描述
开 本: 32开纸 张: 胶版纸包 装: 平装-胶订是否套装: 否国际标准书号ISBN: 9787500151647
CONTENTS
Foreword
PREFACE
CHAPTER ONE
Descent and Childhood
CHAPTER TWO
Degree College Kullu and Jawaharlal Nehru University
CHAPTER THREE
Peking University Days
CHAPTER FOUR
Romance on the Volleyball Court
CHAPTER FIVE
The Beginning of a Marathon Affair
CHAPTER SIX
Return to Beijing: Witnessing the Rise of China
CHAPTER SEVEN
Europe, Marriage and Family
CHAPTER EIGHT
Chinese Fervour in India
CHAPTER NINE
Cross-Cultural Currents Between India and China
Select Bibliography
Postscript
Index
My Tryst with China:’our’ Footprints on the Sands of Time is not just about my personal tryst, but more importantly, it traces all those footprints that vehemently advocated opening of the channels of communion and communications between India and China in the civilizational history of these two countries. “Our” in the title include all those scholar monks on both sides of the Himalayas during the height of the Buddhist glory and beyond; people like Ji Xianlin, Wu Xiaoling, Jin Kemu, Liu Anwu, Jin Dinghan, Huang Xinchuan, Lin Chengjie, Geng Yinzeng, Xue Keqiao, Wang Shuying, Yu Longyu, Jiang Jingkui, etc. scholars on the Chinese side, and Tagore, Kotnis, P. C. Bagchi, Tan Yunshan, Tan Chung, H. P. Ray, Yap Rahman, Tansen Sen, Madhvi Th ampi and many more on the Indian side who not only have kept the lamp of civilizational dialogue alight but have also kindled the light of reason for such a dialogue in the times of war, barbarity and geopolitics in the hearts and minds of many people on both the sides.
I must acknowledge my gratitude to Professor Jiang Jingkui who has recently painstakingly completed the translation of Sursagar for his valuable suggestions and insights as far as the Chinese title of this book is concerned. Given the scope of my narratives, it wasn’t easy to zero in on a title that mirrored the contents holistically. The present title would not have been possible without the thoughtfulness and insights of Professor Jiang who irrespective of post surgery recuperation invited me over to his house for sipping pu’er tea in his elegantly decorated apartment that exhibits the synthesis of Indian and Chinese cultures. I am also thankful to Professor N. M. Pankaj who suggested a few interesting titles for English and Hindi versions of this memoir. He has been a dear friend and very forthcoming whenever approached for help.I believe during all these years, I have found myself amidst India-China interactions at all levels.
Th ese are extremely important for the following reasons as argued by the doyen of Indology in China, Professor Ji Xianlin. First and foremost, he says that the history of Sino-Indian interaction tells us that our two countries have been engaged in cultural exchanges over the past two thousand years, have learnt from each other, and have developed and enriched each other’s cultures. Even today we are reaping the benefi ts of this exchange. This sort of exchange is full of advantages rather than disadvantages. Secondly, the history of Sino-Indian cultural exchange tells us that the cultural history of mankind is the creation of all of us; it has never been created by a particular nation or country. Recognition of this fact will bring great benefi ts that can enhance friendship and understanding between the people. Finally, the history of Sino-Indian cultural exchange tells us that the cultures of China and India belong to the oriental culture. He believes that the twenty first century would be the century of oriental culture. It would become the world’s leading culture and would take the human and cultural development to a higher level.1
Precisely because of these views, I believe both India and China need to resuscitate the spirit of civilizational dialogue between them, which undoubtedly encompasses the Silk Route spirit and trans-Himalayan camaraderie between the two.
Finally, yes, there are problems between the two. Th ere is no denying the fact that the security environment between the two have improved immensely in comparison to our relations during the Cold War. We need to do away with the Cold War mentality and be pragmatic while dealing with the sensitive issues between us. We missed at least three opportunities to resolve the border issue including the recent one pointed out by China’s Special Representative Dai Bingguo in his recent book titled Strategic dialogue: reminiscences of dai Bingguo . Both sides have agreed that the border issues would be a three-stage process — first agreeing on the political parameters and guiding principles, then creating a framework for resolution of the border issue, and finally delineation and demarcation of the boundary. According to the special representatives of both the countries, they have submitted their report as regards the second stage. Therefore, it is upon the leadership of the two countries to take a call. Th e third is just a technical stage. I hope the issue is resolved amicably at the earliest so that the real potential of both the countries in various fi elds is realized. Moreover, India-China relationship has gained great importance, given the defi nite power shift in the global political and economic architecture. In this context India and China relationship remains one of the defi ning relationships of the century that will determine the emerging global geopolitical and geo-economics structure. Can India and China bring into play the geo-civilizational paradigm of the yesteryear and brace ourselves for the century of the oriental culture as propounded by Ji Xianlin?
