中国文化英语教程文本-.docx

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1、中国文化英语教程文本1、Part I Wisdom and Beliefsllnit 1 Confucian thought on heaven and humanityConfucius (551-479 BC), known in China as Kongzi, given name Qiu and alias Zhongni, was a native of Zouyi (present-day Qufu in Shandong Province) of the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC).

2、A great think2、er; educator and founder of Confucianism, Confucius is an ancient sage to the Chinese people. His words and life story were recorded by his disciples and their students in The Analects (Lunyu).Confucius on Heaven: the source of Everythingln the Shang (1600-1046 BC) and Zhou (1046-256

3、BC) dynasties,3、the prevalent concept ofHeaven was that of a personified god, which influenced Confucius. Generally, however, Confucius regarded “Heaven as nature. He said, Heaven does not speak in words. It speaks through the rotation of the four seasons and the growth of all living things. Obvious

4、ly, heaven4、 equaled nature, in the eyes of Confucius. Moreover, nature was not a lifeless mechanism separate from humans; instead, it was the great the Tigris, and the Nile drainage areas. Yet real communication between China, Central and W40 est Asian countries, Africa and the European continent d

5、id not develop until the opening of the Silk Road.Zhang Qian, Trail BlazerThe pioneer who blazed the trail of the Silk Road was Zhang Qian (c. 164-114 BC), In ZhangQians time, the Chinese has little knowledge about Central and West Asian countr41 ies, Africa or Europe, although they were aware of th

6、e existence of many different countries and cultures in faraway places to the west.During the reign of Emperor Wu (r. 140-135 BC), there were 36 small kingdoms in the Western Regions (present-day Xinjiang and parts of Central Asia). All of them we42、re later conquered by the Huns, who then posed a d

7、irect threat to the Western Han and blocked the dynastys path west. Under these circumstances, Emperor Wu appointed Zhang Qian to lead a team of more than 100 envoys to the Western Regions.The mission was to unite the Indo-Scythic people against the43、 Huns, who once killed their chieftain. Zhang Qi

8、ans team set out in 138 BC. No sooner had they entered the Hexi Corridor(northwest of present-day Gansu Province), than they were captured by the Huns. After being held under house arrest for over ten years, Zhang Qian and only one other remaining envoy44、 managed to escape and return to Changan in

9、126 BC. Their accounts about the Western Regions were a revelation to Hun emperor and his ministers.In the next two decades, Emperor Wu launched three major campaigns against the Huns,forcing them to retreat from the Western Regions. In 119 BC, the emperor45、 sent Zhang Qian on a second mission to t

10、he Western Regions. This time Zhang Qian went further west, while his deputies reached more than a dozen countries in South and West Asia, and the Mediterranean.Zhang Qians two missions to the Western Regions opened up the road to the west. EmperorWu adopted46、a series of measures to strengthen ties

11、 with the Western Regions, including encouragingHan People to trade there.Soon the route was bustling with caravans of camels carrying goods of all types andreverberating with the tinkling of their bells. Through the Silk Road, trade flourished between China an47、d Central, South and West Asian coun

12、tries, Africa and Europe. In 166, envoys from Rome arrived via the Silk Road in Changan, were they set up an embassy.Part III Art and AestheticsUnit 5 Music: Govern the Country, Nourish the MindThe tradition of Chinese music dates back to remote antiquity. Governi48、ng the country and nourishing the

13、 mind through music are two of the main functions of this tradition. Governance ThroughMusicAccording to ancient Chinese culture, rituals provided the norms of conduct of people. The goal was to maintain social order.Music was for the minds cultivation and expression. Its purpose was to enhance peop

14、les outlook on life and imbue them with energy and creativity, such that they could enjoy a moreharmonious and happier sworld of life and the process of creation of life. Human life was part and parcel of nature as a whole.Confucius on People: ren and liRen and Li are the two core c5、oncepts of Conf

15、uciuss doctrine about people.When his students Fan Chi asked him about ren, Confucius replied, love people”. This is Confucius most important interpretation of ren. Love for the people is universal love. Confucius further emphasized that this kind of love should “begin with the love6、for ones parent

