“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大

“Glamour of the Gourd — Gourd Culture Tour along the Silk Road” Canada Exhibition

 

当地时间2017年11月30日，加拿大新布伦瑞克省孔子学院举行了十周年庆典及相关系列活动。新省教育厅厅长Mr. Brian Kenny，副厅长、大西洋国际教育集团总裁、新省孔院理事长Mr. John McLaughlin，曲阜师范大学副校长扈鲁一行出席活动。参加活动的还有当代著名教育家王本中校长，新省孔院理事会主席、加皇国际教育集团董事长彭建华博士，大西洋国际教育集团副总裁、孔子学院执行理事Mrs. Dawn Weatherbie，弗莱市议员、新省英语教育学区教育局局长、新省孔院外方院长、教学总督导滕菁女士等新省100多位教育官员以及师生代表。与此同时，孔子学院总部、国家汉办及中国驻蒙特利尔总领事馆为此活动专门发来贺信。

On November 30th, 2017 local time, the 10th anniversary celebration of the Confucius Institute and a series of related activities were held in New Brunswick, Canada. Brian Kenny, Director of the Department of Education of New Brunswick, John McLaughlin, Deputy Director of the Department of Education of New Brunswick, President of the Atlantic International Education Group and Head of the Board of Directors of Confucius Institute in New Brunswick, and Hu Lu, Vice President of Qufu Normal University attended the event. Attendees also included Wang Benzhong, a famous contemporary educator, Dr. Peng Jianhua, President of the Council of the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick and President of the Royal Canadian International Education Group, Mrs. Dawn Weatherbie, Vice President of the Atlantic International Education Group and Executive Director of the Confucius Institute, and Ms. Teng Jing, Councilor of Fry, Director of the Education Bureau in English Teaching District of New Brunswick, Director and Chief Teaching Supervisor of the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick, along with over 100 education officials of New Brunswick and representatives of teachers and students of the school. Meanwhile, Confucius Institute Headquarters and the Consulate General of China in Montreal sent congratulatory letters to the event.

 

上午，加拿大首个“孔子课堂”揭牌仪式在公园街小学举行。弗莱市教育厅厅长与曲阜师范大学副校长扈鲁先后致辞。仪式中，孔院老师带领全校师生一起表演了具有中国元素的节目，学习了中国功夫。教育厅厅长、孔子学院理事会主席和曲阜师范大学副校长扈鲁等一同为孔子课堂揭牌。

In the morning, the opening ceremony of the first Confucius Classroom in Canada was held at Park Street Primary School. The Director of the Education Department of Fry and Hu Lu, Vice President of Qufu Normal University delivered speeches successively. During the ceremony, all the teachers and students of the school gave performances with Chinese characteristics and learned Chinese Kung Fu under the guidance of the teachers from the Confucius Institute. The Director of the Education Department, the President of the Council of the Confucius Institute and Mr. Hu, Vice President of Qufu Normal University jointly unveiled the Confucius classroom.

下午，孔子学院理事会成员召开了2017年度会议，听取了新省孔院外方院长、教学总督导滕菁女士的工作报告。扈鲁代表中方肯定了新省孔院的工作成绩和努力，为了表达对孔子学院成立十周年的祝贺，他决定把这次展演的三十幅富有美好寓意的写意葫芦作品，作为友谊的象征全部无偿赠送给孔院，赢得了与会人员的高度评价，加方为扈鲁颁发了收藏证书，现场气氛友好热烈。

In the afternoon, members of the Council of the Confucius Institute held the 2017 annual meeting where Ms. Teng Jing, Director and Chief Teaching Supervisor of the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick, reported on the work of the institute. On behalf of the Chinese side Mr. Hu affirmed the achievements and efforts made by the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick. To express his congratulations on the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Confucius Institute, he decided to donate all the 30 meaningful freehand gourd paintings as a symbol of friendship, which won the high praise of the participants. The Canadian side issued a collection certificate to Hu. The atmosphere was friendly and warm.

