In Memory of Jin Yong | May You Soar on Asteroid 10930
By 苏剑林 | Oct 30, 2018
Master Jin Yong
Jin Yong is gone, passing away at the age of 94.
While it is true that these elderly masters, whether they are scientists or literati, generally have little output in their later years, a purely rational mind might feel that "if they are gone, they are gone; there doesn't seem to be any loss." However, the reality is that the departure of a master always brings us a sense of sorrowful shock, making us feel as if an era has passed once again. It was so for Hawking, and it is so for Jin Yong.
For Old Master Jin, an era of Wuxia has passed; a "Jianghu" has passed.
Flying snow shoots the white deer in the sky,
the laughing hero leans on the green phoenix under the shimmering water.
This couplet describes 14 of Jin Yong's works, which, along with Sword of the Yue Maiden, constitute his 15 Wuxia novels. Using these 15 novels, Jin Yong described vivid and lifelike "Jianghu"—no, even saying Jianghu seems too small. After reading these 15 works, you feel that he has described thousands of years of Chinese history and the entirety of society.
I wouldn't call myself a die-hard Jin Yong fan. I only officially started reading his works during my undergraduate years. Although I had seen TV adaptations like The Legend of the Condor Heroes and The Return of the Condor Heroes in middle and high school, I didn't know who Jin Yong was back then because I didn't care about the original authors at the time. Later, it was also because the TV dramas weren't satisfying enough that I went to the novels to supplement more of the plot, and then I couldn't stop. Overall, my story with Jin Yong’s works can be summarized as follows:
I have read all 15 of Jin Yong's novels in their entirety; several I have read several times; several of those I have read dozens of times; several chapters of several of those I have read hundreds of times; and now, whenever I have free time, I still occasionally flip through these works.
What did Jin Yong bring to me? I think it is a sense of depth and sediment. What Jin Yong tells is both Wuxia and history, both Jianghu and feuds. If you savor them slowly, you will feel passion surging, and you will also find them profoundly meaningful. Perhaps you experience something in life and suddenly recall a similar plot or a similar feeling in one of Jin Yong's works. The study of Jin Yong's works has already become a specialized field of research known as "Jin-ology."
Of course, there are many other deeds of Jin Yong. Literature is by no means his only contribution to humanity; one can find his other achievements with a quick search. Jin Yong is a recognized great figure, and Asteroid 10930 was named after him. Now that he has left us, perhaps he has truly ascended to Asteroid 10930~
Life is just about making a great ruckus, and then leaving quietly. — Jin Yong
Original article address: https://kexue.fm/archives/6131
,
author={Su Jianlin},
year={2018},
month={Oct},
url={\url{https://kexue.fm/archives/6131}},
}
Category: Life/Feeling | Tags: Literature, Jin Yong