outstanding representative. Virtually Sunzi or Sun Wu not only did contribute military strategy and tactics to his later generations but also every field in his philosophically thinking way. In China's history there had appeared plenty of talented military geniuses, and Zhuge Liang of the Three Kingdoms (220-280) and Mao Zedong (1893-1978) might be considered as their prominent representatives with a good command of Sunzi's military theories.

　　In literary and art, the ancient Chinese scholars strong influence has lasted still much longer and wider for almost all the ancient scholars were good at writing in literary style. Usually in ancient China, most of them were strictly trained in writing skills and calligraphy. Why our deceased leader Chairman Mao was both a poet and a military genius should be easily understood if you understand the Chinese cultural tradition very well. As a traditional idea, winning cultural and military achievements is still an acceptable training goal in today's China. It will be harder for everyone to understand China's top leaders (from the ancient emperors to the present presidents) without any general knowledge of ancient Chinese scholars thoughts or their works. Perhaps no top leader has had no experience to read the ancient Chinese scholars comprehensive works entitled four Books?(namely the Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean, The Analects of Confucius, and The Mencius) and five Classics?(The Book of Songs, The Book of History, The Book of Changes, The Book of Rites, and The Spring and Autumn Annals). Therefore it's a good belief that only to understand the China's past you also means to understand her present or future in some extent.

　　Finally but emphatically, we should point out Confucian's (551-479 BC) outlook on life might have controlled and governed China's ideological system for much longer time than the others do. Even up to now all the Chinese people have to behave themselves according to his quotations compiled by his famous disciples. Recently more and more world farsighted scholars also have recognized Confucius values. More than 70 winners of Nobel Prize declared in Paris, 1988, he must resort to Confucian wisdom. Some of Confucius sayings are still fresh and meaningful. to not impose on others what you yourself do not desire?or to not unto others as you would not have them do unto you.? If all of the world people followed such an idea to behave or act, then it is obvious that there would be no war and no fighting against each other.

　　Although we mentioned a hundred schools of thought contended ?in ancient China, still we could generalize or simplify two schools of thought: one is of dialectical materialism, and the other, of metaphysic idealism. Usually, their controversy is about the materialist world and the spiritual world as well as the relationship between nature and man. Of course, there were a series of attractive controversies with ever-lasting magic power resulting from these Chinese ancient scholars wisdom and genius that have handed down from generation to generation. We Chinese people have never been tired of quoting the ancient scholars instruction to guide their work, even their daily life. Their strong influence is easily seen in every place at any time.

　　In a word, without the ancient scholars sayings, maxims or admonitions, the Chinese people might be in great puzzle and they wouldn't know how to say and how to do. If so, the Chinese people would find China imperfect as if the Yellow River or the Yangtze River stopped rolling on and on voicelessly. Actually their vivid thoughts have been never separated from the Chinese people's mind. Therefore their thoughts are the real soul of the Chinese people.

　　Of course, as every coin has two sides the ancient Chinese scholars thoughts or theories are not all perfect, some of which don't accurately mirror our objective world or subjective world owing to their times or scientific development limited in some extent. So we have no reason to criticize them according to today's still more scientific criteria.