Jin Yong’s ZJU Years: “Wisdom is the Goal”

Zhang Mengxin

Hangzhou was the city Jin Yong wanted to live in most. In March 1999， he was sworn in as the first dean of the newly-founded Faculty of Humanities of the Hangzhou-based Zhejiang University and became a doctoral supervisor of the university. In 2007， he became the Honorary Dean of the Faculty of Humanities of ZJU.

In “A Message from the Dean”， written by Jin Yong and released in December 1999， in celebration of the newly-founded Faculty of Humanities of ZJU， Jin Yong shared his views about the essence of cultural education：

“For the Chinese people， conducting liberal studies based on traditional Chinese humanism is nothing to be ashamed of. The western ways are not necessarily appropriate. The goal of liberal education is ‘people and ‘real life. The goal of literature and arts is to enrich the spiritual life of human beings. The goal of philosophy and history studies is to understand the essence and value of life. We look at the past in order to make a better future and set new goals. The goal of international cultural studies is to seek new communication possibilities and mutual understanding through a cultural outlet. I take this opportunity to call for more cooperation between different departments of the Faculty of Humanities and to clarify the general goal of our education， that is， to pursue not only knowledge but also wisdom…”

金庸與浙大师生在一起。Jin Yong and students and teachers of Zhejiang University gather on a campus lawn for a conversation.

Nineteen years after it was written by Jin Yong， 75-year-old at that time， the wisdom encapsulated in this neat piece still shines. “I am here to promote the Chinese spirit，” he declared in his first speech after swearing in as the head of the Faculty of Humanities.

“During his tenure， hed visit Hangzhou two or three times every year， staying with us for about two weeks each time. Hed make the best of his time in Hangzhou， talking to teachers and students whenever and wherever he got a chance. When he was not here， we shared the schools goings-on with him via phone， fax and emails.”

“I started as a newspaperman， and spent 40 years of my life in my newspaper work. I feel sorry about not having more time for my writing and academic thinking， which makes me want to remind you of the importance of focusing on academic learning when you are still young and have plenty of time，” Jin Yong said in a speech made at Zhejiang University in April， 2004. Hangzhou is the city Jin Yong wanted to live in most， and constituted an important part of his memory about Zhejiang.

Yun Song Estate， nestled in the mesmerizing Lingyin scenery in Hangzhou and founded by the writer， was unveiled in 1996. Only one year after it was unveiled， he donated the sprawling estate， which took 14 million yuan to built， to the Hangzhou municipal government. He hosted in Hangzhou the “West Lake Forum” in 2000 and 2001.

金庸在浙大辦公室办公。Jin Yong at his office in Zhejiang University

“Hangzhou is the place I started my career; and I feel happy to see such a beautiful place shared by people here，” said the novelist.

In one of his articles， Jin Yong recalled his days at the junior high school in Lishui， in southwestern Zhejiang：

“Our math teacher was a young， energetic， elegant lady who looked more like our elder sister than a teacher. As far as I can recall， her name is Yu Fang. I enjoyed her Beijing mandarin， and I always wanted to say thank you for what Id learned from her. My gratitude grows stronger with age. It is no exaggeration to say that I learned the basics of life and work from her. She sowed the seeds of logical thinking in me， and I have benefited from that for the rest of my life.”

In 2000， when I was in charge of a curriculum reform project， I put a chapter of  into the Chinese textbook for the students to better understand the artistry of Jin Yongs wuxia genre. It was the first time Jin Yongs wuxia novel was used in a college textbook.

As a colleague and friend of Jin Yong， I feel it is almost an understatement that the charisma of Jin Yong is beyond description. He was not only a brilliant novelist， but also a mentor and an educator with stunning breadth of mind that left profound influence on everyone around him.