16、s”. He believed no one could love people in general if they did not even love their own parents. Confucius regarded “filial piety and fraternal duty as the essence of ren. The Doctrine of the Mean (Zhongyong) quotes Confucius as saying, The greatest love for people is the love for7、ones parents/ He

17、also said, Children should not travel far while their parents are alive. If they have no choice but to do so, they must retain some restraint/ He did not mean that children should not leave their parents at all. What he meant was that children should not make the parents anxious8、about them while aw

18、ay from home. Confucius said again, Children should think often of the age of their parents. They should feel happy for the health and longevity of their parents. They should also feel concern for the aging of their pa rents/By ren, Confucius meant universal love based on love fo9、r ones parents. Ho

19、w should peoplelove one another then Confucius said, “One should be aware that other people may have similar desires as oneself. While fulfilling ones desires, allow others to fulfill their desires as well. He further said, Do not do toward others anything you would not want to10、 be done to you. Th

20、us from oneself to ones family, from family to society, one should extend love to all people. Mencius (c. 372-289 BC), a great Confucian scholar, best summarized ren as, loving ones parents, loving the people, loving everything in the world/Li refers to rituals, traditions and11 norms in social life

21、. Of these, Confucius regarded burial ritualsand ancestral worship rituals as the most important, because they rose from human feelings. He said/A child should not leave his parents bosom until he is three years old. He naturally love his parents. The ritual of wearing mournin12 g for a deceased par

22、ent for three years was an expression of thechilds love and remembrance.Confucius on the State of life Before Confucius, only the nobility had the right to education. He was the first figure in Chinese history to initiate private education. According to historical records, Confuci13 us taught for ma

23、ny years and trained 3,000 disciples. A total of72 of them excelled in the “six arts, ritual, music, archery, (carriage)driving, calligraphy, and mathematics. A great educator, Confucius has been admired by later generations as the “sage of sages”.Confucius believed the basic go14、al of education wa

24、s to cultivate persons of virtue7, whoshould have sound character and uplifted minds. Such people should be able to shoulder importantsocial responsibilities and to make contributions to society. Confucius regarded lofty ideals, greatvirtue, love of people, and the six arts” as t15、 he general princ

25、iples of education. Of these, virtue was the most important. His students were involved in a variety of professions, including politics, trade, education, diplomacy, ritual ceremony, and classifying ancient books. Whatever they did, they all wanted to improve their learning of the hu16 manities and

26、to enhance their virtue.Unit 2 Laozis philosophy of Non-actionThe book Laozi was written around the sixth century BC. The author is generally believed to beLao Dan, or Laozi a recluse who lived during the Spring and Autumn Period. Few records have survived about Lao Dan, who was said to17 have once

27、held a low civil position in the royal court, in chare of the archival records of the Zhou Dynasty. Yet, due to his great learning, even Confucius was said to have traveled miles to consult him.Laozi, also known as Classic of the Way and Virtue (Dao De Jing), consists of just over 5,000 C18、 hinese

28、characters. Its 81 chapters are divided into two parts, Dao (the Way) and De (Virtue). Short as it is, the book has played a tremendous role in the development of Chinese culture. It became the basis of Daoism, the school of philosophy parallel to Confucianism in ancient China. The thought of19 Laoz

29、i formed the foundation of Daoism, the most influential indigenous school of religion in China. It has also exerted a direct impact on the characteristics, trends of thought and aesthetic sensibilities of the Chinese nation. Today Laozi still plays a role in the development of Chinese thinking.20、 N

30、aturalness and Non-actionNaturalness is an important concept of Laozis philosophy. It refers to a natural state ofbeing, an attitude of following the way of nature. Laozi emphasized that everything in the world has its own way of being and development: birds fly in the sky, fish swim in the wate21、r

31、, clouds float in the sky, flowers bloom and flowers fall. All these phenomena occur independently and naturally without following any human will, and humans should not try to change anything natural. Laozi admonished people to give up on any desire to control the world.Following the way of nature22

32、、 is the way to resolving conflicts between humans and the world.Non-action is another important concept of Laozis philosophy. It is the guarantee of Naturalness”. Laozi said, (Dao or the Way) acts through non-action/ by which he did no mean that one should do nothing and passively wait for some23、

