Author says traditional culture offers way to deal with modern life

Writer Guo Wenbin calls himself a "volunteer of traditional culture" and gives lectures around the country. Ding Shan / For China Daily

The start of the Lunar New Year is Guo Wenbin's busiest time of the year.

The writer, who focuses on traditional culture - especially festivals - receives an endless stream of calls during the period, seeking his comments or interviews.

"I feel bad having to spend the eve of the Lunar New Year disrupted by mobile messages and television galas," says Guo.

"Our ancestors wanted this period to be one for family get-togethers.

"I constantly call for shutting off mobile phones and televisions."

These items, besides close relatives, have become the highlights for most Chinese on the eve of the Lunar New Year.

Guo says celebrations like the Spring Festival are deeply implanted in people's cultural genes.

"And the ways we celebrate them help us gain strength and inspiration from our culture."

Now, as more people go to him for answers about traditional customs, he feels that the Chinese are leading disoriented lives.

"Here, the long-cherished values from our cultural traditions are the remedy," he says.

The Yinchuan-based writer, who is the winner of the Lu Xun Literature Prize, the head of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region's Writers Association and the chief editor of the literary magazine, Yellow River Literature, leads a simple life. He donates almost all his royalties to people in need.

Guo was in Beijing recently to work on a China Central Television documentary series, Memories and Nostalgia: The Stories of Ancient Chinese Villages. It's a 180-episode project. The third season is currently airing.

"The first season in 2015 got 2 billion views, both at home and abroad. And if other platforms are included, the series has got more than 10 billion views," says Guo, adding that the series resonates very well with overseas Chinese.

Each episode features an ancient village - its traditions, history, stories and beliefs that date back hundreds of years.

"There are about 600,000 villages in total, about 1,560 of which are designated as traditional ones," he says.

"In some of these villages, the example of one man or his family keeps the villagers going."

He gives the example of Futian village in Jiangxi province, where 102-year-old Red Army soldier Wang Chengdeng lives. The soldier, who fought in the famous Pingxingguan Battle in 1937, has donated his army uniform to the village.

Referring to Futian's patriotic spirit, Guo says the signature patriotic poem, Song of Righteousness (Zheng Qi Ge), by fellow villager, Song Dynasty general Wen Tianxiang (1236-1283), is still taught as a nursery rhyme there.

In a village in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, a self-service market has been running for more than a century.

"No one overcharges and no one takes vegetables without paying," Guo says.

He adds that, when the project started, some questioned its relevance, but now traditional culture is seen as trendy.

"For me, traditional culture, as represented by the villagers, is like air and sunshine. They nurture us but are neglected," says Guo, adding that he thinks that traditional culture is all about how a nation lives and thinks.

Guo, who was born in 1966 in Xiji, Ningxia, and attended school there, was a schoolteacher before joining the local education bureau.

He became a professional writer in 1993 after moving to a literary magazine.

In the late 1990s, he felt at a loss and rootless. He then began to read Chinese classics, including 16th-century writer Yuan Liaofan's Four Instructions.

He later recorded his experiences in a book called Awakening and began to give lectures to people struggling with anxiety.

Guo, who calls himself a "volunteer of traditional culture", gives lectures in Yinchuan and around the country.

His "cures" include reading classics, writing diaries and saying nice things to family members.

"If I can be of some help, I feel happy and content," says Guo.

Among Guo's other works are the novel Lunar Calendar and collections of essays.

The novel took him 12 years and features stories about 15 traditional holidays.

Yin Zhiyong with Changjiang Literature and Arts Publishing House, says:" Lunar Calendar is a peaceful and beautiful read."

meijia@chinadaily.com.cn