Arts and Letters

Chen MengleiJun 2024

3.2

Word count: 13K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Traditional Chinese culture has a long intellectual history, marked by a high degree of originality, inventiveness, and literary quality. Early forms of thought are highly distinctive: religious theology, classical texts of Chinese medicine, ancient military strategy, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Hundred Schools thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and local customs and geography—all are vast and profound in content. This "Essence of Classic Chinese Culture: Original Texts" series preserves the appearance of the original books, with the aim of conserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture. By reading the literary essence left by ancient sages, readers cultivate their temperament and subtly absorb the classics of Chinese learning.

Editor's review

This book belongs to the "Essence of Classic Chinese Culture: Original Texts" series, attributed to Chen Menglei, published in 2024. Its value lies in preserving and transmitting traditional Chinese thought and culture in the appearance of the original text. The book covers a wide range of content, including religious theology, classical texts of Chinese medicine, ancient military strategy, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, and Hundred Schools thought, feng shui and metaphysics, the Twenty-Four Histories, and local customs and geography, presenting the originality and literary quality of early forms of thought. Editorially, it emphasizes the presentation of the original documentary appearance rather than subjective interpretation, making it suitable as an introductory and reference reader for understanding the overall landscape of Chinese classics. It can be treated as a "small library," and there is no need to read it through; reading selectively by interest or theme better allows one to appreciate the temperament and wisdom in the writings of ancient sages. For readers hoping to build a framework of traditional cultural knowledge and develop a feel for classical Chinese, this book offers relatively concentrated material; but because it is a compilation of primary texts, readers need patience and a habit of verification, and it works best with annotations or reference tools.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers hoping to systematically understand the overall landscape of traditional Chinese culture
Teachers who need primary texts of Chinese classics for lesson preparation or course enrichment
Students who want to develop a feel for classical Chinese and accumulate general knowledge of traditional culture
Enthusiasts who need to look up topics such as ancient thought and local customs and geography

Not a good fit for

Beginner readers expecting vernacular explanations or story-based narration
Professional researchers seeking in-depth conclusions on a single topic
Readers with no foundation in classical Chinese who are unwilling to use reference tools

Reading tips

First browse the table of contents, classify by themes such as religion, military strategy, and the various schools, and choose chapters of interest to start with.
Read one or two pieces at a fixed time each week, using reference tools to look up difficult characters and words, focusing on accumulation rather than speed.
Keep a notebook to record key points and questions from each piece, forming your own index of Chinese classical knowledge.
Read alongside other primary texts in the same series to compare the expressive modes of different schools of thought.

版权信息
古今图书集成医部全录卷五百十八
古今图书集成医部全录卷五百十九

FAQ

Do I need to read this book through?

There is no need to force yourself to read it through. This book is a compilation of primary texts covering multiple fields, and is better suited to selective reading by theme or interest. You can first look at the table of contents to form an overall impression, then choose the parts relevant to your needs for close reading, leaving the rest as reference material. This makes the reading burden lighter and the gains more focused.

Can I read it without a foundation in classical Chinese?

You can read it, but there will be some difficulty. The book preserves the original appearance of the text and is not primarily vernacular explanation. Readers with a weak foundation in classical Chinese are advised to prepare an ancient Chinese dictionary or annotated edition for support, starting with shorter and more accessible pieces and gradually adapting, rather than tackling the most difficult parts first.

What is the difference between this book and popular books on Chinese classics?

The difference lies mainly in the mode of presentation. Popular books often add extensive explanation and stories, whereas this book focuses on preserving and transmitting traditional thought and culture in its original form, retaining the appearance of the original text. It provides relatively raw material that readers must chew over and comprehend themselves, suitable for readers willing to read slowly, verify, and form their own understanding.

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About the author

Chen Menglei Author · China · 1651–1741

Chen Menglei (1651–1741), courtesy names Zizhen and Shengzhai, later styled the Old Man of Songhe, was a Qing dynasty scholar from Houguan, Fujian. He passed the imperial examination in the ninth year of the Kangxi reign and was appointed to the Hanlin Academy as a compiler. After 1698, by imperial order, he tutored the third prince, Yinzhii, and took the opportunity to compile a vast classified encyclopedia, the Hui Bian, using the collection of the Xieyi Hall; the Kangxi Emperor later bestowed on it the title Gujin Tushu Jicheng. The library holds more than 410 of his works, mostly sections of the officialdom chapters of that encyclopedia, covering institutions such as the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, the Imperial Observatory, the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Rites, prefectural governors, the Transmission Office, and the Imperial Medical Academy. These works address ancient bureaucratic systems, ritual norms, and administrative practice. His compilations are distinguished by systematic classification and extensive citation, preserving a wealth of source materials for later generations; they are commonly categorized under culture and Eastern philosophy. As public information on his life is limited, this note confines itself to his known scholarly contributions.