In an increasingly interconnected world, understanding diverse cultural and civilizational perspectives has become imperative. This book explores the central question—"How do Chinese think?"—by synthesizing viewpoints from both within China and abroad, complemented by analyses from foreign experts with extensive experience in China. Co-authored by Professor Elena Avramidou, a frequent visiting scholar, and Professor Fernando Reyes Matta, a former diplomat and Director of the Center for Latin American Studies on China at Universidad Andrés Bello (UNAB), the work bridges disciplinary insights to reveal how China’s traditional wisdom and innovative dynamism redefine "modernization" and "the future." This publication aims to foster knowledge exchange and strategic collaboration, offering readers a critical resource for understanding Chinese thought patterns and advancing cross-civilizational dialogue grounded in shared knowledge.

About the Author

Elena Avramidou

UNESCO Chair on Threats to Cultural Heritage and Cultural Heritage-Related Activities, Professor of Ionian University.

Fernando Reyes Matta

Diplomat and International Relations Researcher, Director of Center for International Studies on China, University Andrés Bello, Chile. Former Ambassador of Chile to China and New Zealand.

Content

Introductory Words 1

Issa Kort Garriga

Introduction 3

Basics of the Book: How Do Chinese Think?

Elena Avramidou, Fernando Reyes Matta

Preface 9

How Do Chinese Think?

Elena Avramidou, Fernando Reyes Matta

How Should China (and the World) Think? 19

A Confucian Proposal to Save the World (and China)

Tongdong Bai

What Does It Mean to Be or to Become Chinese? 37

Daniel A. Bell How

Riding the Change 53

How the Philosophy of the Yijing Shaped the Chinese Way of Thinking

JeeLoo Liu

Spiral Flowing (huanliu环流) 73

Thinking With Uncertainty

Robin R. Wang

The Irreducible Human Agency in the Liezi 89

Thinking of What Chinese Think Through

Shudong Chen

Ecumenism in Light of Harmonism 105

Keping Wang

Zhang Xianglong 133

“Image” and “Concept” Thinking

Roger T. Ames

Death and Sleep 151

The Way of Thinking Behind Chinese Characters

Churan Chen

Disengagement 171

Unrelated to the Objective World in Chinese and East Asian Art

Lao Zhu

The Invention of the “Barbarian”and Ethnic Identity 189

in Early Greece and China

Yang Huang

How Do Chinese Think? 221

The Contribution of the Greek Thought

Elena Avramidou

Chinese in the 21st Century 251

Between Tradition and Digital Innovation

Fernando Reyes Matta

List of the Writers 275

(In Alphabetical Order)