Contents
Foreword I / i
Foreword II / iii
Preface / vii
Introduction / 1
Chapter I
Two Civilizations / 13
Chapter II
The Western Han Dynasty / 59
Chapter III
The Roman Empire / 137
Conclusion / 205
Appendix: Commentaries / 227
Foreword
I
"A sustainable civilization is one that can examine itself, tolerate and accommodate others, coexist in harmony with others, and learn from others" – this is a common wisdom of both the Chinese civilization and the Greek civilization. It is the wisdom very much needed in today's world, where challenges we face are global, and we need more than ever to work together, to learn from each other, and to focus on common values. Pan Yue's book makes an important contribution to the civilizational dialogue between the East and the West, and helps to bring us to the common ground, or "Agora" as I would call it, to enrich each other via debate, to move forward together, and to create a shared future for us all.
H.E. George Papandreou,
182nd Prime Minister of Greece,
President of the Socialist International