 

当晚，中加学校和新省教育合作20周年、孔子学院成立10周年庆典暨“葫芦画社”揭牌仪式隆重举行。著名钢琴家Roger Lord演奏中国乐曲，为仪式拉开帷幕。随后，孔院优秀学员及三语学校的学生带来了富有中国特色的庆祝节目。接下来，教育厅厅长发表热情洋溢的讲话，并为彭建华博士颁发证书。曲阜师范大学副校长扈鲁代表中国合作方讲话，并做了题为“葫芦文化与儒家文化”的主题演讲。

In the evening, the 20th anniversary of cooperation in education between Chinese and Canadian schools and that between Chinese schools and schools of New Brunswick, the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Confucius institute and the unveiling ceremony of “Gourd Painting Studio” were held. Roger Lord, a renowned pianist, kicked off the ceremony by playing Chinese music. Subsequently, top students from the Confucius Institute and students from the Trilingual School gave performances with Chinese characteristics. Then Director of the Education Department delivered a warm speech and presented a certificate to Dr. Peng Jianhua. Mr. Hu, Vice President of Qufu Normal University, spoke on behalf of the Chinese partners and gave a keynote speech entitled “Gourd Culture and Confucian Culture”.

扈鲁说，回首过去10年，在中加双方共同努力下，孔子学院从语言学习入手，用文化交流增进理解和友谊，实现了跨越式发展，取得了令人瞩目的成就，受到了加拿大人民特别是青少年的热烈欢迎，为人类多元文化交流互鉴增添了一道靓丽的风景线，为增进中加人民的友谊作出了积极的贡献。为热烈祝贺新布伦瑞克省孔子学院成立10周年，进一步促进中加文化交流，“最葫芦•葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大，来到新布伦瑞克省孔子学院，举行“葫芦画社”揭牌仪式，希望以葫芦这一吉祥图腾为纽带，借助“葫芦画社”这个平台，以葫芦文化展演等形式，搭建起中加文化交流的桥梁。

Mr. Hu pointed out that the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick has developed rapidly and made remarkable achievements in the past 10 years with the joint efforts of China and Canada, which promotes mutual understanding and friendship by teaching Canadian students Chinese and conducting cultural exchanges and gains the popularity among Canadian people, particularly teenagers, thus making positive contributions to multi-cultural exchanges and mutual learning of human beings and the enhancement of the friendship between Chinese and Canadian people. To extend our warm congratulations on the 10th anniversary of the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick, said Hu, we reached Canada with “Glamour of the Gourd – Gourd Culture tour along the Silk Road” and came to the Institute. It was hoped that a bridge of cultural exchange between China and Canada would be built through gourd culture exhibitions and other forms with the link of the auspicious totem of gourd and the platform of Gourd Painting Studio.

 

扈鲁畅谈了葫芦文化与儒家文化的渊源。他首先拿从中国带来的一个葫芦瓢说起，葫芦一分为二即为瓢，关于瓢，《论语》中有一个“箪食瓢饮”的故事，《论语·雍也》有云：“一箪食，一瓢饮，在陋巷，人不堪其忧，回也不改其乐。贤哉，回也！”讲的是2500年前孔子最喜爱的弟子颜回艰苦求学的典故。颜回生活简朴，平日用竹器盛饭吃，用葫芦瓢舀水喝，住在曲阜简陋的小巷，这是别人难以忍受的艰难生活，但他依旧跟随老师孔子孜孜求学，最终取得了辉煌成就。扈鲁对孔子学院的同学们说，今天，我们的物质生活早已不像颜回时代那样匮乏，我们的精神生活也同样不能匮乏，只要大家“默而识之” 、“学而不厌”、“敏而好学”，就一定能够学好汉语、学好中国文化。

Mr. Hu also talked about the origin of gourd culture in relation to the Confucian culture. He started his statement with a gourd ladle brought from China. He said that a gourd is called a ladle when it is split into halves. As for the ladle, Mr. Hu told a story of “dan (a bamboo utensil) and ladle” in the Analects of Confucius. The Analects of Confucius · Yongye says, “What Yan Hui eats is a small basket of rice, what he drinks is a ladle of water and where he lives is a poor house. No one else can bear such poverty and hardship. Despite the unfavorable living conditions Yan Hui still persists in his learning. What a noble man Yan Hui is!” The citation describes a man named Yan Hui, Confucius’ favorite disciple, who studied hard 2500 years ago. Yan Hui lived a simple life in an alley of Qufu, eating with a bamboo utensil (dan) and drinking with a ladle, which was unbearable for others. However, in the circumstances, he still followed Confucius, his master, studying assiduously. Eventually he made brilliant achievements. Mr. Lu told the students at the Confucius Institute that nowadays our material life is no longer as deficient as that of Yan Hui’s time, nor should be our cultural life. Everyone is sure to learn Chinese and Chinese culture well as long as he is keen on learning and insatiable in learning and learns in a down-to-earth way.

