Another section of the museum particularly interests me. It is about the history of Jixia Academy, often considered to be the earliest university in China.

The academy was the highest education institution in Qi during the Warring States Period, and is the place where different schools of thoughts - including Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism, and many more - were debated and got mixed with each other, which is how Chinese philosophy formed in the first place.

That scenario reminds me of the contemporaneous Platonic Academy in Athens, which consolidated the foundation of Western philosophy through the similar debate and mutual learning between various schools.

Perhaps, we can all be grateful for that Axial Age.

According to Ma, Greek scholars were recently invited to a symposium, being organized by the museum, to have a cross-cultural communication via comparison of the two ancient academies.

The actual location of the Jixia Academy remains uncertain, though there are several areas among the Qi capital city ruins that were believed to be the place. Locals tell me that there is a plan in Linzi to construct a replica of the academy as a new tourist attraction, which begs the question: is it better to have a physical shrine to worship or should we just leave the great spirits of the academy wander in our boundless imagination?

Everyone will have their own choice, but for me, I prefer the latter.