The Pleasure of Learning

◎ Liang Qichao

What is the pleasure of learning？That is a question I am unable to answer，because you have to find and appreciate it for yourself．Without your own personal experience，nobody can help you understand what it is like．As is said in a Buddhist sutra，“You never know whether water is cold or warm until you drink a mouthful.”You may ask me to tell you how cold the water is，and I may give you an exhaustive description using all the adjectives I can come up with，yet you will still remain uninformed until you taste it for yourself．Therefore，under the title of The Pleasure of Learning，I do not mean to give an account of the pleasures of learning，instead I will make suggestions as to what to do to enable you to appreciate them．

The pursuit of the pleasure of learning has a most important precondition：doing something just for the sake of doing it，that is，a complete dedication without concern for purpose or result．If one sets a utilitarian purpose to one's action，one will take the action as only a means．Once the purpose is achieved，the means will be abandoned．For instance，a student studies his lessons for a diploma；an author undertakes academic research in order to gain publication rights．These people take study or research as a means for a goal．Although a goal or purpose may help kindle one's interest in doing something，one must divorce oneself from utilitarian purpose in order to truly take pleasure in what one is doing．Why do kids love to play games？They play for the sake of playing，so they take pleasure in the fun．But if they play for a score in a school course，the pleasure is gone.

Human faculties，if they remain unused for long，become numb or rusted up，that is，dysfunctional．Your legs would lose their walking function if you did not walk for ten years．Walk an hour a day，keep doing so for a month，and if one day you don't walk as usual，your legs start itching for action．We are intelligent animals．The desire for learning is one of our innate instincts．Only if we turn off our interest in learning the day we graduate from school，banishing all our organs of learning to limbo，do we no longer have any appetite for new knowledge；in that case，even with a feast of knowledge in front of our eyes，we would not bother to take up our chopsticks．Dear friends，if you are now teaching or going to teach in a school，you will have a wealth of opportunities to cultivate an appetite for new knowledge．But if you are in other jobs，I suggest that you take out at least one hour after each day's work to pursue a branch of learning you love．One hour is something you can easily squeeze out．Grasp this precious time to keep up your appetite for learning，and never neglect your right to access new knowledge，a privilege endowed only to human beings.

The pleasure of learning is hidden away in the innermost recesses of the Palace of Knowledge．If you want to enjoy yourself there，you must first of all get inside．Merely peeping through or lingering around one entrance and then another，you will never have the chance to see its real beauty and richness．Besides，as I said above，“to pursue a branch of learning you love”is the key to gaining real pleasure．Once you have received a certain level of education，you will have also found one or two subjects that fit well with your own tastes．Then，with the general foundation you have laid as preparation for further studies，you may choose one as a life-long career（if you intend to take up academic work），or you may take one as your subject of study after work（if your career has little to do with academic research）．Don't worry if your field is narrow in scope，as it will help to focus your mind．Don't worry if your subject of research is difficult，as it will make you more courageous．As long as you keep on progressing，step by step，I guarantee your interest will increase to a level where you simply can't stop even if you want to.

The pleasure of learning can be likened to static electricity，generated by the friction of rubbing two surfaces．Both at your job and in your studies，you rub along with some friends：they are your co-workers and learning partners respectively．The former help you with your work and the latter，like playmates，are there to stimulate your interest．It is ideal if some of your partners are interested in the same field of study as you so that you can cooperate in research．If you have different interests，however，the same spirit of learning will bind you together，encouraging you in your respective investigations as long as you meet frequently or keep up regular correspondence．It is a great blessing to have one or two such friends，and，provided you persist in seeking，you will surely succeed in finding them．

The above four points may seem to be plain old common sense，yet few people have put them into practice．Ah，what a pity！Now here is a wonderland of knowledge where one can enjoy oneself heartily，with no need to rely on external power，no need to worry about loss or error，yet so few of us even lift a finger to open the door to it．An ancient Chinese story told of a farmer who wanted to present sunshine to the emperor．I am now like him，just basking in the sunshine of knowledge and not wanting to take it as a personal privilege．I sincerely want to share it with all of you，and hope you can give a thought to my words．As a last remark，I will simply say，as warm as sunshine is，you have to expose yourself to it．No one else can bask in your place.

《学问之趣味》是1922年8月6日在南京东南大学为暑期学校学员所做的演讲，后刊于8月12日《时事新报》。现有所删节，但已充分体现其主旨要义：要尝得做学问的趣味就要“无所为而为”，要有“学问欲”，要深入研究，还要找到做学问的朋友。