President Ma Ying-jeou met with Swedish Sinologist Goran Malmqvist and Mrs. Malmqvist at the Presidential Office on the morning of November 18. The president extended a warm welcome and appreciation to them for making a special trip to Taiwan to attend the release of a new printing of 古籍今註今譯, a 68-volume collection of classical Chinese texts that includes annotations and translations into modern Chinese.
The president said that the Cultural Revolution engulfed mainland China over 40 years ago. Over this period, however, Taiwan has promoted a renaissance of Chinese culture, marking a distinct contrast to the other side of the Taiwan Strait. The president remarked that 30 years ago, mainland authorities began to change policies, gradually moving away from Marxism and Leninism, and instead moving back toward Chinese culture. Over the past few years, it has become increasingly popular in mainland China to focus on Chinese culture studies. In particular, quite a few high-level managers in the business field have headed to Peking University or Qinghua University to take courses in Chinese culture studies. In the past, authorities were critical of Confucianism. However, nowadays there are over 260 Confucius Institutes to promote Chinese language and culture in many countries. The overall development of this trend, he said, is extremely significant.
President Ma remarked that Mr. Malmqvist in the past followed in the steps of Bernhand Karlgren in studying Chinese literature. He said that Mr. Malmqvist translated Tao Yuan-ming's The Tale of the Peach Blossom into Swedish, which was quite a significant accomplishment. In addition, the president said he is very impressed by Mr. Malmqvist's deep involvement with literature on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, especially the translation of Nobel Prize winner Gao Xingjian's novel Soul Mountain, which was a mission impossible of sorts, he said.
President Ma said that when he served as Taipei City Mayor, the Taipei Confucian Temple instituted "classics recitation" courses as well as "top scholars" activities to encourage scholarly activities among students. He said that the events proved quite popular, as many parents believe that if their children studied classical thought, they would not take the wrong path. President Ma said that when he was a student, he memorized Preface to King Teng Pavilion and An Epigraph in Praise of My Humble Home. The president said that while he did not fully understand the essays when he was young, they have become more and more useful as he has grown older and pondered their meaning. Therefore, the president said that he believes it is extremely important to promote education in the classics as well as reciting of classic texts.
Mr. and Mrs. Malmqvist were accompanied to the Presidential Building on Wednesday morning by National Cultural Association Secretary General Yang Tu to meet with President Ma. Also in attendance was National Security Council Advisor Dr. Philip Y. M. Yang.