The Soul of China

This is Mr. Wang Yi's email. I thank him for I always learn something from him. Among other things it was Mr. Yi who correctly steered me away from an earlier focus on Legalism to Confucianism, of which Legalism was an offshoot, as more fundamental to understanding the soul of China. 

It is interesting to read about your response to Henry Kissinger's "On China". You commented on Deng  Xiaoping's 16-character directive by saying: "I can think of no more compelling evidence than these statements by Deng that the soul of China is survival." I define the word "soul" as spiritual world, either of a human being or as a nation. It reminds me of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs which I learned in my college psychology class. The hierarchy is 1) physiological needs as the lowest, 2) safety needs, 3) love and belonging, 4) esteem, 5) self-actualization or self-transcendence. I am a strong believer in the hierarchy. If China's soul is survival, that means they only want to satisfy the lowest two or three types of needs. That, actually, means there are no soul needs. Unfortunately, we do see a lot of evidence in reality that it is true.

Remember shortly after China opened its doors and about two decades ago, the renowned movie director Zhang Yimou made a movie titled "To Live." The movie tells a typical story of how ordinary Chinese struggled to survive in adversity. Maybe that is the sad but true answer you have found for your question. When human beings hardly have any of the four freedoms as FDR stated, searching for the soul is like chasing a mirage.

To me, the soul exists in a society's arts, literature, religion, etc. In the case of

China, you may see some sparks of the soul in some people for now. When it is

lost, it is so hard to nurture and recover.