Thought Essays ⁽¹³⁷⁾

Since last Thursday I have been staying in a very quiet little place, returning home only this Monday. It happened to rain the whole time I was there, and I took along four books and a Kindle. Listening to the rain under the eaves and…

Ji Kang, one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove who throughout his life revered "transcending moral conventions and following nature," was about to be executed. Seeing that the sun was still high and the hour of execution had not yet come, he asked…

On May 30, 2019, German Chancellor Angela Merkel was invited to address Harvard University's commencement. In her speech, Merkel shared her experience of growing up in East Germany and, without naming names, criticized a series of policies by the sitting U.S. President Trump aimed at…

Waking up in the morning and opening WeChat, a parent of a child tumor patient told me that his child's leg has been amputated, and another parent of a child tumor patient told me his child's hand has been amputated. They all hope to get…

Expounding the great storehouse of teachings, the words are upright and so is the meaning. Cut off both ends entirely, one sword leans on the sky, cold. —Shi Daochuan, Song Dynasty Pointing directly to the human mind, seeing one's own nature and becoming Buddha—this is…

Body trained like a crane's form, beneath a thousand pines, two scrolls of scripture. I come to ask the Way, and there is nothing to say—clouds in the blue sky, water in the vase. —Li Ao, Gift to the Great Monk Weiyan of Yaoshan A…

The trap is for catching the fish; once the fish is caught, the trap is forgotten... Words are for catching meaning; once meaning is grasped, words are forgotten. —Zhuangzi, External Things Poetry has a special talent, unrelated to books; poetry has a special appeal, unrelated…

For the past month or more, I have spent most of my time in a temple halfway up a mountain. The temple has very few worshippers; on most days not a single pilgrim comes the whole day, and the temple is left untended, so I…

Liu Ling, courtesy name Bolun, was a man of Peiguo. He was six chi tall and very ugly in appearance. He let his feelings and will run free, always regarding the cosmos as small and all things as equal. He was quiet and sparing of…

These past two days, my Moments have been flooded with the news that Li Yong, the famous CCTV host, has died of cancer. May Brother Yong rest in peace! A public figure dying of cancer is a collective lesson in cancer prevention for the public;…