The reading ceremony of the 12th National Reading Festival in Liaoning Province was held at Liaoning University on September 24. Yu Miaojie, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and President of Liaoning University, attended and delivered a speech on ‘Reading for the Rejuvenation of the Nation’. It was primarily a message to young people, encouraging the younger generation to work hard to study for the revitalization of Liaoning and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
“Dear teachers, students, and friends online. Good evening everyone! Tonight, through our reading festival platform, I would like to share a topic with everyone: why do we need to read.
Over 100 years ago, the answer was given to us by our beloved Premier Zhou Enlai, that is "To study for the rise of China!" We also see that over the past 100 years, it is under the guidance of this spirit that countless people with lofty ideals have been continuously striving hard for the rise of China. Today, the Chinese nation stands like a giant among the nations of the world, achieving a new era from raising itself up to becoming rich, and then to becoming strong.
Why do we read books in the new era and on our new journey? General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that the second centennial goal is to comprehensively promote the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with a Chinese path to modernization. So, why are we reading today? The answer is simple then, that reading supports the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. This reminds me of six months ago, during the opening ceremony of this reading festival, I had the privilege of sharing with everyone the three enjoyments and benefits of our reading. The first one is to dispel doubts and confusion. Since no one is born omniscient, who can claim to have no doubts? Without dispelling them, the doubts will never be resolved. But the benefits that reading brings to us are not only to dispel doubts, but also to help us understand the general principles and directions of life, establish the correct direction, ideals, and beliefs: this is the second benefit. The third benefit of reading is that it allows us to learn from the ancient sages whose ideas have been around for 5000 years. In this way, you will never be alone, never feel lonely, and learn from them the ordained conscience of Heaven and Earth.
To secure life and fortune for the people. To continue lost teachings for past sages. To establish peace for all future generations.
One goes far little by little. How can we achieve the teachings of the sages? I think there are three stages: the first stage is that we need to acquire knowledge by knowing different things. When learning science, we should have the spirit of "No pretending to know what you actually don't know". We should adopt a single approach, one approach at a time, without any falsehood. With this spirit of acquiring knowledge from facts, we should sit on the cold bench seriously, and study hard for twenty or thirty years, so that we may continue lost teachings for past sages. In the second stage, we need to be sincere and upright. The meaning of Xincheng is that we should constantly learn and acquire knowledge with a modest and open-minded attitude. The meaning of Yizheng is that we should have, most importantly, the correct thoughts and life goals. If we have the spirit of acquiring knowledge from facts and an attitude of integrity, we may be able to attain the ordained conscience of Heaven and Earth. The third stage is that on the basis of seeking knowledge and sincerity, we practice self-cultivation, family regulation, state governance, and bring peace to all. In this way, we achieve the goal of the ordained conscience of Heaven and Earth; we secure life and fortune for the people; we continue teachings of the past sages; and we establish peace for all future generations.
Students and friends, we are currently in the best of times, and we have never been so close to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Today, we are fortunate enough to live in the greatest new era. Only by studying for a lifetime, studying hard, and reading well can we contribute to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Success does not necessarily belong to the person, but there must be me in the success. Let's study hard, work hard, and contribute everything to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation!
Thank you!”