Gaomi, Shandong, November 11 (CNN) -- Mo Yan: Good deeds will be reflected more in future creations
Reporter Sha Jianlong
"Literature is closely related to good deeds, and there are many good deeds and characters in our literary works, which will be reflected in my future creations." Talking about his current philanthropy, Mo Yan, a famous Chinese writer and Nobel laureate in literature, advocates expressing goodwill through literary works to further promote the construction of a harmonious society.
On November 11, Mo Yan returned to his hometown of Gaomi, Shandong Province, to participate in the opening ceremony of the "Mo Yan Literature and Art Museum". On the sidelines of the event, he bluntly said in an exclusive interview with a reporter from Chinanews that literary works are a good carrier for showing good deeds, and more attention should be paid to this aspect.
On November 11, Mo Yan Literature and Art Museum was opened in Gaomi, Shandong, and Mo Yan, vice chairman of the Chinese Writers Association and winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, talked about his growth path on the spot. Photo by reporter Sha Jianlong
"I praise a lot of good deeds, ideas, and emotions in my literature. Of course, good and evil are a pair of contradictions, and without evil, good cannot be manifested. "In Mo Yan's view, the key to making good last and evil disappears is to better advocate and practice goodness, so that more people can become good people, so that evil can be curbed, and good deeds become a behavior praised by the whole society." This is also the turning point between my past obscurity charity and now I want to 'spread good things for thousands of miles'. ”
Mo Yan really joined the ranks of charity because of his experience of medical treatment. Knowing the large number of children with congenital heart disease in China, he began to provide assistance to children in poor areas of western China in 2014. In the following two years, he donated 2.125 million yuan to help 62 children with congenital heart disease in Tibet. But at this time, Mo Yan basically kept silent about his charity, and always believed that doing good deeds and accumulating virtue "should not be talked to others".
Mo Yan said frankly that in the past, he didn't try to repay for doing good, and he thought it was a very high realm to be an unsung hero. But now Mo Yan has a deeper thought about "whether kindness should be known to others". "I think we should show this kind of good behavior to others, so that everyone can realize that doing good is a good thing that benefits others and oneself."
The picture shows that at the live broadcast with Mo Yan on the 99 Giving Day, the members of the Management Committee of the Two Bricks Public Welfare Fund took a group photo with Mo Yan (from left: Ye Fei, Wang Yuechun, Wang Zhen, Mo Yan, Zhang Bibo, Qi Yue). (Data map) by Yan Fei
On the eve of the Spring Festival in 2022, Mo Yan and his friend Wang Zhen, president of the Beijing Shutong Culture and Art Research Association, wrote down hundreds of "Fu" characters with a brush to raise funds for children with congenital heart disease. So far, the project has helped more than 300 children with congenital heart disease from disadvantaged families in Xinjiang, Tibet, Gansu and other regions to undergo successful surgery.
On May 5 this year, Mo Yan, together with "Chinese Philanthropist" and Tencent Philanthropy, jointly launched the "Walk with Mo Yan" public welfare action, planning to advocate the creation of a social atmosphere of "charity for all". Approaching his seventies, he jokes that he is in the "prime of his creative life", and writing is also his "secret" to staying young. He bluntly said that as long as there is a need for charity, he will not be absent.
In the "Mo Yan Literature and Art Museum", which was officially opened on the same day, when I first entered the special charity exhibition hall, the words "Walking with Mo Yan" came into view. In the hall, Mo Yan's long-term public welfare undertakings are displayed in the form of pictures, and several public welfare donation invoices are enlarged into photos and hung in the hall. "I think everyone will definitely be infected when they see this, so they can do some good deeds as much as they can."
In the Mo Yan Literature and Art Museum, the public visited and learned about Mo Yan's charity actions. Photo by reporter Sha Jianlong
In Mo Yan's view, the development of philanthropy is a sign of social civilization. No matter how powerful a person is, there are times when he needs to be "cared for" by kindness. Forming an atmosphere of mutual help and kindness to others will play a huge role in promoting the harmonious progress of the whole society. "As soon as we start doing good and start helping others, it's a huge step forward."
In his own philanthropic practice, Mo Yan found that the call for charity in Chinese society has become stronger and stronger, the number of philanthropic teams has grown, there are more and more institutions, and the relevant laws have become more and more sound. He believes that under the legal framework, philanthropy should be as big as it can be, so that everyone can actively participate in it on a voluntary basis. When you spontaneously do good, you feel a great sense of comfort in your heart. "Seeing the smiling faces of the beneficiaries makes me feel happy. This is also the reason why people in ancient and modern China and abroad are keen to do good deeds. ”
When the reporter visited the exhibition hall, he noticed that three long scrolls written by Mo Yan were hung in the calligraphy hall, "Wheat Waves Rolling", "Taibai Ruolai" and "I am the son of unfilial piety", which attracted many visitors to stop and appreciate. In recent years, he and Wang Zhen have visited folk art and cultural monuments all over the country. On the official account "Two Bricks and Ink News" that they jointly managed, the two published more than 3 calligraphy works such as poems and songs, praising the great mountains and rivers of the motherland.
When it comes to how Chinese literature can better "go global", Mo Yan said that literature should not only be based on the local area, with the particularity of the nation, country, region, and individual, but also express the common values of mankind and reflect a kind of universality. In this way, you can get the opportunity to be translated and published.
"Essentially, and emotionally, people all over the world can communicate with each other, and this is the basis of literature, and it is the basis of all consciousness." Mo Yan also hopes that with the joint efforts of relevant national departments and writers, a large number of excellent Chinese literary works will be translated into foreign languages in the near future for overseas readers. (ENDS)