尋訪俞孔堅——與“土地之神”的對話

　　“月到中秋分外圓”?，也有人說美國的“洋月亮”特別圓。在美國的中秋節當日，卻有一位中國的“土人”向全世界的景觀設計師，演說著?“天人合一”、“大禹精神”、“天地-人-神和諧”、“桃花源”等中國古老的理念。這位自稱為“土人”的哈佛洋博士，憑著他對大地的感情，對自然的尊敬，對中國哲理的通達，使他在世界的殿堂中頻頻獲獎，藉著他對中西文化融匯貫通的景觀設計理念，而使他尋找出未來世界“生存的藝術”。

　　《乾坤》第七期曾轉載了俞孔堅教授的大作《尋找“土地之神”》，拜讀其文章之後，深受他對大自然的關愛真情所打動，當筆者得悉俞教授來美參加在（Minneapolis）明尼阿波利斯的全球最具規模的景觀設計年會後，將受邀到（University?of?Virginia）維珍利亞大學演講，特驅車前往尋找這位“土地之守護神”！?

　　在坐滿了學生和教授的UVA講堂上，這位才四十出頭的北京大學景觀設計學研究院院長，氣定神閑地向與會者解說著古老而充滿哲理的中國景觀設計歷史，從遠古的人類如何擇良土而居，敬天地而避災害，帶出人與大自然如何和諧發展，如何尋找生存的空間的“生存藝術”。聽著俞教授的演講，看著他展示一張張充滿哲理的圖解，仿如看到他帶著他的“土人團隊“，奔走在大地山川、城鎮鄉野之間，為迅速發展的神州大地把脈、修護和建設。他對天地人神敬仰和愛護，溶合自身的理念、精神、知識、經驗，透過他的作品、演講、教學，向世人呼喚吶喊，要尊重自然才能達至和諧的生活！我感到這景觀設計、城市規劃等專業名詞過於科學和表面，他不單是一個景觀設計專家，更像是一位天上派來保護大地的使者！?

　　我們的訪談相當特別，雖然是初次見面，但早已透過大家的文章交流，好像遇見了一位同道筆友。由於他演講後已安排了晚宴，我們相約在他飯後詳談，地點就在大學校園內他下榻的教授樓房。在溫暖的小樓房內有著他鄉遇故知的親切，經過了連日會議和演講的辛勞，眼前的俞教授帶有幾分倦怠，但仍關切地了解《乾坤》雜志的發展，俞教授對《乾坤》的欣賞與鼓勵之言詞，為我們帶來更堅定的信念，“志同道合，交淺言深”正是我們會談的寫照。大家都對中國傳統文化有著濃烈的感情，更有一份對中華傳統文化傳承的使命感，互相概嘆生活在中西文化沖激中的不易，他并向我們述說著因何毅然回國執教，如何走這條艱辛的開荒之路。?

　　“當年在哈佛畢業後曾在加州工作了幾年，兩個孩子都在美國出生，把母親也接來了，雖然工作條件優厚，但心中仍是惦著母國，最後還是決定舉家回歸，因為我相信中國需要我這門專業，是一份責任感和使命感！”返國後在北京大學任教時，中國還沒有景觀設計這個專科，他的遠見是培養更多懂得大自然的土地設計人才。他自感是大地之子，心存大地養育之恩。後來他在中國注冊成立第一家景觀規劃設計研究院，“別人回國都是打著洋牌子，我就用‘土人’作為公司名稱”。他的“土人景觀研究院”從最初的兩三人，幾年間已發展成為兩百多人的團隊。他曾為“土人”立下如是的座右銘：“執掌現代科技之法器，仰觀天象，俯察地形，納千里方圓、萬年歷史于腦內，辨自然過程之動態，算社會經濟之流變，融天道人倫于一體。”?

　　訪談結束後已屆深夜，那晚是入秋以來最冷的一夜，但彼此熱誠的交談已把寒流暖化。雖然大家站在不同的陣線上，但卻抱有共同的信念。我們深信，不但中國需要俞孔堅教授這樣的人才，世界也更需要認識“天地人神和諧”這樣的理念。

