Public Talk- Understanding who we are: a Daoist perspective

25/5/2021

On 20 May, NCI was proud to hold its third and final Chinese Philosophy Lecture session of the term entitled “Understanding who we are: a Daoist perspective”. The talk was once again given by founder of Embrace China Ltd Mr Manuel Parreno, who studied Chinese Philosophy in China for three years after developing a passion for Daoism.

In this talk, the speaker looked at our origins through Laozi’s eyes, the relationship between our dual nature and our ‘‘conscience’’ and emphasised that following the inner light that everyone is born with, people can better understand themselves. He argued that although we are free to choose, emulating Dao, the truth and laws that govern the order of things, is key to self-understanding, harmony and fulfilment.

Manuel also held a very insightful and interesting Q and A session where our audience couldn’t stop asking questions! The online event lasted just over an hour and was well received by over 30 University staff, students and members of the general public. Several attendees expressed a fascination with Daoism and their wish to attend more Chinese Philosophy talks in the Autumn term.

~ENDS~

英国诺丁汉大学孔子学院成功举办中国哲学线上讲座第三期

文： 石黛炜

当地时间2021年5月20日，诺丁汉大学孔子学院诚邀拥抱中国创始人马诺（Maunel Parreno）为主讲人，为教职工，学生以及当地居民带来了一场精彩纷呈的道家思想线上讲座。本次讲座的主题为“从道家思想中认识自己”，由诺丁汉大学亚洲商务中心主任杰森（Jason Feehily）主持。

讲座以哲学界争论不休的提问开场——“你是谁”，马诺指出想要回答这个问题需要溯本求源即“道生一”，为了帮助大家更全面的理解，马诺以《道德经》中“天下万物生于有，有生于无”来解释“一” ，用“道可道，非常道”来诠释“道”。接着，他讲到每个人与生俱来的内心的光，并强调在这种光的驱使下人们能够更好的认识自己认识道，拥有更加全面的价值观更高的人生境界，从而创造出更加和谐友好的社会环境，即 “用其光，复归其明”。 最后，马诺通过介绍 “道法自然“， 老子的重要思想之一，来阐述依顺自然本性的重要性，与此同时，若想真正的认识你自己，你需要实现认识道，感受道所带来的内心祥和与安宁，并以对子女的教育为例诠释了如何解通过帮助他人等方法来进一步在生活中践行道，进而真正地认识自己。

此次作为道家思想系列讲座的收官之作，马诺深入浅出地为大家呈现了诸多宝贵的道家人生哲理与思想并结合生活辅以拓展，在提问环节对于听众的提问给予详细解答，令听众们受益匪浅。