Every tradition has its own classics, which are the unique accumulation of each culture. Behind all the classics lies a language that leaves endless room for imagination.

China News Service reporter Luo Haibing

Focusing on the theme of "Classical Civilization and the Modern World," the first World Conference on Classical Studies was recently held in Beijing. The China News Service's "East-West Dialogue" interviewed Professor Hans van Ess, Vice President of Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and Director of the Institute of Sinology, who attended the conference.

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Engaging in classical studies also requires adapting to the changes of the times. In the comparative study of classical studies and Chinese classical traditions, Ye Han pointed out that translation and reading are important ways to conduct classical studies, which help promote exchanges and mutual learning between different civilizations. Speaking of the development trends of classical studies, he believes that the West will pay more attention to Chinese classical studies.

The following is a summary of the interview transcript:

Reporter from China News Service: You have published multiple works on Taoism, Confucianism, and ancient Chinese political and historical studies. Among the ancient Chinese texts you have read, which one is your favorite?

Ye Han: My favorite book is Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian." I remember when I first came to China, it was to attend a short-term training program. At that time, I bought a set of "Records of the Grand Historian" from the bookstore at Peking University. I read each chapter three or four times, which led to many pages now falling out.

I believe that all the traditions of writing history in China began with "Records of the Historian," which is a book rich and interesting in content. Moreover, its language is distinctive, including elements of criticism, satire, and humor. Many Westerners may not be aware of these aspects, and even many Chinese people may not have noticed them. However, if you read this book carefully, you will discover many things that have not yet been uncovered by others.

Reporter from China News Service: Your research in Sinology does not merely trace back to the past; you also connect classical essence with contemporary society. When studying China's classical traditions, which thoughts or concepts do you believe are particularly aligned with modern society and can provide insights for solving contemporary issues?

Ye Han: In my view, there is an important concept in the Records of the Historian, which is to "change with time." This concept is still very important today, known as "keeping pace with the times." We cannot blindly follow ancient traditions, even though we can still learn a lot from the past today. However, we must also recognize that the era we live in today is different from ancient times, so we need to change with the passage of time. This is a very important lesson from ancient Chinese traditions for us.

The reason for mentioning this is that many Westerners believe that Chinese tradition is very conservative, always praising ancient China as perfect. In fact, China is not like that. Sima Qian has always warned us that those who can adapt to the changes of the times will ultimately live better than those who are inflexible.

Reporter from China News Service: Have you conducted comparative studies between Western classical studies and Chinese classical traditions in your previous research? How do you view contemporary classical studies?

Ye Han: Judging from my current knowledge, classical Greek philosophy tends to be more systematic, but the classical tradition of China may not have a very clear system. The classical tradition of China generally uses the method of "Jing" (classics) and "Zhuan" (commentaries) for annotation, which is completely different from the situation in ancient Greece. Many ancient Chinese classics begin with a portion of very short content, which is systematic but not easy to understand. After this systematic description, the author will tell some stories, and the main purpose of these stories is to explain the content previously discussed. This form of writing is quite common in the classical tradition of China.

Every tradition has its own classics, which are the unique accumulation of each culture. Behind all classics lies a language that leaves endless room for imagination. I believe translation is a very important learning process, because when you translate an ancient book, you need to start reading it seriously, and simply flipping through it is far less effective than translating it. This is particularly important for Western readers, as we need to understand that other countries in the world also have their own traditions and classics. We must translate these ancient texts into our own language, and only then will the world begin to communicate with each other—a truly profound cultural exchange and mutual learning.

I believe that our current effective communication is actually quite limited. Many people simply travel to Europe or come to see what China is like. While this is helpful, the number of people who truly understand each other on a global scale is still very small. Therefore, I think classical studies are extremely important. As scholars, we can promote mutual communication and understanding through translation work.

I know that some scholars believe that interpreting the traditions of each nation requires preserving the language of that nation as much as possible, rather than translating important words into other languages. In fact, I disagree with this view. I think we should also translate those important concepts into Western languages. Because without precise translation, Western readers will find it too abstract. And our job is to truly understand what these texts are describing, and then translate that content into our own language.

Reporter from China News Service: What do you think the future development trend of classical studies will be? Especially in the context of globalization, how will classical studies adapt to these changes and continue to develop?

Ye Han: China has developed quite rapidly in recent years, and young people are often very interested in China because they want to understand why China has achieved such rapid development. This is an important issue, but it is not easy to approach, as many Western media often report negative news about China. We need to find other ways to tell Western society why understanding China is so important. Academic conferences like the World Classical Studies Congress should also be held in the West. Currently, such exchanges are relatively rare in the fields of classical studies or philosophy in the West, while in China, there are more opportunities. Therefore, we need to carry out more activities in the West to introduce Chinese culture. On the day of the month, at the first World Classical Studies Congress held in Beijing, Ye Han shared the results of classical studies research with the participants. Photo by China News Service reporter Zhang Xiangyi.

