On October 20th, 2018, the International Symposium to Commemorate the 120th Anniversary of Mr. Xu Zhongshu's Birth was co-sponsored by Sichuan University, Chinese Pre-Qin History Society and Chinese Ancient Character Research Association. The seminar aimed to deeply cherish the great achievements of Mr. Xu Zhongshu and further summarized and promoted the academic thoughts of Mr. Xu Zhongshu. Sichuan Provincial Committee Standing Committee of CPC, Publicity Department Minister Gan Lin, former Vice President of Jilin University, Principle Leader of the Chinese Ancient Character Research Association, famous archaeologist Lin Yun, member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, President of the Chinese Pre-Qin History Society Song Zhenhao, Party Secretary of Sichuan University Wang Jianguo, Mr. Xu Zhongshu's old friends and well-known experts and scholars at home and abroad more than 200 people attended the seminar.
On behalf of Sichuan University, Wang Jianguo pointed out that Mr. Xu Zhongshu was one of the most outstanding masters of history in China in the 20th century. He devoted his life to studying, writing books and patriotic struggles, and made for the development of modern Chinese academics, especially for the humanities. Mr. Xu Zhongshu’s left us with valuable material culture and spiritual wealth. Wang Jianguo said that we commemorate Mr. Xu Zhongshu, that is, to learn the great character of his patriotic struggle and the entrepreneurial spirit of persistent struggle. In the new era of successful career building, we should comprehensively promote the new great project of Party building in Sichuan University, and build a new great cause of world-class universities. We should learn from his broad mind of being open-minded, benevolent and willing to be a ladder of teachers, maintain the determination to love education and adhere to the neglect of fame and wealth, and fulfill the important task of spreading knowledge, spreading ideas, spreading truth, shaping the soul, shaping life and shaping new people shouldered by good teachers.We should learn from his unswerving pursuit of devoting ourselves to learning and the enterprising spirit of pioneering and innovating. In the new era of building socialism with Chinese characteristics, we should take on new missions, show new deeds, and constantly open up new prospects for various undertakings in schools.
Lin Yuan said that the successful convening of the symposium provided a valuable platform for scholars at home and abroad to communicate their old friendship, knowledge and experience, and helped to further develop the academic spirit and style of Mr. Xu Zhongshu, a great master of the generation whom we all admire, so that the academic research that we all work together could continue to pass on the torch and inherit and innovate.
Song Zhenhao said that this seminar was to review and remember Mr. Xu Zhongshu’s great academic achievements in his life, to inherit his scientific research methods and unique research ideas, and to make Chinese excellent traditional culture shine brighter and brighter.
Gan Lin congratulated the convening of this conference. He stressed the importance of commemorating the 120th anniversary of Mr. Xu Zhongshu's birth, understanding and inheriting the noble feelings and demeanor of older scholars. He said that firm cultural self-confidence was the belief that Chinese scholars should have. He pointed that it was the natural mission of Chinese scholars to continue learning for the sake of the past and the inevitable orientation of Chinese scholars to elucidate the old and the new. Today, whether we do learning, or continue the research, or start a new beginning, we must first of all do a good job of linking up with the older generation of scholars, and on this basis, we should be inclusive, learn from each other and come from behind. We must not forget the original, absorb the outside, face the future, and inject a strong spiritual impetus to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and make a positive contribution to the Chinese scholars for the peace of the world.
Well-known scholars such as Lin Biao, Zhang Guangzhi, Hu Zhaoxuan, Zhang Xunyi, Zhao Shichao, Tan Jihe, and Xu Shaohua made reports at the meeting.
The seminar is an interdisciplinary and high-level international academic event. It was held for three days and divided into conference reports, special discussions, closing ceremonies and cultural inspections. Well-known scholars from universities and research institutes such as the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Fudan University, Wuhan University, and Sichuan University made 13 conference reports. The experts and scholars attending the conference carried out in-depth discussions on topics such as "The Life and Study Methods of Mr. Xu Zhongshu", "Ba Shu History Research", "Pre-Qin History Research", and "Chinese Ancient Character Research". The conference fully reflected the characteristics of a hundred schools of thought, launched a group of important academic forward-looking research results. It is helpful to actively carry forward the academic thoughts and moral styles of a generation of historians, Mr. Xu Zhongshu, to promote the development of the disciplines of pre-Qin history, ancient philology and national history.