 

接着，他又告诉大家，葫芦分甜葫芦和苦葫芦，《诗经·幽风》：“七月食瓜，八月断壶。”这里所说的食瓜，即农历七月就可以食用甜葫芦了，而苦葫芦是不能大量食用的，否则会导致身体中毒。《论语》中有一个故事就谈到了苦葫芦。《论语•阳货》：“吾岂匏瓜也哉？焉能系而不食？”，即：“我难道是个苦葫芦吗？怎么能够只挂在那里而不让食用呢？”，充分表达了他积极入世，“行义以达其道”的思想。孔子的这两句话，正启示孔院的广大教师和志愿者们，应该以勇于担当的胸怀、无私奉献的精神、积极进取的姿态、古道热肠的激情，投入到汉语教学和中华传统文化传播中来，努力做到“诲人不倦”，不辜负国家汉办、山东省教育厅和学校的重托。

Then he said that gourds are divided into sweet and bitter gourds. The Book of Songs · Youfeng says, “Eat melon in July, break pot in August.” Here eating melon in July means that the sweet gourd can be eaten in the seventh lunar month, while the bitter gourd cannot be eaten in large quantities, which may lead to body poisoning. There is a story about bitter gourds in the Analects of Confucius. The Analects of Confucius · Yang Huo says, “Am I a bitter gourd that can only be used as an ornament instead of food that can be eaten?” The story fully expresses his wish to actively participate in social affairs and practice what he stands for in accordance with righteousness. What Confucius says tells us that the teachers and volunteers at the Confucius Institute should be devoted to the teaching of Chinese and the spread of traditional Chinese culture with courage, dedication, positive attitude and enthusiasm, strive to teach with tireless zeal and undertake the task given by Hanban, Department of Education of Shandong Province and the school.

 

扈鲁谈到，葫芦造型圆润，上下球体和谐，具有鲜明的和谐意象，与人们祈求福禄祥和、追求生命和谐圆满的美好愿望相一致。在中华民族的精神谱系中，葫芦被赋予了平安吉祥、美好和谐的人文寓意，已经成为中华民族最重要的吉祥图腾之一。在民间有床头悬挂葫芦可促进夫妻和睦和谐的美好传说，这一典型的民族和谐吉祥图腾文化符号，同儒家思想为主流的中华传统文化核心思想“尚和合”理念高度契合。如“四海之内，皆兄弟也。”（《论语·颜渊》）协和万邦的世界和谐思想，“君子和而不同”的人际和谐思想，“人法地，地法天，天法道，道法自然。”（《道德经》）天人合一的人与自然和谐思想等等。这都充分展示了葫芦文化与儒家文化的深厚渊源，希望能够通过葫芦这一中华民族和谐吉祥文化符号，更好地向广大同学讲述孔子故事，讲好中国的葫芦故事，传播中华优秀传统文化，进一步增进中加人民的友好认同和民心相通。

Mr. Hu said that the gourd is round in shape, harmonious in upper and lower spheres, and has a distinct image of harmony, which is consistent with people’s desire for happiness, fortune, auspiciousness and harmonious and perfect life. In the cultural life of the Chinese nation, the gourd is a symbol of peace, auspiciousness, beauty and harmony and has become one of the most important auspicious totems. There is a popular view among people that hanging a gourd at the head of a bed can promote the harmonious relation between husband and wife. This cultural symbol, a typical national totem of harmony and auspiciousness, is highly compatible with the core idea of harmony and cooperation in traditional Chinese culture which is Confucianism oriented. For example, the idea of harmony among all countries in the world is embodied in such an expression as “Within the four seas all men are brothers” (the Analects of Confucius · Yan Yuan), the idea of harmony between people is embodied in such an expression as “A gentleman seeks harmony but not uniformity,” and the idea of harmony between man and nature is embodied in such an expression as “Man follows the earth, earth follows the heaven, the heaven follows Tao, and Tao follows the nature” (Tao Te Ching). All of these show that there is a profound relationship between the gourd culture and Confucian culture. It was hoped that the gourd, a cultural symbol of harmony and auspiciousness of the Chinese nation, may help to tell Chinese stories about Confucius and gourds to the students in a better way, introduce excellent traditional Chinese culture to the world, and further enhance the people-to-people bond between our two nations.

 

 

随后，加拿大新布伦瑞克省教育部长布莱恩和扈鲁，共同为“葫芦画社”揭牌。揭牌仪式后，扈鲁与出席仪式的嘉宾以及葫芦文化爱好者共同参观了葫芦题材花鸟画展。本次画展共展出扈鲁、问墨伉俪近期葫芦画、书法精品力作30幅，作品中的葫芦果实及藤蔓形象皆来源于中华文化的主要载体——汉字。在谈到其渊源时，扈鲁指出，汉字的最初形态是一些刻画的符号，即象形文字或图画文字，在汉字发展的阶段能明显地看到葫芦形象。在甲骨文中，“雍（ ）”“白（ ）”“西（ 、 、 ）”“师（ ）”等字的字形与葫芦的造型十分相似；在散氏盘中，“以（ ）”“西（ ）”等也呈现出了葫芦造型特点；许多学者认为，汉字“卣”在七千多年前就已指代葫芦了。可见汉字形态的演变过程无不有着葫芦的烙印。

Subsequently, Mr. Brian and Mr. Hu jointly unveiled the Gourd Painting Studio. After the unveiling ceremony, the guests, gourd culture enthusiasts and Mr. Hu visited the gourd-themed flower and bird painting exhibition where 30 recent gourd paintings and calligraphy works by Hu Lu and Wen Mo were displayed. The images of gourd fruits and vines presented by the exhibits all originate from Chinese characters, the main carrier of Chinese culture. When referring to its origin, Mr. Hu pointed out that the earliest Chinese characters were inscriptions, namely pictographs or hieroglyphics, and the image of gourd can be easily recognized in the development of Chinese characters. Shapes of some inscriptions on bones or tortoise shells of the Shang Dynasty such as “ ” (yong), “ ” (bai), “ , , ” (xi) and “ ” (shi) are very similar to the shape of gourd; on the San Family Plate, characters like “ ” (yi) and “ ” (xi) also show the shape of gourd. Many scholars think that the Chinese character “卣” was used to refer to a gourd more than 7,000 years ago. It is clear that the image of gourd can be identified in the evolution of Chinese characters.

 

 

扈鲁表示，作为中华民族最原始的吉祥图腾之一，葫芦与中华传统文化的渊源由来已久。他说，汉字的书写艺术——书法也与葫芦密切相关，草书这种书写形式最能和葫芦藤的写意性相吻合，草书的笔势环转之妙尽得葫芦藤蔓的缠绕蟠曲之美，那种起落断续、辗转腾挪，顾盼映带、偃仰向背、上覆下承、垂缩收往，绵密疏阔，正如葫芦藤蔓的盘曲萦绕之盎然妙趣。王羲之的老师卫夫人就有这样的表述：“横如千里阵云、竖如万岁枯藤。”这万岁枯藤形态、情境、场景的呈现，正如苍茫老辣、厚重古拙、蟠集曲结的葫芦藤蔓的造型，“寒猿饮水撼枯藤”与葫芦藤“诡形怪状翻合宜”的艺术触角非常契合。

Mr. Hu said that the gourd is one of the primitive auspicious totems of the Chinese nation and there is a long history of the relation between the gourd and traditional Chinese culture. He said that the writing art of Chinese characters – calligraphy – is also closely related to the gourd. The written form of the cursive script is most consistent with the freehand brushwork of gourd vine because the writing style of the cursive script is as wonderful as the winding beauty of gourd vine. The strokes of ups and downs, tossing and moving, shrinking and retracting and so on are very similar to gourd vines curling around each other. Mrs. Wei, teacher of the great ancient calligrapher Wang Xizhi, once described the strokes of Chinese characters as follows: “A horizontal stroke is like a thousand li of clouds while a vertical one is like a long-lived withered vine.” The shape, situation and scene produced by the long-lived vines are just like the appearance of gourd vines which are old and hard, thick and elegant with vines twining themselves around each other.

 

 

扈鲁强调，一切艺术皆源于生活、源于自然，书法艺术同样如此。书法的藏、露、方圆、粗细、轻重、顺逆、起止、紧疏、收放等用笔手法，巧妙地诠释了汉字与自然的内在联系。其中，许多笔法与葫芦的自然形态十分相像，葫芦的藤蔓曲折蜿蜒，或密不透风，或疏密相间，看似无章，实则有序；葫芦的瓜果形态圆润、线条灵动，也许只有来源于自然的汉字书法形质，才能给人以更深刻的审美体验。扈鲁希望通过展出作品中葫芦果实和葫芦藤蔓线条的展示，能够更好地启示新省孔院的学生，学好汉字、掌握好汉语对于了解中国文化的重要性。

Mr. Hu emphasized that art originates from life and nature, so does calligraphy. Handwriting techniques such as concealment, revelation, squareness and circles, thickness and fineness, smoothness and reversion, beginning and ending, tightness and sparsity, extension and retraction subtly interpret the intrinsic connection between Chinese characters and nature. Many of these techniques are very similar to the natural shape of gourd. The winding vines of gourd are either thick or well-spaced, which are seemingly in disorder but actually in order. Gourds are round and flexible in shape. Perhaps only the form and quality of Chinese characters originating from nature can give people a deeper aesthetic experience. Hu hoped that students at the Confucius Institute in New Brunswick may get to know better the importance of learning Chinese characters and Chinese language to understand Chinese culture by visiting the exhibition where gourds and gourd vine lines are displayed. 

