“Maybe there isn't a God after all, maybe there's only a universe rotating by itself like a millstone.” GodUniverseRotating Author:Gao Xingjian
“You contemplate and you wander without any worries, between heaven and earth, in your own private world, and in this way you acquire supreme freedom.” WorldWayEarthHeavenWorrySupremeWanderAcquireContemplatingHeaven And Earth Author:Gao Xingjian
“Once the buttons are undone, you know how it'll all end. It's all in the game, there are no miracles.” KnowsEndsGamesKnow HowMiracleButtonsUndone Author:Gao Xingjian
“When I came overseas, I realized that there are many ideologies and many trends, and it's also very hard to produce honest art and honest literature. I decided that I didn't want to follow any of these ideologies or trends, because that's also a kind of pressure that doesn't allow absolute freedom. So I decided that I was only going to produce works that were satisfactory to me, and that meant not following any trends and being anti-ideological.” WantKindArtHardLiteratureHonestProduceDecidedAbsolutesPressureFollowingI RealizedIdeologyTrendsIdeologicalAbsolute Freedom Author:Gao Xingjian
“In my view the time for rousing revolutionary literature has passed, because the revolution has already revolutionised itself to death and has left behind only bitterness and a sort of weariness, listlessness and even nausea.” LiteratureLeftViewsBehindsRevolutionRevolutionaryBitternessLeft BehindWearinessNausea Author:Gao Xingjian
“There are numerous layers to truth, and the simple and superficial statement of facts cannot satisfy the writer.” FactsSimpleStatementsLayersSuperficial Author:Gao Xingjian
“Since it was announced that I had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has condemned my works and criticized them harshly. All of my works are now banned from getting into China or being published in China. What author would want to return to a country that banned his or her books?” WantBookCountryLiteratureReturnChinaChinesePrizeMinistryNobelNobel PrizeBanned Author:Gao Xingjian
“A good work can be communicated across languages ... [provided one does not] fall into the trap of narrow-minded nationalistic or chauvinistic thinking.” ThinkingDoeFallLanguageGood WorkTrapsNarrow-mindedNationalistic Author:Gao Xingjian
“I decided that I did not want to follow any of these ideologies or trends, because these also exerted a kind of pressure, and obstructed absolute creative freedom.” WantKindCreativeDecidedAbsolutesPressureIdeologyTrendsCreative Freedom Author:Gao Xingjian