There are some conflicts between the West and China now, so it's not easy for our university to recruit students. When I was a student studying at Hamburg University, there were many students in the first semester, but now there might only be a few. On the other hand, due to China's rapid development in recent years, many Sinology programs that once focused on classical Chinese traditions have now shifted to studying contemporary Chinese economy or politics. This is undoubtedly a good thing, but it's unfortunate that many universities mistakenly believe that classical Chinese studies are no longer useful. This is a phenomenon we should be vigilant about, and we need to change this attitude. Understanding contemporary China's development is necessary, but we must not forget that today's progress is built on the foundation of ancient China. The Chinese respect our Western classical studies, and we should also respect China's classical traditions. Many Western universities currently do not have this idea, but I believe we need some changes.

Of course, there are some issues within Western humanities as well, for example, there are very few students in German universities studying French classical studies. However, I remain optimistic about this. I believe that one day in the future, the West will also begin this work, although it is currently uncertain when that will be. Nevertheless, we must undoubtedly push forward.

Reporter from China News Service: In the context of digitalization, how do you believe Chinese classical studies should play a role in enabling the world to gain a deeper understanding of Chinese culture?

Ye Han: I've noticed that many young people today are very familiar with digital information, which is a global phenomenon. This year, a Chinese game called "Black Myth: WuKong" has gained significant popularity. It is based on the story of "Journey to the West" and presents Chinese traditions to Westerners in a modern way. There are also similar game adaptations of another classic, "Romance of the Three Kingdoms." This is an interesting phenomenon. We need to inform young people that online games are one thing, and genuine literary works are another, with the latter being much more complex.

I have many students who initially came into contact with traditional Chinese culture through online games, and only then developed an interest in studying Sinology. In today's world, one of the most important tasks for us university professors is to acknowledge and apply these emerging tools. We must also remind students of the importance of using their own minds, as many students, once they believe computers are more reliable than humans, will trust them completely, even though computers can sometimes make mistakes.

This is a tricky issue because when I was learning Chinese, there were no modern tools available to assist. Nowadays, one can quickly look up Chinese words and phrases on their phone. In fact, even without these tools, such as not having a computer, I would still be able to speak Chinese and understand written Chinese. However, foreign students today heavily rely on computers, lacking the ability to independently use the language. This is a phenomenon that warrants caution.

On [date], the first World Classical Studies Conference was held in Beijing. The photo shows foreign guests experiencing the art of woodblock water printing to understand Chinese culture. Photo by China News Service reporter Zhang Xiangyi.

Reporter from China News Service: If you were to recommend some classical Chinese works to Western young people to help them gain a deeper understanding of China, what would you recommend?

Ye Han: I find Pu Songling's works relatively easy to read, such as Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. The legendary stories of the Tang Dynasty are also quite accessible. However, for most Westerners, if they want to understand Chinese classical culture in depth, the book to turn to is Dream of the Red Chamber. The content in Dream of the Red Chamber is particularly rich; if they truly finish reading it, they will absorb a lot of knowledge. In my opinion, the more difficult classic to read should be The Analects of Confucius. This is because many Westerners think they know what the sentences in The Analects mean, but in reality, they do not understand them. This is because they often use Western cultural thinking to read and interpret The Analects.

Last year, I published a German translation of the "Analects of Confucius." During the process of translating this book, I found that many Western translators have rendered the term "仁" as "benevolence," but in fact, "仁" in the "Analects" often does not carry this meaning in many contexts; it has a richer connotation and multi-layered meanings. For example, "仁" emphasizes "the benevolent person loves others," that is, how to communicate with others, "己欲立而立人, 己欲达而达人," and at the same time, "己所不欲, 勿施于人"; furthermore, "仁" is closely related to "礼," as Confucius believed that "克己复礼为仁," meaning that achieving "仁" involves restraining one's desires and restoring the Zhou rituals. These aspects, as of now, are not well understood in the West, and even many Chinese may not fully grasp them.

Interviewee Profile:*

叶翰。中新社记者 张祥毅 摄 叶翰（Hans van Ess），德国慕尼黑大学副校长、汉学研究所所长，马克斯·韦伯基金会前主席。曾于1986年至1988年在上海复旦大学做研究员，随后在德国汉堡大学取得博士学位。出版过多本关于道家、儒家以及中国古代政治和历史学的著作，同时服务于多个学术出版物的编辑委员会。主要著作有：《内部与外部：早期史学作品的研究方法》（Views from Within; Views from Beyond. Approaches to the Shiji as an Early Work of Historiography），《：司马迁的遗产》（The Letter To Ren An. Sima Qian’s Legacy）等。

Title: "German Sinologist Hans van Ess on Classical Chinese: Inheritance and Progress with the Times - East and West: Classical Studies" Text Editor: Pei Xinyu Image Editor: Cui Chuqiao Layout: Dai Shuo Proofreading: Wei Yuan Editor: Cheng Chunyu

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