A Heart of Gold in a Secular World

By Geng Yinping

Lin Qingxuan, a Taiwanese writer who once worked as a butcher, described the early period of his life in this way: “I used to butcher pigs in a slaughter house. Many people could not imagine a life like that.After work at night, I would return to the small room I rented,wash my hands, and write.”“A gentleness must be created with a strong heart, a romance must be preserved in a state of deterioration.”

On one side was the dream of becoming a writer and on the other was the bloody slaughter house, so the gap between the two was indeed very wide. However,the humble Lin Qingxuan stuck to his conviction and maintained a clean heart. Though one might be in a ditch, one should still look up at the stars. Even when circumstances are bleak, one must keep a noble heart. He kept writing every day to keep the delicate fl ame of elegance alive.

Later, his “Embodied Soul Settling” series sold a lot, which is not unrelated to his previous life experience. It’s not something that ordinary people can achieve,but he did, and his rewards were great. The quality of writing (clear or turbid) is related to the quality of mind.

臺(tái)灣作家林清玄當(dāng)過(guò)屠宰工，他曾這樣描述當(dāng)時(shí)的生活：“我曾經(jīng)在屠宰場(chǎng)殺豬，很多人沒(méi)法想象，晚上工作完回到我自己租的小房子里，洗完手后，開(kāi)始寫(xiě)作。”“必須要用堅(jiān)強(qiáng)的心來(lái)創(chuàng)造一種溫柔，必須要在世俗惡化的狀態(tài)下保有一種浪漫。”

一邊是玄虛的作家夢(mèng)，一邊是血淋淋的屠宰場(chǎng)，二者之間的落差的確很大，但敗落的林清玄始終沒(méi)有放棄昂揚(yáng)向上的追求，守住了內(nèi)心的干凈。雖身處溝渠，也要仰望星空；雖境況慘淡，也要心存高貴。他每天堅(jiān)持寫(xiě)一些文字，留住高雅的微弱火苗。

后來(lái)，他的“身心安頓系列”作品大賣(mài)，與這種“慘淡中的向上走”不無(wú)關(guān)系。這不是一般人能做到的，他做到了，也因此成就了獨(dú)特的卓越。文章的高下清濁，只與內(nèi)心有關(guān)。