THE MAN WHO STYLES HIMSELF AS A PACK-HORSE IN THE UNIVERSITY CIRCLE.

* Sir, I've heard that recently, in April 2004, when invited to visit the States, you've brought along with you 500 posters, as well as various other objects, illustrating and depicting the material, cultural and spiritual life of the Vietnamese, to lecture at the California State University. Please speak more explicitly about your trip and its full tenor?
- Towards the years 1908-1909 in HaNoi, Henri Oger, a French orientalist has placed an order with craftsmen working on woodblocks at the Hồ village and the HaứngTroỏng quarter for drawing 4,577sketches, recording and illustrating the mental and spiritual life of people in the Tonkinese Delta. I've got the chance to collect this huge and significant heritage, while I'm at the sametime someone who has had a few occasions to contact and exchange relations with a number of American Universities.Upon learning that I'm working on the above-mentioned cultural subject, one among them has invited me to come to expose and lecture.The US Press has commented that that exposition has the created a special concern with regard to the American people, as before, agreat majority among them only know about a Vietnam at war; it's only now that they've had a clearer view of the diversified cultural traditions of the Vietnamese. Some even said: in the last century, were the Americans to strive to learn about the history and the source of the Vietnamese people, then that regrettable war between the two countries would have not happened. I've selected from this huge collection of documents 500 posters (1metrex1.5metres), showing sketches, annotated in Chinese, Chinese transcribed Vietnamese (Nôm) and English to introduce them to the American people.

* What are the collections you're having in your possession?
- I'm preserving about 181 royal decrees granted by various kings such as Kings QuangTrung, Gia Long, Tự Đức, Thành Thái etc ...I also have a collection of about 400 postcard showing palaces ,buildings, and people from all three regions of ViệtNam printed in the period of time from 1900 to 1920. Moreover, I'm also keeping a collection of books and documents relating to the Tale of Kiều, consisting of about 2000 books and newspapers containing articles on the Tale of Kiều. I'm planning, whenever conditions are made available, to expose the said collection in expositions both inland and abroad, thus achieving my personal aspiration.

* You're the compiler and translator of many works...
- In 1973, I've compiled and published works such as the Chinese-Japanese dictionary, the Japanese-Vietnamese dictionary, the Vietnamese-Japanese Conversational dictionary, theHistory of Japanese literature, a long with many Japanese Old Tales under various different pen names. Right now. I'm the chief editor of works such as: Vietnamese Studies Encyclopedia; SouthVietnamese Studies Encyclopedia; History of the United States of America... and I'm also writing a novel dealing with the question of war and peace in Vietnam. In 2003, I had been chief editor for a translation work, translating the SEA Games Greeting Song into 14 languages, among which was the French translation which I was proposed to record and film together with the HongBang University Music Band?

* I've also heard that you've contributed many ideas to the educational branch of our nation?
- Having some knowledge and feeling much affection for Vietnamese culture in general, I constantly wish to contribute to the development of our nation's educational branch. Circa 1986, I was appointed to organize the non- regular classes at the Ho Chi Minh city University-officially called People-founded University nowadays.In those years, I had proposed to re-use the degrees of Tú Tài (Bachelor) and Cử Nhân (Licenciate) for people that graduate from secondary schools and from Universities. During 4years, from 1988 to 1992, I was sent to Japan to teach the Vietnamese Studies subject at the Osaka Foreign Languages University. That was the occasion for me to giveshape to my own Vietnamese Studie branch, accordingly to my personal viewpoint.

* Doctor, to acquire so much knowledge and to be able to carry out so many works, you must surely have a serious process of study and labor?
- In my childhood I've studies Chinese, Chinese transcribed Vietnamese and French (at the Christian Brothers' School) when grown up I had studied many different fields at the Saigon University (philosophy, cultural studies, history, law), and had studied at the Saigon Languages School languages such as Japanese, chinese, German,and Spanish. After 1975, I've got the chance to study Marxist- Leninist philosophy in Hanoi, and was a research student at the Department of History of the former Hanoi University. Therfore, I've been trained by many teachers, both in the South and in the North, for my mental and inner part, as for the outer appeareance, I have consolidated it all by myself (by playing sports and practicing gymnastics). I do fell that human ability can cope suitably with the harsh environment of labor, were man to know the methods and to have a will. With me, I'm living a quite ordinary life, all that I really need is the two daily meals, taken with my old mother, and the amusements with my wife and children, being not affected by the drinking and smoking. I used to compare myself with a pack-horse, versed in carrying, transporting, and when relaxing, he would browse and cast his look toward the horizon, at which other horses are competing and ambling.

* People call you a filial son, don't you recognize that?
- I recognize that in only a unique time, as for in all other times, it was exactly the contrary. Before 1975, I had know chance to live near my mother to take care of her, and could only meet her from time to time at a three-way crossroads, a harbour, or at a certain garbage dump, which I had given rendezvous in advance. At such a time, she used to give me a loaf and talk to me. At times, at the middle of our conversation, I simply disappeared upon hearing somewhere a police patrol's blow of whistle. My moter then looked in various directions and used her hand to wipe her eyes. I saw that scene clearly from some dark corner, then silently went off to be unheard of, for quite a long time. As for the unique time I've mentioned above, it was the time when my mother learned that I was in a jail. She visited me and seems to be less anxious, as she felt that I had had a long-timed temporary lodging. I remained silent at that time, and suddenly thought that place wasn't my last stop, but it was maybe only a place I was stopping over, like horse that had fallen down on the roadside, while on his long march.