　　Meeting?with?the?“Deity?of?the?Land”
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　
　　At?the?annual?ASLA/IFLA?convention?in?Minneapolis?this?October,?a?Chinese?“turen”?(earth-man,?native)?gave?a?lecture?to?landscape?architects?from?around?the?world.?The?topic?of?the?lecture?was?on?the?Chinese?concepts?of?“Heaven?and?Man?United”,?“The?(Saint?King)?Da?Yu’s?Spirit”,?“Harmony?Among?Heaven,?Earth,?Man,?and?Deities”,?and?“The?Land?of?Peach?Blossoms?.”??
　　Based?on?his?feelings?for?the?great?Earth,?his?respect?for?Mother?Nature,?his?thorough?grasp?of?the?Chinese?philosophy,?and?his?understanding?of?the?Western?culture,?all?that?fostered?his?idea?of?landscaping,?the?“Turenscape?Concept”:?Armed?with?modern?technology;?observes?the?phenomenon?up?in?the?sky?and?the?patterns?down?on?the?earth;?and?follows?the?natural?and?social?processes,?so?that?man,?nature?and?the?spirits?can?be?understood?as?one,?and?designed?as?one.?
　　This?self-described?“turen”,?Prof.?Kongjian?Yu,?a?Harvard?Ph.D.,?and?Dean?of?the?Graduate?School?of?Landscape?Architecture?at?Beijing?University,?presented?his?unique?speech?at?the?convention,?“The?Art?of?Survival:?Positioning?Landscape?Architecture?in?The?New?Era”.?His?groundbreaking?work?has?won?him?a?number?of?awards?in?the?hall?of?global?recognition.?
　　Yu’s?true?caring?and?love?for?Nature?expressed?in?his?masterful?piece,?entitled?“Seeking?the?Deity?of?the?Land”,?which?was?included?in?Vol.?7?of?Chien?Kun?Magazine,?has?deeply?touched?me.?Upon?learning?that?he?has?been?invited?to?give?a?special?speech?at?the?University?of?Virginia?(UVA)?after?the?Minneapolis?convention,?I?started?out?to?seek?this?“Deity?of?the?Land”.?
　　In?the?UVA?auditorium,?packed?with?students?and?professors,?I?listened?to?Prof.?Yu?explain?to?the?audience?the?ancient?Chinese?historical?teachings?about?how?humans?and?Nature?can?develop?harmoniously?together.?While?listening?to?his?lectures?and?watching?the?slideshows?he?presented,?I?could?almost?envision?him?leading?his?Turenscape?team?around?the?country,?traveling?between?towns?and?cities?to?cure,?restore?and?protect?the?Mother?Land.?Through?his?work,?speeches,?and?teaching,?Yu,?who?is?just?over?40,?urges?people?in?the?world?to?answer?his?call?for?mankind?to?respect?Nature,?as?that?is?the?only?way?to?lead?a?truly?harmonious?life!?
　　Further,?he?also?introduced?his?“Rice?Field”?project?design?at?the?Shenyang?University?of?Architecture,?and?was?awarded?the?ASLA?Design?Honor?Award?for?this?project.?The?design?creates?a?campus?environment?by?using?rice?and?its?stalks,?along?with?local?wild?grass?in?the?most?economic?way.?Through?reusing?materials?and?putting?rice?fields?and?local?crops?into?the?landscape,?the?design?attempts?a?new?incorporation?of?crops?and?wild?grass?on?the?campus.?And,?by?applying?massive?amounts?of?native,?wild?plants?as?its?background,?the?design?brings?out?the?special?character?of?the?site.?It?not?only?is?easy?to?manage?and?needs?little?investment,?but?also?creates?a?unique,?economic?landscape?with?high?productivity.?The?harvest?from?the?rice?field?has?already?become?a?gift?for?visitors?to?the?university.
　　After?the?speech,?we?had?a?nice?late?night?talk?with?Prof.?Yu.?He?invited?us?to?the?place?he?was?staying?on?campus.?Even?though?being?a?little?tired?from?the?non-stop?sessions?of?conferences?and?speeches,?Prof.?Yu?sincerely?showed?his?regard?to?Chien?Kun?Magazine,?and?his?deep?appreciation?for?the?hard?work?done?by?the?Chien?Kun?staff?on?the?translation?of?his?article,?“Seeking?the?Deity?of?the?Land”.?
　　Though?the?night?was?the?chilliest?of?this?fall,?our?hearts?were?warmed?by?Prof.?Yu’s?spirit.?“Adapt?the?TAO?of?Nature?to?cure?the?great?suffering,?and?refer?to?the?cultural?context?to?enrich?our?deprived?minds.”?The?term?landscape?architect?is?not?enough?to?describe?a?person?with?such?a?reverent?mission;?I?feel?that?he?is?more?like?a?deity?sent?down?from?Heaven?for?protection?of?our?Mother?Earth,?and?mankind’s?well-being.???
　　(Su?Tam,?Xin?Chen)