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A Dedication to Classics Scholarship 45

It can be inferred that Sima Qian had obliged himself to follow the example of The
Spring and Autumn Annals. As he commented, “The Spring and Autumn Annals
provide the fundamental paradigm for conveying rites and righteousness” (Sima,
1959, p. 3298).
Confucius once said: “Rather than lavishing empty praise upon them, I would
prefer to embody the illustrious and virtuous deeds that hitherto have been hidden
in their wisdom” (Sima, 1959, p. 3297).
Confucius indeed worked on The Spring and Autumn Annals, and what he
taught were moral principles, laid bare in his narrative of history.
Therefore, classics scholarship and historiography form the core interdisci-
plinary subjects of traditional learning. The study of classics is followed by the
study of philology, which covers textual research and bibliography, with histori-
ography as their subject matter.
If we hope to launch new classics scholarship in contemporary times, we must
make adequate efforts in philology, bibliography, and textual studies, including
archaeology. By studying the minutiae of classics scholarship, we can hopefully
find meaning in them that can apply to today’s era.
To bring forth the new through the old, we must return to the old to make it
anew. Relying on Chinese culture, we should adhere to benevolence so as to
counteract unilateralism. We should retain rites in order to prevent cultural
clashes. Classics scholarship is not knowledge in a pile of old papers and
should not be studied as a rare antiquity because it is still pertinent to our world
today, alive, and kicking, and acutely realistic. In classics scholarship, ren
advocates compassion, he (和) stipulates an ideal state of equilibrium and
harmony, and li (rites) require respect for others. Aren’t they the best remedies
to cure unilateralism and selfishness? To counter the grim reality of “Clash of
Civilizations” described by Samuel P. Huntington, it is necessary to tap the
philosophical resources found in Chinese classics scholarship.

References

CBSMWUJM (The Center of Bamboo Silk Manuscript of Wuhan University and Jingmen Museum).
(Compilers). (2011). 楚地出土战国简册合集 [Guodian Chu tomb bamboo slips]. Cultural
Relics Press.
Chen, K. J. (Trans., Modern Chinese ed.), & Hu, Z. Y. (Trans., English ed.). (2015). Zuo’s commentary
on The Spring and Autumn Annals. Hunan People’s Publishing Media.