 

 

“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大，所展出作品清新高雅的艺术性引起了众多嘉宾的兴趣，大家纷纷在作品前驻足观赏，不仅被作品率意洒脱、空灵飘逸的艺术魅力深深打动，更对葫芦文化与儒家文化深厚渊源、博大精深啧啧称奇。嘉宾争相与扈鲁合影留念。加拿大新布伦瑞克省教育厅职员艾茉莉女士，现场通过手机图像同扈鲁分享了她爱人创作的葫芦艺术品，交流葫芦艺术创作心得。布莱恩部长、滕菁女士对“葫芦画社”落户加拿大、“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大成功展演表示祝贺，对扈鲁向孔院无私馈赠珍贵艺术品表示感谢，并祝福扈鲁、问墨伉俪今后在葫芦文化研究和艺术创作方面取得更加辉煌的成绩。

The fresh and elegant artistry of the works in “Glamour of the Gourd – Gourd Culture tour along the Silk Road” Canada Exhibition aroused the interest of many guests. They were deeply touched by the artistic charm of the works which were free and elegant. They were also surprised at the long history and substantial contents of the gourd culture and Confucian culture. The guests happily took pictures with Hu Lu. Ms. Emily, a staff member of the Department of Education of New Brunswick shared pictures of her husband’s gourd works with Mr. Hu through her mobile phone images and exchanged her experience of gourd art creation with him. Mr. Brian and Ms. Teng Jing expressed their congratulations on the establishment of Gourd Painting Studio and the success of the exhibition and thanked Mr. Hu for the precious works he donated to the Confucius Institute. They also wished Hu Lu and Wen Mo better achievements in future research and artistic creation in Gourd Culture.

2017年12月11日，国家在西安召开了第十二届全球孔子学院大会。会上，加拿大新布伦瑞克省教育厅助理副厅长Chris Treadwell，把“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大作为特色活动，以“如何参与‘一带一路’建设，办出特色孔子学院”为主题进行了大会交流，受到来自140多个国家代表的普遍赞赏。

On December 11th, 2017, the 12th Global Confucius Institute Conference was held in Xi’an, China. Chris Treadwell, Assistant Deputy Director of the Department of Education of New Brunswick addressed the conference on how to participate in the construction of the Belt and Road and build the Confucius Institute with its own characteristics by introducing the activity of “Glamour of the Gourd – Gourd Culture tour along the Silk Road” Canada Exhibition. His speech was widely appreciated by representatives from more than 140 countries.
 

在本次“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大的友好交流中，扈鲁认为，今天的中国正向全世界传播着孔子智慧，传递着儒家文化。习近平总书记2013年提出的“一带一路”倡议，以建设和谐共存的“构建人类命运共同体”的理念，已经被联合国写进了决议，得到了国际社会的普遍认同，充分彰显了和谐的魅力，而“最葫芦·葫芦文化丝路行”走进加拿大这一活动，正是贯彻落实习近平总书记“一带一路”倡议的生动体现。因此，我们应努力践行习总书记关于大力弘扬中国传统文化的要求，走出去、走向“一带一路”、讲好中国故事、传递中国声音，用可视有型的葫芦讲好中国故事，教育引导中加人民和睦相处，培养和睦、和谐、和平理念，让中加人民的和谐、友谊之树常青。

In the friendly exchanges between Canada and China, Hu Lu remarked that nowadays China is spreading Confucian wisdom and Confucian culture to the world. The Belt and Road Initiative and the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by President Xi Jinping have been written into the resolutions of the United Nations and widely recognized by the international community, which fully demonstrate the charm of harmony. This exhibition is a vivid manifestation of the implementation of President Xi Jinping’s proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative. Therefore, we should try our best to carry out President Xi Jinping’s call for introducing traditional Chinese culture to the world. We can use the gourd to tell the story of China in a better way, educate and guide the people to live in harmony and develop the concept of harmony and peace, letting the tree of harmony and friendship between Chinese and Canadian people be evergreen.