Fan Jinshi, published in People's Daily: Let the Mogao Spirit be passed down from generation to generation through science | Protection | Mogao Spirit
Let the spirit of Mogao be passed down from generation to generation
For decades, generation after generation of Mogao Caves people have upheld the spirit of Mogao, adhered to the desert, were willing to dedicate themselves, had the courage to take on responsibilities, and explored and made progress. The significant development of Dunhuang's cultural relics industry is a result of the Party and the state's high attention to Dunhuang's cultural relics industry. Like the spring breeze and rain moistening Dunhuang, Dunhuang's cultural relics industry has achieved today's success.
As a grassroots cultural relic worker, I should consciously devote myself to the cultural relic cause of our country, face the problems and challenges faced by Dunhuang Grottoes, adhere to my original aspiration and mission, and fulfill my responsibilities to do a good job in the protection and inheritance of Dunhuang Grottoes. At the same time, Dunhuang has also shaped and accomplished me. Without Dunhuang, there would be no me today.
In 1963, I graduated from the Department of History and Archaeology at Peking University. In response to the call, I officially started working at the Dunhuang Research Institute on September 1 of the same year, beginning my lifelong aspirations and career. At that time, the Dunhuang Research Institute was also known as the Dunhuang Cultural Relics Research Institute. Under the influence of my predecessors, on the one hand, I used my knowledge to carry out archaeological research on grottoes; On the other hand, participate in administrative management according to organizational arrangements. After a long period of experience, he eventually became the director of the Dunhuang Research Institute.
Sixty years of spring and autumn, a century of time, through the accumulation of day after day and year after year, I deeply understand that inheriting historical and cultural heritage is responsible for history and the people. Every Mogao Caves person must have ideals, be down-to-earth, grasp problem orientation, pay attention to details, practice the spirit of Mogao, choose one thing, and live a lifetime in order to achieve the cause of Dunhuang cultural relics. I also deeply realize that the protection and management of world cultural heritage requires both a bright future and a scientific spirit. The key to achieving success lies in adhering to a scientific development path that is based on research, based on law, planned as a blueprint, supported by talent, and aimed at permanent protection and sustainable utilization.
At the same time, the work of cultural relics should keep pace with the times. Since the 1980s, the Dunhuang Research Institute has seized the great opportunity of reform and opening up, insisted on opening the door to run the institute and being honest and innovative. On the basis of self-reliance, on the one hand, it has done civilized exchanges and mutual learning, on the other hand, it has insisted on introducing international advanced ideas, technology and management, and finally created the Dunhuang model, forged a brand of quality of Dunhuang Studies, built the Dunhuang Research Institute into the world's largest entity for the study of Dunhuang. The "Dunhuang experience with Chinese characteristics" cultural relics protection model represented by Dunhuang Grottoes has also been basically formed, and is gradually moving towards the world.
Dunhuang is my career and also my second hometown. Serving Dunhuang is my lifelong wish, and the millennium high is a place worth dedicating. It is my luck to be able to pursue a career that I enjoy with what I have learned throughout my life. For the past 60 years, I have had the privilege of participating, witnessing, and contributing my humble efforts to the development of Dunhuang cultural relics. With the collective efforts and strong support of everyone, the cause of Dunhuang cultural relics has truly embarked on a scientific path of protection, research, promotion, and management. The effective scientific exploration of Mogao Grottoes in cultural heritage protection and management has been highly recognized and evaluated both domestically and internationally. But the protection, utilization, and promotion of Dunhuang cultural relics is a systematic and permanent undertaking.
As the honorary dean of the Dunhuang Research Institute, I will continue to contribute and make my humble efforts.
I often say that we have done something, but these are all things that should be done. There are still many things waiting for us to do in Dunhuang, and we need to do better in our future work. I sincerely hope that the new generation of Mogao Caves people will more consciously shoulder a new cultural mission, bravely become inheritors, disseminators, and innovators of excellent traditional Chinese culture in the new era, and let the spirit of Mogao be passed down from generation to generation.
