Zhu Xi's legacy fosters cross-cultural exchanges

A traditional Chinese seven-string zither, known as a guqin, played a melody associated with Zhu Xi as tea was prepared in the style of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), offering visitors to Jianyang, Fujian province, a glimpse into the world in which the Chinese philosopher lived and studied nearly 900 years ago.

At Hualong Academy in Wuyi Menghuacheng on Friday evening, the music accompanied a tea ceremony attended by about 200 Chinese and international scholars and guests. They had gathered for the Kaoting Forum, held the following day to discuss Zhu Xi studies and promote dialogue among civilizations.

Calligraphic displays featured Zhu Xi's poems about tea, while a nearby lantern installation chronicled a local story about his friendship with fellow scholar Cai Yuanding. According to the story, the two used lanterns to communicate between their studies while on opposite mountains. When one extinguished his light to signal a question or difficulty, they would meet the following day to discuss it.

The experience offered a glimpse into how Zhu Xi's legacy remains embedded in the cultural traditions of northern Fujian, where his education took shape more than eight centuries ago.

Born in 1130, Zhu Xi became one of the most influential thinkers in the Confucian tradition. His interpretations of classical texts shaped Chinese education, ethics and intellectual life for centuries. His ideas also traveled beyond China, where they encountered different intellectual traditions and were at times interpreted in unexpected ways.

In the early 18th century, European philosophers and Catholic missionaries debated Zhu Xi's concept of li, or principle. Some interpreted it through Christian theology, while others regarded his philosophy as atheistic. The dispute brought Zhu Xi's thought into European intellectual debates, but also illustrated how unfamiliar ideas could be misunderstood when viewed through the assumptions of another tradition, said Feng Jun, former deputy director of the Institute of Party History and Literature of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

"The diversity of civilizations makes exchanges and mutual learning necessary, while their equality makes such exchanges and mutual learning possible," Feng said.

Huang Bohan, a Taiwan expert at Wuyi University and researcher at its Zhu Xi studies center, said the tradition's longevity stemmed from its ability to evolve across different historical and cultural contexts.

"The continuation of Zhu Xi studies has not been a matter of repeating a fixed system, but of continually acquiring new meanings through debate, reinterpretation and institutional restructuring," Huang said.

He added that Zhu Xi's thought has been repeatedly reexamined, with its contemporary value lying in the reinterpretation of its insights into personal development, the relationship between knowledge and action, public responsibility and humanity's relationship with the natural world.

For Dong Qiang, director of Peking University's Yenching Academy and a scholar of Sino-French cultural exchange, Zhu Xi's relevance today goes beyond the study of philosophical concepts. Research by French sinologists, he said, has helped illuminate how Zhu Xi's thought interacted with the institutions and social structures of imperial China.

French sinologist Jacques Gernet, for example, examined the relationships among Confucian thought, the imperial examination system and local clans. This social perspective helps explain how philosophical ideas could shape education, personal responsibility and the functioning of society — issues that remain relevant to discussions of governance today, Dong said.

Dong argued that Zhu Xi's concept of li also offers a way to consider relations among countries, with public principles taking precedence over private interests. No individual, group or country, he said, should place its own interests above shared standards of fairness.

Such an approach is relevant to challenges that no country can address alone, including climate change, public health crises and the governance of artificial intelligence, Dong said. These issues underscore the need to look beyond narrow national interests and recognize humanity's shared stake in the future.

Kong Deli, director of the Confucius Research Institute, said Zhu Xi's concept of li yi fen shu — the unity of principle amid diversity — offers a framework for understanding how common human aspirations can coexist with different cultural traditions and development paths.

If human well-being is a shared goal, countries and regions can pursue it in different ways shaped by their histories, geographical conditions and social circumstances, Kong said.

The concept challenges the assumption that one society's experience should serve as a universal model, allowing countries to recognize shared aspirations without requiring them to follow identical paths, he added.

Wang Min, vice-president of the International Confucian Association, highlighted Zhu Xi's interpretation of tui ji ji ren, or extending consideration to others by putting oneself in their place, as a guiding principle for relations among countries and civilizations.

The idea has roots in Confucius' teachings in The Analects, where he advocated helping others achieve what one wishes to achieve oneself. Zhu Xi later explored how this principle could be put into practice, emphasizing the extension of one's concern to others.

Wang said the principle has implications for international relations. The Confucian injunction "Do not impose on others what you do not want for yourself" sets a basic standard for human conduct, while tui ji ji ren calls for a more active effort to understand others' needs and perspectives.

Countries should consider the effects of their decisions on less powerful nations, ordinary people and future generations, rather than judging them solely by narrow national interests, Wang said.

Together, the scholars' perspectives suggest that Zhu Xi's legacy can help inform contemporary discussions on how societies balance shared principles with diverse traditions, and how public responsibility can temper the pursuit of individual or national interests.

Contact the writers at yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn