With her clear, rapid-fire lectures, Yu Dan (
Yesterday, Yu, a media expert and Beijing Normal University professor, released the Taiwanese version of her latest book -- a 200-page compilation of lectures she delivered on the Confucian Analects while appearing on China's Central Television last October.
The work has sold some 4 million copies in China, nearly double the number of JK Rowling's Harry Potter books, according to her Chinese publisher.
PHOTO: AP
With her soaring popularity, she is regarded by many as the modern day incarnation of China's most respected philosopher, whose observations developed into a complex social system that dominated Chinese thought until the communist victory in 1949.
Lin Tsai-chueh (
"She relates the analects to the day-to-day experience of ordinary Chinese and comforts their souls in the midst of China's big transition," Lin said.
With short, stylish hair with cranberry-colored highlights, the 42-year-old scholar told a packed Taipei auditorium that her main goal was to revive the classical Chinese teachings that as recently as 35 years ago had been anathema in her home country.
"We often think classics are too difficult, but as a Chinese, the classics are the origin of our being, works that comfort us in the midst of our bewilderment," Yu said. "In this complex world, we seek simplicity out of grandeur, the simple truths that we can find in the pithiness of Confucius' teachings."
Confucius' analects comprise responses the philosopher provided to 72 disciples who toured the countryside with him during the so-called "Warring States Period" -- a time of great political instability.
According to Yu, Confucius answered one disciple's question about the most essential quality a human being can have with a simple one-word answer: Forgiveness.
"Whatever attitude you adopt, you will receive the same quality of forgiveness from others you meet, and you will have a smooth life throughout," she said.
Appearing with Yu in Taipei was Chinese historian Yan Chongnian (閻崇年), who released two volumes of his own book Sixty years of Ming and Qing Dynasties, recounting the fall of the Ming Dynasty in the second quarter of the 17th century and the rise of the Qing Dynasty over the succeeding decades.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai