On February 4-6, 2002, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences hosted the 32nd scientific conference of Russian Sinologists, where specialists of various profiles introduced the scientific community and all those interested in the history, ideology, economy and culture of China with their latest developments and achievements in this field. The conference was attended by more than 70 scientists, teachers, and journalists from various institutions and universities in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Chelyabinsk, as well as from research centers in the People's Republic of China and France. The conference materials were published by the publishing house "Vostochnaya Literatura" and made up 33 reports with a total volume of 28.3 pp.

Due to objective reasons related to financial difficulties, not everyone, especially from remote scientific centers of the country, was able to come to the conference. The conference was organized in several thematic blocks. The greatest interest was aroused by a block of reports on the civilizational influence of the culture of the Central and Middle East on the early East Asian civilization. Continuing the discussion that began at previous conferences, D. V. Deopik (ISAA at Moscow State University) traced a certain Saka (Central Asian) origin in the recently obtained archaeological material of the ancient state of Dien (Dien) in the southwestern region of modern China. In his opinion, the ways in which the Saka nomads could have penetrated into this area are also traced. The speaker also noted a certain kinship of art objects and everyday life of the Dians with the archeology of the city.-

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Mawandui (near Changsha) and the ancient Chinese kingdom of Chu (in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River). L. S. Vasiliev (IB RAS) approached this problem in a slightly different aspect - possible borrowings in the sphere of ideology. In particular, he stressed, the Chinese categories of "yin" and "yang", the apology of light and dark, female and male, etc.echo the Zoroastrian, Draenei-Iranian fundamental ideas about the struggle of light and darkness. In the Middle East practice, one can also find the concept of primary elements, which appeared in China, according to the speaker, a little later - in the works of the ancient Chinese historian and thinker Zou Yan, which have only partially come down to us. Elements of mysticism and metaphysics that were present in the early Middle and Central Asian ideological systems also appear in China somewhat later, which does not exclude their indirect borrowing.

The conference participants ' attention was drawn to the problems of traditional Chinese historiography. S. R. Kucera (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) considered the reasons for the fall of the Han Dynasty (25 - 220) precisely in the light of the interpretation of these events in the official (normative) work - "History of the Late Han Dynasty". These are the incompetence and carelessness of the ruling elite, combined with the emperor's infancy (and incapacity for work), arbitrariness and cruelty, and, finally, the people's discontent with the current situation in the country.

The report of Yu. L. Krol (St. Petersburg Branch of the Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) covered the question of interpretation and precise interpretation of terms found in the "History of the Han Dynasty", for example, the phrases "revival" or "restoration of the dynasty". Features of compositional construction of the works of a famous Chinese politician and thinker of the VIII century. Liu Tseung-yuan was described by N. V. Chasnitskaya (ISAA). One of them she considers the author's chosen form of dialogue with antiquity, which was conducted without the accepted etiquette of self-abasement outside of time and space.

The report of V. B. Kurnosova (ISAA) was devoted to the study of such a widespread type of creative work in traditional China as commentary on certain texts. Commenting on texts as an independent genre originated in China in ancient times. This genre had a high status-the commentaries were written by "wise men". Over time, it was improved, becoming an attribute of a developed written tradition.

G. Ya.Smolin (St. Petersburg State University) considered the problem of adequate translation of the title of the 12th-century chronicle "Tzu zhi tung jian" ("An All-pervading mirror that helps management") and the difficulties of translating the titles of Old Chinese works into Russian. In his opinion, the concept of "jian" ("mirror") has a deep, to a certain extent even mystical meaning and is not limited to one meaning. It approaches the imaginative perception of history as such, the impact of historical events on posterity.

The historiographical problems were also discussed in the reports of V. S. Kuznetsov and V. N. Usov (both from the Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) about scientific conferences held in China. One of them was devoted to the revision of some previously established approaches to the history of China under the rule of the Manchu Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). In particular, Chinese historians tend to believe that by the end of this period, there was no decline and degradation in the country and the ruling elite. The rule of the Ming dynasty, which preceded the Qing, was subject to degradation, and therefore the establishment of a new government can be considered a positive phenomenon. As for the Manchus, according to many Chinese scholars, they should be considered as an integral part of a multinational Chinese state, and not as foreign conquerors.

Another conference was designed to highlight the problems of studying foreign sinology in the PRC. Chinese scientists are faced with the task of creating an all-encompassing history of foreign Sinology. This raised the question of studying the Russian school of Sinology. There were some difficulties in this area (lack of relevant specialists and materials in China, fragmented studies, etc.).

Along with discussing the problems of the historical past, the conference also considered various aspects of the current situation in China. Thus, L. P. Delyusin (IMEPI RAS) described the political situation in the country in connection with preparations for the upcoming XVI Congress of the Communist Party of China. In his opinion, the analysis of articles and statements of Chinese President Jiang Zemin shows that the Chinese leadership has revised a number of theoretical guidelines and is concerned about negative phenomena in the country's life - the corruption of part of the official and bureaucratic apparatus, the growth of unemployment, difficulties in agricultural development. -

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in this sector, there are underlying factional contradictions in the party. While still rejecting multiparty, the CCP is evolving towards expanding its social base, allowing "capitalists" to join its ranks and claiming to represent the interests of the entire Chinese people. Ya. M. Berger (IDV RAS) drew attention to such a trend in modern China as the gradual "aging" of the population, which was promoted by the policy of limiting the birth rate, and the increase in life expectancy associated with improving material conditions. The statistics presented by the speaker show that this problem will require significant financial strain in the near future. Hence, the search for various preventive measures to neutralize the possible negative consequences of this phenomenon, such as an emphasis on increasing support for the elderly by their families, etc. However, these measures, according to the speaker, are not sufficient for a radical solution of the problem.

