Prologue of Life

Xuefeng

“We cannot ignore this reality; our lives are riddled with holes and on the brink of collapse. Our problems are no longer local, accidental, or temporary. Our very foundation is flawed, the root upon which we all depend has gone awry. We have lost the underpinning of our existence; we have failed to establish the supreme goal of all goals, the ultimate principle of all principles, the loftiest belief from which all beliefs spring, and the definitive standard against which all standards are measured."

"Without an ultimate purpose, how do we choose a specific path in life? Without the highest principle, how do we establish specific principles and adhere to them unwaveringly? Without the loftiest belief and ultimate benchmark, how do we make judgments? How do we contemplate? How do we act? Without all of this, how can our lives not be characterized as blind, empty, and absurd? When the members of a society share this life attitude, how can society itself remain healthy? Unless we bring about fundamental changes, how can there be hope for this nation?"

"So, it all comes down to one point: we lack genuine faith, which serves as the root of all our wickedness and ailments in today's world."

"The problems stemming from the moral decline of the Chinese people today, in my view, are even more severe than political and economic issues."

"When we address the issue of faith today, it is not about adding a superficial layer to our existing lives, but about conducting a comprehensive self-examination of our lives and embarking on a new way of living."

——Yin Zhenqiu ("The Spiritual Predicament of Our Era: A Dialogue on the Issue of Faith")