Chapter One DESCENT AND CHILDHOOD
I had special interest in Dunhuang, as I happened to know the then Director of Dunhuang Research Academy (DHRA) Professor Duan Wenjie. In fact while at IGNCA as a researcher, I had participated in the translation and compilation of a brief introduction of 492 Mogao Caves that ran into 150 pages for an edited book by Professor Tan Chung titled Dunhuang Art through the eyes of duan wenjie (1994). Professor Duan knew about this and was happy to receive me. He wrote a short introduction letter for us, and asked me to hand it in at the reception. An escort accompanied us with a huge bunch of keys, perhaps a few kilograms in weight, through the entrances of various caves. I was delighted to see splendid Buddhist icons, frescoes depicting Buddhist stories, illustration of Buddhist sutras, patrons of the caves, Taoist and Hindu deities and other mythological tales. It was an ultimate repository of Buddhist heritage, a warehouse of resource material as far as the spread of Buddhism in China was concerned. Alas! We had only a day in Dunhuang, therefore, couldn’t aff ord to stay here longer. When I climbed the Mingsha Mountain from the Crescent Spring, I imagined the footprints of Faxian, Kumarajiva, Xuanzang and thousands of scholar monks from India and China that I thought we re still buried under those beautiful sand dunes. When I rode on those beautiful double hump Bactrian camels, I could imagine caravan after caravan of camels traversing the mighty Taklamakan and Gobi deserts year after year and century after century. It was absolutely amazing and enchanting to visit these places.
The next day we boarded a bus to Turpan, the Gaochang or Karakhoja of ancient times. Xuanzang visited Gaochang in 628, stayed there for a month and received grand hospitality from the local king. When Xuanzang departed from Gaochang, the king sent with him 25 escorts and presented 30 horses. The place is also famous for Jurassic era Flame Mountains formed due to the pressure from undersea lava. However, in Wu Cheng’en’s Journey to the west, a 15th century supernatural novel, the raging flames of these mountains put a stop to Xuanzang’s journey to the West. It was only after the duels of Sun Wukon g, the monkey disciple of Xuanzang, who is also attributed as an Indian import from ramayana character Hanuman, with Bull Dragon King, which resulted in procuring a palm leaf fan that ultimately extinguished the fire and enabled Xuanzang to continue his journey.
The ruins of the city that was destroyed during the 14th century are still intact. The ruins of imperial palace, stupa, moat, mostly thedilapidated structures built in yellow-brown mud brick and earth. The most striking place was the round roofless hall where we were told by our tour guide that this was a lecture hall of the monastery, where Xuanzang lectured on Buddhism during his stay in Gaochang. In Turpan, our cab driver was a young Uyghur man in his early 20s. I was taken aback when he told me that he was reading a popular Indian novelist Gulshan Nanda, not in Hindi or English but in its Uyghur translation! India was better known to him as Hindustan.Chapter Six RETURN TO BEIJING: WITNESSING THE RISE OF CHINA
Although Chinese is one of the working languages of the United Nations, and Chinese speaking population the largest in the world, until recent times it hobbled like a giant with deformity. Ming Emperor Wanli’s (1563-1620) goodwill letter to the Russian Tsar was laid aside for 50 long years. This not only showed the communication gap between the immediate neighbours but also the arrogance of big empires. China’s economic miracle appears to have cured this deformity for good, the giant no more hobbles,rather is leaving its footprints all over the world. The language that was snubbed by the first world countries has been loved by theinternational community. The Chinese characters that once were despised as some undecipherable, incomprehensible pictographshave now been regarded as a thing o f beauty and art! The same have become favorite tattoo art all over the world. Many of my Indian friends, who had nothing to do with Chinese language, had Chinese characters tattooed on their bodies when I was in Scotland. As the 21st century has been dubbed as an Asian century, Chinese language too has been viewed as the language of the century.
Chapter Eight CHINESE FERVOUR IN INDIA
Not in my wildest dreams could I have imagined Xuanzang setting his feet in my hometown, Kullu. Never in my wildest dreams did I think of me making it to the land of Xuanzang. It was Chinese and studies in India-China relations that facilitated my understanding not only of Xuanzang but a whole galaxy of Indian and Chinese scholar monks who were responsible for the civilizational dialogue between India and China. It was again the Chinese language that took me to the land of Xuanzang, and it was a logical and conscious decision to trace the footprints of these scholar monks and tens and thousands of unsung brave men who perished or survived along the vast Taklamakan or the mighty seas. The heroic deeds of the fi ve Indian doctors, especially Kotnis during the tumultuous times in China, remain examples of supreme sacrifice and the true spirit of India-China friendship and internationalism. My Tryst with China: ‘our’ Footprints on the Sands of Time is not just about my personal tryst, but more importantly, it traces all those footprints that vehemently advocated opening of the channels of communion and communications between India and China in the civilizational history of these two countries. “Our” in the title include all those scholar monks on both sides of the Himalayas during the height of the Buddhist glory and beyond; people like Ji Xianlin, Wu Xiaoling, Jin Kemu, Liu Anwu, Jin Dinghan, Huang Xinchuan, Lin Chengjie, Geng Yinzeng, Xue Keqiao, Wang Shuying, Yu Longyu, Jiang Jingkui, etc. scholars on the Chinese side, and Tagore, Kotnis, P. C. Bagchi, Tan Yunshan, Tan Chung, H. P. Ray, Yap Rahman, Tansen Sen, Madhvi Thampi and many more on the Indian side who not only have kept the lamp of civilizational dialogue alight but have also kindled the light of reason for such a dialogue in the times of war, barbarity and geopolitics in the hearts and minds of many people on both the sides.POSTSCRIPT
评论
还没有评论。