Daniel Sarafinas, a PhD student in the Philosophy and Religious Studies Programme at the University of Macau (UM), received a second prize at a writing competition on traditional Chinese culture and health-related topics, at a conference hosted by Wudang College.

Titled ‘The Structure of Tradition and Its Impact on Individual and Social Health’, Sarafinas’s paper focuses on the concept of tradition and its role in the well-being of individuals and society through its ability to foster a sense of identity, as well as the use of critique of tradition as a way to prevent fanaticism and zealotry that are often associated with excessive reliance on tradition. Five other postgraduate students, from Sichuan University, Xiamen University, and Zhongnan University, also gave presentations at the conference.

Held in Wudang Mountains, the most famous of the four sacred mountains of Daoism in China, the conference celebrated traditional Chinese culture in a quiet and picturesque setting. Renowned scholars of Daoism, including Wudang College President Du Baihong, Prof Lu Xichen from Zhongnan University, and Prof Huang Yongfeng from Xiamen University, attended the event.