Where is the pleasure of reading?

The Pleasures of Reading Are Diverse

“There is a golden house in books, and a beautiful face in books.”

When we read, sometimes we read with a purpose, seeking answers to our own questions. When we find the answers in books, we are overjoyed.

Sometimes we read aimlessly, finding joy when the content is happy, feeling tension when it is intense, and shedding tears when it is sad. Is this not also a pleasure? In fact, it should be considered even more so, because at this time, your emotions can freely flow, allowing you to release your stress. It is the pleasure of relaxation!

Professionals read professional books to find answers. This is their pleasure in reading. As ordinary people, we mostly read to relax. Reading brings us endless joy!

Diversity of Life

For me personally, reading has no practical purpose. It’s just a way to experience more, to understand what life is like, and to fill my mind with peculiar things.

In Yang Dechang’s film “Mahjong,” one of the main characters, “Red Fish,” said:

In today’s world, no one knows what they want. That’s why they desperately watch TV, read magazines, advertisements, bestselling books. Why? Just to be told how to live and how to exist.

Even today, this line from 1996 still holds true. Red Fish’s words may have come from a sense of emptiness, and the director may have intended for him to say it ironically.

But I somewhat agree with this approach. We are naturally drawn to observing other people’s lives.

For example, I always talk about books, although there is no specific reason for it. If I have to find one, it can be traced back to watching TV.

When I was a child, I loved being outside in groups, telling stories, playing games, hide-and-seek, and not even responding when called for meals.

This made it easier for my parents. They would shout from the kitchen wall, “Football Boy/Baseball Hero/Four-wheel Drive Brothers,” and when they brought the food to the living room, I would already be holding the remote, adjusting the volume.

I can’t quite explain why I was so obsessed with television. Watching cartoons, commercials, reading subtitles all worked for me. Even when sitting on the backseat of an adult’s bicycle, I couldn’t help but read the advertisements on walls and shop signs. And before going to sleep at night, I would even imagine storylines.

Maybe children have a strong curiosity. They ask about everything, what is this, why is that…

At such times, my dad would usually reply, “You’ll know when you grow up.” This is the most profound thing I’ve ever heard from an ordinary person.

But “growing up” takes a long time.

Before that happens, I devoted myself to watching television, greedily reading textbooks, leisure books, and everything with words, on paper, walls, and fabric.

“In the east of the city, a cabbage became a genius,” and in the end, the Radish Emperor defeated the Rebel Lotus King.

In the last of the Three Hundred Verses, “I advise you not to waste the golden thread robe.” Li Bai, cool and exhausted, “searched the Five Sacred Mountains without hesitation, and had a lifetime of enjoying famous mountains.”

At the Great Lion Slaying Conference, Zhang Wuji, unafraid of others' words, sought help from Zhou Zhiruo, whom he had regretfully broken his engagement with, only to be met with her response, “What if I have a guilty conscience?”

At the height of the dark clouds pressing down on the city, where wind and rain hit the railings, Nezha drew his sword and sacrificed himself, saying, “Father, I’m returning your flesh and blood, I won’t trouble you anymore.”

There are too many examples, to the point where I have strayed too far and forgotten that my initial intent was simply to understand what life looks like.

Every human life that arrives on this earth has a desire to understand life.

In the movie “Leon: The Professional,” the little girl asks the hitman, Leon, “Is life always this painful? Or is it only when you’re a child?”

After thinking for a moment, Leon responds, “Always like this.” It’s a soul-crushing answer for a child.

But in “Harry Potter,” before Snape dies, he says “Always” as well, which is deeply moving for an adult.

In “Cinema Paradiso,” an old man urges a young boy to go out and see the world, despite saying, “Life is different from movies, life… is much harder.”

In Chinese culture, ancient children were required to learn how to write the characters of the mortal world as part of their upbringing.

For example, the original door gods were depicted as one with the Spring Festival couplets, but they were written characters. Because there were too many strokes and it was too difficult for children, it was said, “A lovely child learns to write mortal characters, but Yu Lei Shen Tu is still too difficult.”

Even the broad-minded Su Dongpo said that the worries of life begin with knowing how to read, and once you can write your own name, that’s good enough, there’s no need to continue learning.

