German sinologist Willisian: "China's Spiritual Messenger in the West"

Richard Wilhelm (1873-1930) was a famous German sinologist who spent 25 of his 57 years in China. He has made outstanding contributions to the dissemination and research of Chinese culture in the West, especially the translation and teaching of the Book of Changes, which has had a great impact on the Western world. On February 22, 1990, People's Daily published an article by the famous translator Yang Wuneng entitled "Wei Lixian - "The Great German Chinese"", praising him as a hero of the "middle school westward broadcast" in the history of Sino-Western cultural exchanges. The famous scholar Ji Xianlin commented that Wei Lixian was "China's spiritual envoy in the West".

He claimed to be from Shandong and took his Chinese name

Born in May 1873 in Stuttgart, Germany, to a family of craftsmen, he received a rigorous religious education at an early age. After the German occupation of Jiaozhou Bay in China in 1897, the Weimar Missionary Society (Tung Shan Society) recruited missionaries to Qingdao, and W. Willi-hsien decided to go to China after seeing the news. This decision not only changed the course of Weber's life, but also laid the foundation for him to become a famous sinologist and an envoy of cultural exchange between China and the West. In 1899, William arrived in Qingdao and began his trip to China. He soon found himself drawn to China's rich culture and philosophy. He began to study Chinese and delved into Chinese classics. In the process, Webis came to realize that his true mission was not to proselytize, but to understand and spread the essence of Chinese culture.

During his time in Qingdao, he not only developed strong friendships with local Chinese scholars and officials, but also actively participated in community building and education. He began to realize that Chinese culture and philosophy had important implications and values for the world, especially for the West. This realization prompted him to abandon his original missionary status and devote himself to becoming a sinologist and educator, claiming to be a native of Shandong, believing in Confucianism, and taking his own Chinese name—Wei Xisheng, also known as Wei Lixian, Wei Lixian, and Wei Lixian.

Translate classics such as the Book of Changes, and study and introduce Chinese philosophy and culture

Over time and his understanding of China deepened, he began to pay attention to and study Chinese philosophical and cultural classics, among which his translation of the I Ching is an exemplary example of the exchange and integration of Chinese and Western cultures.

As one of the most esoteric and philosophical works of classical Chinese literature, the I Ching is a great challenge for any translator. Webre-wise knew this, and when he translated the I Ching, he not only conveyed the literal meaning of the text, but also captured the philosophical ideas and cultural spirit behind it. He hopes that through his translation, Western readers will be able to understand and appreciate the essence of this oriental wisdom.

Willey Wise adopted an innovative approach in translating the I Ching. He first translated directly from the original Chinese into German, and then, together with Lo Naixuan, who was also his teacher and friend, back-translated the German translation into Chinese to ensure that it was faithful to the original text. This process often needs to be repeated several times until satisfactory accuracy and depth are reached. Wilhelm's approach reflects his rigorous approach to translation and his deep respect for the original. The German translation of the I Ching by William Wilhelm had a profound impact on Germany and the entire Western world, and is still considered the classic version of the I Ching in the West.

Carl Gustav Jung, a famous Swiss psychologist who was his contemporary, once said, "William's greatest achievement was the translation and commentary of the I Ching" and "it was Willisian who succeeded in giving this ancient book a new and vibrant form and giving it a new lease of life." With the help of William's translations, Jung gained a treasure trove of Chinese thought that had a profound impact on his psychological research. William's translation of the I Ching is not only a language transformation, but also a cultural dialogue, showing how to promote mutual understanding and exchange between different cultures through the bridge between language and text.

In addition, Wei Lixian has also written a number of books on Chinese philosophy and culture, such as "The Chinese Mind" and "The Wisdom of Chinese Life". These works not only systematically introduce the characteristics and internal image of Chinese society in the process of ideological and cultural development, but also explore the spiritual characteristics of Chinese and the possibility of comparison and integration between Chinese and Western cultures.

In the book "The Wisdom of Chinese Life", Wei Lixian focuses on the characteristics of the formation and development of Chinese culture, the characteristics of cultural development, and the significance of Eastern thought to the revival of the West. Regarding the differences between Chinese culture and Western culture, Wei Lixian believes that the spiritual structure of the East and the West is not a confrontation in the sense of mutual exclusion, but a symmetry in the sense of complementarity. He stressed that "in fact, positive cultures have emerged in both the East and the West of humanity" and that each side should draw its own nourishment from the other. Therefore, when Western thought is in crisis because of its excessive focus on mechanical causality, the interpretation of the organic view of life in Eastern thought becomes a resource that can be used as a reference. Similarly, the concern for the core values of human beings in traditional Chinese thought allowed China at that time to move towards rejuvenation by drawing on the beneficial forces of the West.

