For many people
Every time when they think of the meaning of life, they would fall into nihilism
The more they think of it, the more nihilistic they feel
If only there’s no competition
Really?
You should cherish the age because you still get the chance to compete and win
Sometimes if you really feel exhausted
Speak out your depression
And keep going on the next day when you wake up
The nature of living is struggling
Yang Lihua at Peking University | Fighting Against Meaningless Life
Yang Lihua Professor of Philosophy, Peking University
I’m Yang Lihua, from the Philosophy Department of Peking University
I teach the philosophical ideas of Zhuangzi
How can human gain a specific meaning in life
I pondered over it for so many years
You cannot have a meaningful life through doing nothing
Ⅰ.
Take root in your own life in a simple way
“”
When I was an undergraduate
I was majored in Thermal Energy at Zhejiang University
I felt I could not fit in the major and I was a little confused
Then I started to read crazily
Until I read Zhuangzi, and I liked it a lot
So I decided to become a postgraduate majored in philosophy, and today I’m here
You cannot have a meaningful life by doing nothing
Your lifetime is limited
You should get involved in a long-lasting career or tradition
Then you will obtain specific meaning for your life
Nowadays, most people are chosen
Only you know whether you’re happy or not
Life is never perfect
According to Zhuangzi
Life is not easy, and difficulties are so hard
The youth of each generation is beautiful, sad, and suffering
So just take root in your own life in a simple way
To some extent, that’s the nature of youth
Cherish the age because you still get the chance to compete and win
“”
I was enrolled by Zhejiang University in 1988
The enrollment rate was only 21%. Isn’t that competitive?
We said “Thousands of people are forcing themselves across a narrow footbridge” at that time
It was even more competitive than today
I saw a comment online, saying the enrollment examination of postgraduates has become as competitive as the college entrance examination
The enrollment examination of postgraduates is truly difficult
It is harder to find a satisfying job now
So some college students want to strive for the chance to reselect their life direction
As long as the exam is fair
It’s in favor of more sufficient social flowing
Young people growing up in ordinary families can change their life
Through hard work
There’s nothing to be complained about
Everyone is in the competition
So just go ahead
And cherish the age
Because you still have the change to compete and win
Read Zhuangzi and Learn His Philosophy in Modern Time
II.
There’s no need to have tragic anxiety in important stages of life
“”
Zhuangzi inspires us to be optimistic about the meaning of life
Take it easy in important stages of life
Who can stay young forever? Who can stay alive forever?
Even you’re the most powerful person in the world
You cannot do anything you want
“My body follows the laws of nature. I survive through labor, relax through getting old, and rest in peace through death”
There’s no need to have tragic anxiety
The power of nihilism is not doing nothing
“”
In that thriving and prosperous age
As a man of great intelligence and scholarship
Zhungzi led a simple and frugal life
Alone in Qiyuan
He must be very tough
Zhuangzi was actually very powerful
That’s the power from nihilism
And it shouldn’t be equaled to “doing nothing”
The experience of standing on the edge is beneficial
To your life
Sometimes if you really feel exhausted
Speak out your depression
Cry out
Get drunk with your friends
And then keep going the next day when you wake up
The COVID-19 Pandemic and the Age
III.
Spring and summer have come to an end, and we are step towards the seasons of autumn and winter
“”
We used to call the times before the COVID-19 pandemic “normal”
And it is “abnormal” now
In fact, it’s all seasonal
For the past three decades, it has been spring and summer
And now we should be ready for autumn and winter
The key for the next stage is that
Whether we are tough enough
Where’re petrels when a storm comes
Reading Classics Instead of Chicken Soup for the Soul and Rumors
“”
Nowadays we’re surrounded by all kinds of information
You don’t even know how to choose
We’re pulled by various chicken soup words
And cliches
If you want to build up your own standards of judgement
You need to read classics
Classics are contemporary in all times
“”
Everyone is Noble Inside
Mengzi has put forward the idea of “Lianggui”
Everyone is noble inside
Surely sometime we’re worn little by little
By troubles in life
Sometimes it’s unavoidable
We should give strong approval to ourselves
From more fundamental values
You have done nothing wrong
And you work hard every day
Why are you not noble?