E. A. Sinetskaya (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) considered the position of women in modern China and the process of emancipation. During the discussion on the report, it was noted that the idea of a woman's "belonging" (to her husband, family, clan) it still exists in Chinese society.

The problems of traditional Chinese ideology were also not ignored. A. I. Kobzev (Institute of Physics and Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences) showed in his speech that traditional Chinese ideas about the human life path and its stadiality are inextricably linked with numerological constructions and to a certain extent "echo" Western (ancient) views. A. A. Krushinsky (IB RAS) believes that the classical ancient Chinese treatise "I Ching" ("The Book of Changes") can be traced to a scientific (from the point of view of modern man) approach. However, in his opinion, it has its own specific consistency. The speaker believes that the numerical and numerological criteria contained in this treatise do not play a significant role here and are not an alternative to scientific logic.

Reports on literary studies were also presented at the conference. A. N. Zhelokhovtsev (IDV) spoke about the changes that are taking place in the tastes of the reading audience in China and in the topics that attract modern Chinese writers. Noting the impressive volume of published literary novelties, the speaker emphasized such factors as the presence of a full-fledged book market, the emergence of the concept of fashionable novels, official and somewhat unofficial orientation in the work of various authors, the noticeable influence of Western literature and the strengthening of the erotic component in many literary works. O. M. Gorodetskaya (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) addressed such a problem as the uniqueness of Chinese culture in the context of the interpenetration of different civilizations, which she considered through the prism of methods and techniques for translating Chinese texts (in particular, poems) into foreign languages. The conciseness and at the same time semantic depth of Chinese characters poses a number of problems for the translator: preserving the rhyme, which has always played an important role in Chinese poems, adding (or not adding) the words "from myself", etc.The "kinship" of Chinese classical poetry to the art of painting, the pictorial function of the characters themselves were also noted.

Economic issues were raised in connection with the analysis of the current state of the high-tech industry in Taiwan ( Yu.G. Litvinova, IV RAS) and foreign investment in China ( P. M. Mozias, VNIIVS). In particular, it was noted that 94% of Taiwan's technological products are exported and that among high-tech products, information technology products are a priority. A special role is assigned to the creation and expansion of so - called scientific and industrial parks, where new promising technical developments are being conducted. They involve hundreds of companies, employ about 100 thousand employees, and invest huge amounts of money. At the same time, considerable attention is paid to improving the level of staff education. Higher education is becoming more accessible, and technical specialties remain the most popular (up to 55% of students). However, according to the speaker, high-tech Taiwanese products do not reach the highest level of world standards. To a large extent, this is due to the fact that its main producers are small and medium - sized enterprises that do not have significant funds to ensure rapid scientific progress.

As for foreign investment in China, P. M. Mozias noted that there is a tendency to reduce their flows. This is explained both by the consequences of the Asian crisis and by the global trend of reorientation of investment from developing countries to developing countries.-

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twisted ones. The Government of the People's Republic of China is trying to adjust the legislative framework for investment in the People's Republic of China, depriving foreign investors of special preferential treatment, thereby trying to equalize the situation of foreign and Chinese citizens.

A number of reports at the conference were devoted to the problems of archeology and the theory of classical Chinese spatial representations. Sergey Dmitriev (MSU) reported on the latest results of archaeological excavations by Chinese scientists in Luoyang, the capital of the Late Han Empire (25-220). As it became known, the city, which was located on an area of 36 square kilometers, was surrounded by rectangular walls with 12 gates, from which there were parallel and perpendicular wide streets. The city had three imperial palaces, a main temple, an arsenal, several markets, and 160 residential blocks. It was Han Luoyang, as noted in the report, that served as a model for modeling the capitals of subsequent Chinese empires.

V. V. Dorofeeva (Paris, Sorbonne) proposed a new term for defining ancient Chinese spatial schemes - cosmograms. They are characterized, in her opinion, not only by their strict orientation to the countries of the world, but also by their ambiguity or versatility, which complicates their content. The connection of these spatial constructions with ancient Chinese titulature and hierarchy was revealed. When analyzing the text of the treatise "Wu Tzu", the connection between spatial constructions and ancient Chinese military strategy is traced. These constructions also influenced the definition of" nature", i.e. the main characteristics of certain kingdoms in ancient China. The speaker confirmed her conclusions with graphic diagrams developed by her own methodology.

In conclusion, following the established tradition of paying tribute to their predecessors in the field of Chinese studies, the conference participants shared their memories of the outstanding scientist and teacher Larisa Simonovskaya, whose centenary of birth is celebrated in 2002. Larisa Vasilyevna's letters to her colleagues in the archives during the difficult years of the war and the post-war period were read out. Students appreciated her informal, heartfelt concern for the younger generation of Sinologists and Orientalists, and her contribution to the work of research centers in Kharkiv, Leningrad, and Moscow in the 1920s and 1930s. The visible result of L. V. Simonovskaya's entire life in science can be considered not only her monographs and articles, but also the creation of the Moscow school of ancient and medieval Sinologists that still exists today.

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