董农政大师马年风水讲座观后感

         新加坡著名风水大师董农政师父于2014年1月22日（星期三）下午四点到六点在中央图书馆第一讲堂开展了精彩的风水讲座。董师父近几年都受邀到中文图书馆主讲新年风水生肖运程。经过进一步的了解， 我们才知道， 原来董师父不仅是新加坡著名的风水大师，他在诗歌创作上也多有建树。得知董师父熟知星象命理等传统文化的同时也精通现代诗歌创作，小伙伴们纷纷表示十分惊讶！原来，董师父在十九岁时就开始自己创作诗歌了，同时，他还是新加坡五月诗社的会员。他的一些作品也被收藏国大中文图书馆，如：《没有时间的雪》，《伤舌》，《一抹芙蓉泣断水乡外》，等等。有兴趣的朋友，可以到中文图书馆借阅，欣赏董师父另一方面的才华。

本次讲座除了有学生参与，也有听众是慕名而来的国大工作人员。 许多听众也将讲座重点认真地记录下来。董师父在讲座中用浅显易懂的语言，为我们解释了专业的风水名词，同时以现实的事例加以说明，使大家意识到，原来高深的风水知识其实非常平易近人。 再加上董师父幽默， 风趣的语言， 整个讲堂气氛轻松愉快，近两个小时的讲座，大家都听得兴致盎然，频频点头。其中让人最感兴趣的， 当然是各生肖在龙年的运程了。 董师父详细讲述了各个生肖在马年里的运程和该留意的人事物，并提供了一系列转运的方式，也特别指出今年犯太岁的生肖分别是马、鼠、牛、兔， 也告诉观众可以通过一些方法如家居摆设等避免因犯太岁而造成的厄运。

两个小时的讲座不知不觉就来到了尾声。讲座结束前，董师父仔细地回答了听众提出的问题， 与大家积极热情的互动。大家也对这场精彩的演讲报以热烈的掌声。许多听众在讲座结束后， 依然意犹未尽， 在讲堂中互相交流新学到的风水知识， 有些还围着董师父问东问西，留下合影留念。 看来，无论时间如何流逝，华人对风水文化的热衷和兴趣都是经久不衰的。谢谢国大中文图书馆请董师父带来这么精彩的演讲，让我们更加了解华人的这项传统文化。

童欣

国大中文系同学会

The use of technology in the library has saved both users and librarians heaps of time and effort, although the fast-paced advancement of technology has also made the use of it in research and study a Red Queen’s Race. For those who have not yet read Lewis Carroll’s excellent tale “Through the looking-glass and what Alice found there”*, here is an excerpt of what the Red Queen’s race is:

Alice never could quite make out, in thinking it over afterwards, how it was that they began: all she remembers is, that they were running hand in hand, and the Queen went so fast that it was all she could do to keep up with her: and still the Queen kept crying ‘Faster! Faster!’ but Alice felt she COULD NOT go faster, though she had not breath left to say so.

The most curious part of the thing was, that the trees and the other things round them never changed their places at all: however fast they went, they never seemed to pass anything. ‘I wonder if all the things move along with us?’ thought poor puzzled Alice. And the Queen seemed to guess her thoughts, for she cried, ‘Faster! Don’t try to talk!’

…

The Queen propped her up against a tree, and said kindly, ‘You may rest a little now.’

Alice looked round her in great surprise. ‘Why, I do believe we’ve been under this tree the whole time! Everything’s just as it was!’

‘Of course it is,’ said the Queen, ‘what would you have it?’

‘Well, in OUR country,’ said Alice, still panting a little, ‘you’d generally get to somewhere else—if you ran very fast for a long time, as we’ve been doing.’

‘A slow sort of country!’ said the Queen. ‘Now, HERE, you see, it takes all the running YOU can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!’

It seems nonsensical and paradoxical, but yet it is very true. To stay where we are – ie., proficient in conducting research or locating information for our studies – we have to continuously adapt and re-adapt, and re-adapt again, to the constantly changing faces of technology.

We figure out how to do the same thing through generations and varieties of browsers (Internet Explorer, Safari, FireFox, Chrome and so forth), on generations and varieties of devices (PCs and Macs, tablets and smartphones and so forth), and to add salt to our wounds, databases and websites frequently change their interfaces and even names. Yesterday’s Global Market Information Database – an excellent resource for consumer product markets worldwide – becomes today’s Passport. Web of Science – a well-respected index of peer-reviewed journals – changes its front page drastically, offering a simplified search box instead of a list of databases.

Nonetheless, we sally forth, gamely learning and re-learning how to use our favourite databases, figuring out how to get the best information in the least amount of time, passing on tips and tricks to colleagues and classmates on search strategies.

Until the next time the databases go through another major revamp, that is. Then we start running as fast as we can again, to stay in the same place. But looking back at the “good old days” of flipping through huge tomes of printed indices in the hopes of finding something relevant, or swapping out CD-ROM after CD-ROM while staring at a bulky cathode-ray tube (CRT) monitor, technology has still been more of a boon than a bane.

If you do feel swamped and overwhelmed by the deluge of new things to learn, new interfaces and new devices, you are not alone. And of course, for library databases, help is only a phone-call (or email, or chat screen) away.

* You can find “Through the looking-glass and what Alice found there” in the Central Library (call #:  PR4611 T).

NUS Libraries wishes you a Prosperous Year of Horse!

For the months of January and February 2014, NUS Libraries held four celebration events as shown below:

1. CNY Couplets Exhibition (春联展示)
17-20 Jan 2014 (Fri – Mon)
Chinese Library Level 6
-The celebration of CNY kicked off with the spring couplets exhibition held in the Chinese Library.

2. CNY Couplets Writing (挥春活动)
21 Jan 2014 (Tue), 11am-1:30pm
Central Library Level 4 Theatrette2
- There were more than 100 couplets which were given away to staff and students. The participants were amazed by the calligraphy arts and enjoyed the happiness and warm wishes that have been brought to them.

3. Feng Shui Talk by Master Tong Nonng Chin (董农政师父风水讲座)
22 Feb 2014 (Wed), 4pm-6pm
Central Library Level 4 Theatrette 1
-There were over 30 staff and students who attended the talk and received useful tips on how to improve their luck in the Year of the Horse!

4. Lantern Riddle Competition (灯谜竞猜)
13 Feb 2014 (Thu), 9am-5pm
Chinese Library Level 6
- The lantern riddle guessing game will be the final event to mark the end of the celebration.

We thank all the students and staff who participated in our events and hope they had an enjoyable time! We wish everyone a prosperous Year of the Horse ahead!