Reporter’s Diary: Qu Yuan, China’s great poet and politician still inspires today (2024)

What comes to mind first when thinking about Qu Yuan (340-278 B.C.)? Some of his poems, or the Dragon Boat Festival?

Some 2,300 years later, Qu is still revered as China's first great patriotic poet who began a tradition of romanticism in Chinese literature. However, many are not familiar or even unaware of his identity as a far-sighted statesman.

To find out more about his spirits and ideas that are still relevant today – when China continues to rigorously push forward its reform and opening up, I went to Miluo, a county-level city in central China's Hunan Province, where Qu spent his last few years.

My first stop was Quzi Temple, which was rebuilt some 260 years ago during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in memory of the literary giant. It's said that Qu was living nearby at Yusi Mountain at that time.

Here I met Liu Shilin, an expert on Qu Yuan research who served as head of Quzi Temple before retiring. He shared with me some of Qu's experience and his political proposals.

Born into a noble family in the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475-221 B.C.), Qu first served as Zuo Tu for his country, a high-ranking official responsible for both internal and diplomatic affairs. He advocated serious reforms back then.

"We can have a glimpse of his ideas on political reforms from his works. For example, he advocated selecting those with great talent and virtue to serve the country and implementing the strict legal system," said Liu.

Meanwhile, Qu was firmly against the raging corruption and proposed anti-corruption measures.

Liu also stressed that most of Qu's ideas are not outdated today. "It is in line with today's anti-corruption campaign," he added.

On diplomacy, Qu advocated a policy of alliance with the other states against the hegemonic State of Qin, which threatened to dominate them all. However, all his proposals met with opposition from other jealous officials.

Qu was then slandered and exiled by the king. During his stay in Miluo, he finished most of his great works that reflected both his patriotism and sorrow for his motherland.

On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in the year of 278 B.C., upon learning that the capital of his country was occupied by the State of Qin, Qu chose to drown himself in the Miluo River.

I visited the site where he allegedly committed suicide on a rainy day.

Liu told me a legend. Upon hearing the tragedy, many locals rushed in their boats to search for Qu. They dropped rice at the same time into the water to distract the fish from eating his body. This moment formed the major traditions for the Dragon Boat Festival, or Duanwu Festival – dragon boat races and Zongzi, or sticky rice dumplings.

Each year, people would gather on the river in front of the temple to commemorate Qu with a dragon boat race. Before that, the competitors would have a grand sacrificial ceremony in the temple.

Liu said while enjoying the festival, people today should also pay some attention to the cultural connotation.

"The young generation is the backbone of a country. But some of the young people today lack the great character that Qu Yuan possessed, such as his patriotism, the perseverance to seek truth and the courage to fight against evil," said Liu.

“Although the road endless and far away, I still want to pursue the truth resolutely,” this is one of the most famous lines from Qu's works. Every time I read it, I gain inspiration and strength, like everyone else.

(Top image: A portrait of Qu Yuan by a contemporary artist is hanged in Quzi Temple. /CGTN Photo)

(Luo Caiwen also contributed to the story.)