Jul, 2022
The Israeli Alumni and Friends in China attended a book launch event
[The following is a press release on Jul 21st of 2022 from China.com and translated by the Israel Universities Alumni and Friends in China (IUAC)]
On the evening of July 18, the release and reading event of the new book "Speechless" (משוררת שאין לה מילים) by Yu Jingyi, a Chinese-Israeli writer living in Israel, was held in the auditorium of the Arthur Murray Dance School.
Representatives such as Dr. Yulia Mitiagin, Director General of the Israel Universities Alumni and Friends in China , and Mr. Yan Xiangdong, Cultural and Educational Counselor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Israel, were invited to attend.
Ms. Yu, who lives in Israel, is a poet, writer, film director, drama producer, and the founder of the China-Israel Culture and Art Foundation. She is the author of "Days of Poetics" and "JY Lyric Poems". Yu Jingyi’s new book presents her poems simultaneously in three languages: Chinese, Hebrew and in English. The book was recently published by the Israeli publisher "Sifrei Niv" .
Dr. Mitiagin, director general of the Israel Universities Alumni and Friends in China, pointed out that Yu Jingyi is a very talented poet; reading each of Yu Jingyi's poems in Hebrew, English and Chinese gives the reader an additional layer of understanding and a new perspective of each poem. She also said that cross-cultural creators like Yu Jingyi are indispensable. Only through unique cross-cultural creations can we help build bridges between the two nations, Yu Jingyi's new book presents another image of Chinese culture for the Israelis.
Mr. Yan Xiangdong, Cultural Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Israel, also delivered a speech at the event. He thanked two very excellent creators: Yu Jingyi, the author of this book, and Yael Levin, an Israeli translator. Ms. Levine is the translator of the book’s poems to Hebrew.
Counselor Yan also said, “For cultural exchanges between China and Israel, there are good conditions for communication and understanding. Looking back on history, there is a certain similarity and connection between the Chinese nation and the Jewish nation in ideology. We read a quote from Confucius in China's "The Analects of Confucius": "Do not do to others what you do not want to do to yourself." Do as you would be done by. Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire. We also have a similar saying in the Jewish classic Torah: "What is harmful to yourself, do not to your fellow man." Finally, he recited "Tengwang Pavilion Poem" by the Tang Dynasty poet Wang Bo.
Professor Liang Hong, Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute at Tel Aviv University, also delivered a speech at the event. Professor Liang Hong is a professor of Chinese at Renmin University of China . She is a keen observer and writer of social changes in China; her representative works include " China in a Village " (2010), "Leaving Liang Village" (2013), "Ten Years Later" The Liang Village" (2021).
Israeli actress Hadar Galron read the poems in Hebrew.
Researcher Oren Auster from Clalit Research Institute in Israel was also invited to attend the event on behalf of the alumni.