Does not knowing how to read and not studying make life free from worries? Does not drinking alcohol mean there is no joy?

Su Dongpo also said, “There is neither wind nor rain, nor sunshine.” These words cannot be spoken by pessimistic people about life.

Later, I read what Wang Xiaobo wrote, “A person should not only possess this life and this world, but also a poetic world,” and I find it deeply resonates with me.

Since there are “great difficulties to come, with dry mouth and parched lips,” it’s best to just do what you enjoy, without thinking about all the “meaning and usefulness.”

We should not only possess this life, but also travel more roads, watch more movies, and listen to more stories.

It is a pity if there is nothing we want to do, and time passes by in a hurry.

A person’s childhood memories are numerous, and it is said that we unconsciously choose and even modify them.

I can’t tell whether it is because of these things that I started to love reading, or if it is because I love reading that I remember these little things.

Some people love movies, some people love music, some people love traveling. If we can come together for a moment because of a piece of writing, we should all appreciate it.

Life, like a brushstroke on a feather, flies boundlessly into the sky.

The Importance of Reading

Books are the crystallization of human wisdom. Life is short. Through reading, we can understand human nature, contemplate life, enrich our reading experience, and savor the various aspects of life.

By reading, we can gain abundant knowledge, expand our thinking, broaden our horizons, enhance our cognition, establish independent thinking systems, and cultivate skills and wisdom, which can deeply enrich us. Efficient reading will lay a solid foundation for our success.

Through reading, we can cultivate our sentiments, cultivate our character, nurture an independent and free personality, and attain inner tranquility and solace. When our souls have nowhere to rest, books serve as a sanctuary for our souls.

The Touch and Memory in the Screen

When I read a particularly touching scene, the moment is forever frozen in my mind, as if this scene has become my memory.

Every time I think back to that moment, the touch remains, feeling what he feels, experiencing his otherworldliness, his indifference and enlightenment. I understand why he would feel this way. This kind of touch is like experiencing it oneself.

For the sake of experiencing the various experiences in life, you can simply ignore most of the entertainments in this world.

Entertainment Intelligence

Entertain your brain.

The Pleasure of Reading and Deep Reading

The pleasure of reading lies in its ability to cultivate one’s character. If one chooses to read light-hearted materials, one’s mind will also be at ease. There will be more enjoyment than tears. However, I personally prefer books with a touch of tragedy, which may bring some tears. I like the feeling of sadness, although it may not be good for me. But it seems to have become an addiction. Things without sadness are not attractive to me. They lack depth, and there won’t be any sighs or reflections. This kind of feeling is something to savor. Of course, I hope that real life is always beautiful and joyful.

Dialogues with Ancient Sages and Books

Engage in conversations with ancient sages! Engage in conversations with books!

Self-awareness endowed by learning

Broaden our horizons, experience the world, and understand the different thoughts in this world, cultivating self-awareness.

Throughout the journey of learning, books have endowed me with many things, giving me the opportunity to choose my own life. My knowledge has become broadened, and my thoughts have become enriched. My self-awareness has continuously formed during the process of reading. Those previously existing and conventional things have become insignificant, no longer causing fear. Those misty puzzles have become clear. Inner struggles and confusion have started to calm down, and life goals have become clear.

The Pleasure and Power of Books

Reading a book a hundred times reveals its meaning. Every morning, as the sun rises in the east, I pick up a book and silently recite all the ancient poems. The scenery before me is so beautiful and enchanting. In the misty morning weather, the view becomes even more spectacular. I can only see a bridge spanning the Huai River, with the river surrounded by thick fog, like a fairyland, so lovely.

When you truly read a book, when you emit those wonderful musical notes, all the pleasure will radiate infinite power from within your heart. The knowledge in books is as profound as the universe, immeasurable. Its power is boundless, deep and unfathomable. Only by savoring it slowly, comprehending it gradually, and pondering it deeply can it lead us towards a higher and farther future. The joy and pleasure within, only when truly experienced in the depths of your soul, can reach a state of selflessness.

Let us enter the ocean of knowledge together and experience the pleasure of life.