33、thing to be achieved. Neither did he deny human creativity. What he meant is that human enterprises should be built on the basis of naturalness, not on many attempts to interrupt the rhythm of nature. Human creativity should be in compliance with the ways of nature.The philosophy of Non-contentionOn

34、24、 the basis of “naturalness and non-action”, Laozi proposed the view ofovercoming the strong by being weak”. The era Laozi lived in was replete with endless wars. Therefore, war was an important treme for philosophers, and a nt-war thinking was the norm. Even the great strategist Sunzi advocated w

35、25、 inning a war without fighting it： not to mention the great thinker Confucius, who strongly championed a government based on love. Their contemporary Mozi (c. 468-376 BC), founder of Mohism, also condemned wars while calling for “love for all.According to Laozi, war springs from humanitys bloated

36、 d26、esires. Conflict arises out of peoples struggles to satisfy their desires, and conflict escalates into war. Therefore, Laozis philosophy is based on “non-contention”. To him, human striving and competitive strife is the root cause of decline; desiring nothing is the natural way of life.Laozi sa

37、id/27、The greatest virtue is like water/ He compared his philosophy ofnon-contention to water, to distinguish it from the law of the jungle. He said, Water nourishes everything but contends for nothing/ To Laozi, humans tend to seek higher positions while water always flows to lower places. Driven b

38、y28、 desire, humans like whatever they think is superior while despising whatever they think is inferior. Yet water always flows downward. As the source of life,water nourishes all living things on Earth. No life can exist without water. Water contributes to the world without regard for gain or loss

39、. Re29 maining low, level and tranquil, water embraces and reflects everything under heaven. The way of water is completely different from the way of people with avid desires.But the philosophy of Laozi is by no means weak. On the contrary, it is full of strength.According to Laozi, water accumulate

40、s great30、 strength in its weakness and quietude. Its strength can break down all barriers in the world. He said, “Nothing in the world is weaker than water. Yet nothing is stronger than water when it comes to breaking something strong.Water is a typical example of the weak winning over the strong.

41、Water i31、s invincible because it desires nothing and contends for nothing.Unit 3 Chinese Buddhist CultureWho am I Where am I from Where am I goingMen are mortal. But death is not an once-and-for-all thing. They enter the rotating Wheel of SixRealms:Heaven, Human, Asura, Animal, Hungry Ghost, Hell.D

42、ocuments s32、tored in computer can be canceled at will, but what we have done in our life, and actually in our innumerable lives, cannot. What has been done has been done. The information is stored in your true self, not the physical one, and will accompany you life after life, anddetermines which R

43、ealm you en33、ter. Only when we are completely free from lust, hatred, and folly, can we manage to break away from the capture of the rotating Wheel, and achieve perpetual enlightenment, discovering your true self”. In Buddhism there isnt any dominating god who controls your destiny. We are the make

44、r of our own34、 fate. What we are at present is a result of what we have done in the past; and what we will be in the future is decided by what we are doing at present. What we have done form the “karma： which, like a gene, decides on your future story. But this gene can of course be modified, by do

45、ing good deed35、s and obtaining healthy biological andspiritual energy, so as to change our future course of career. We are, therefore, our own master.What are the basic requirements for a Buddhist Five Prohibitions for the laymen:l) Dont kill;2) Dont steal;3) Dont seek aberrant sensualpleasures;4)

46、Dont talk irresp36onsibly;5) Dont drink alcohol.Part II Creativity and Exchange Unit 4 The Silk RoadThe silk road refers to a transport route connecting ancient China with Central Asia, West Asia, Africa, and the European continent. It appeared as early as the second century BC and was traveledmainl

47、y by silk merchant37、s. The term “Silk Road： or die Seidenstrasse in German, was first noted down by the German geographer Ferdinand Von Richthofen at the end of the 19th century.The silk road began in Changan (present-day Xian, capital of Shaanxi Province), passingthrough Gansu and Xinjiang to Cent

48、ral Asia, West Asi38、 a, and to lands by the Mediterranean. There were no signs of communication between ancient Chinese civilization and Mediterranean civilization in earlier history. In about the seventh century BC, the ancient Greeks began to learn about an ancient civilization to the east, yet knew little about it. B39、efore the Silk Road, according to archeological findings, there had already existed an intermittent trade route on the grasslands from the Yellow River and the Indus River drainage areas to the Euphrates and