"The Chinese Mind" and "The Wisdom of Chinese Life" are Wai's dedicated works on a comparative exploration of Chinese culture and Chinese and Western philosophical thought, and these two works demonstrate his deep understanding and love for Chinese philosophy and culture. As historian Sun Lixin put it, "It is based on the deep reflection on Western culture and sincere love for Chinese culture that Wei Lixian put forward the ideological proposition of integrating Eastern and Western cultures." Through these writings, Webre succeeded in conveying the wisdom and spirit of China to the Western world, and became a valuable bridge for cultural dialogue between China and the West.

Carry out educational practice and academic activities to promote cultural exchanges between China and the West

In addition to translating ancient Chinese classics and writing works on Sinology, Wai also actively carries out educational practice activities and academic and cultural exchanges, publicizes and introduces traditional Chinese culture, and promotes cultural exchanges between China and the West.

In 1900, Wei Lixian founded Lixian Academy in Qingdao, which later developed into Qingdao No. 9 Middle School. Lai Xian College was founded to educate the children of Germans, but soon the school was opened to the Chinese, attracting many Chinese students who were eager to learn modern knowledge. Adhering to the principle of "education without class", he advocated equal education, and at the same time, he believed that education should transcend racial and cultural boundaries and provide equal learning opportunities for all seekers of knowledge, which was a highly advanced concept in Chinese society at the time. Willey combines the German education model with traditional Chinese culture to form a unique education system. He emphasized bilingual teaching in Chinese and German, while introducing Western natural and humanities courses, and the school taught not only traditional Chinese classics such as the Four Books and Five Classics, but also Western subjects such as German, mathematics, geography, and natural sciences. This educational model aims to develop students' international perspective and cross-cultural understanding, while also increasing their knowledge and respect for traditional Chinese culture.

During his stay in Qingdao, he co-founded the Confucian Society, an academic group that aims to preserve and inherit traditional Chinese culture, and serves as a vehicle and platform for cultural exchange to promote traditional Chinese culture through lectures, seminars, translations, and cultural activities. Wei Lixian had in-depth contacts with many famous Chinese intellectuals at that time, including Zhou Fu, Lao Naixuan, and Gu Hongming.

In the twenty-eighth year of Guangxu (1902), Zhou Fu went to Qingdao to inspect after serving as the governor of Shandong. Zhou Fu praised Wei Lixian's school-running activities, and the two formed a friendship as a result. Zhou Fu later specially recommended Lao Naixuan to Wei Lixian to preside over the daily affairs of the Confucian Literary Society, and Lao Naixuan became Wei Lixian's collaborator and leader in translating classics such as "I Ching" and "Tao Te Ching". During this time, Lo Naixuan patiently explained the connotations and extensions of these Chinese classics to Wei Lixian, so that he could translate them into German relatively smoothly. In his book The Old Man of Qingdao, Wei Lixian wrote: "He translated the content in Chinese, I took notes, and then translated it into German, and he checked that my translation was accurate in all the details. This kind of teaching and mutual exchange enabled Wei Lixian to gradually realize the profundity of Chinese culture, and also made his translation of Chinese classics and his later education more in line with China's reality.

In his dealings with Koo, Wilsin paid special attention to the similarities and differences between Chinese and Western cultures, and the two sides shared a common academic interest and goal, that is, how to absorb and integrate advanced Western culture and ideas while respecting traditional Chinese culture. Through the exchange of letters, they discussed problems in translation work and exchanged understandings of Chinese culture and philosophy. Wei Lixian once sent his translations of the Analects and the Tao Te Ching to Gu Hongming to ask him to correct them, and Gu Hongming politely called his translation of the Analects a "great translation", and at the same time bluntly pointed out that he did not clearly explain the reasons for translating the Tao Te Ching. In the letter, Gu Hongming mentioned that when translating Chinese classics, more attention should be paid to the transmission of cultural connotations and philosophical ideas, rather than just the literal translation of words.

Webster's daily life and sinological studies reflect his deep understanding and passion for cultural exchange between China and the West. His translation and research work not only enriched the study of Sinology in the West, but also opened up a new path for the international dissemination of Chinese culture. His charisma and academic achievements have made him a bridge between Eastern and Western cultures.