From folk rap to puppet shows staged by young people, from epic literature to animated films, the story of King Gesar has remained timeless and has become a shared epic among various ethnic groups. The story of King Gesar is a microcosm, and the stories of national unity contained in folk literature and customs are indescribable, radiating the enchanting brilliance of Chinese culture. This is also a theme that Lin Jifu, a member of the National Revolutionary Committee and a professor at the School of Ethnology and Sociology of the Central University for Nationalities, has been concerned about in recent years. Recently, he was invited by the National Library to tell the story of the Chinese nation in intangible cultural heritage. After the event, he accepted an interview with China News to share his research experience on intangible cultural heritage (hereinafter referred to as "intangible cultural heritage") in recent years, explaining why intangible cultural heritage and folk literature can carry and convey the common values of the Chinese nation, and enhance the cohesion of the Chinese nation. Lin Jifu's source: Where did the rural elderly woman who didn't travel far from China News Network hear the "distant story" from? Wishing to transport the goods from Jiadi to Lingdi, and to transport the gold and silver deposits from Lingdi to Jiadi, so that Jiadi merchants and goods can come and go continuously throughout the year This is a lyric sung in "The Legend of Gesar Garling" praising the economic and trade exchanges between Han and Tibet. "Jia" is a shortened term for the Han ethnic group and their location, while "Ling" refers to the "Lingga" region led by Gesar, which is a shortened term for the Tibetan ethnic group and their location... Lin Jifu said in his lecture, "Rap artists integrate the content of Han Tibetan economic and trade exchanges into epics, and interpret many touching stories of Han Tibetan unity and friendship." "The Legend of Garling" is one of the many branches of King Gesar's epic, which was spread locally due to its content involving the story of Diqing, Yunnan. At first, it was mostly sung by Tibetan people, but gradually it was accepted and developed into more versions by Mongolian, Yugur, Pumi, Bai and other ethnic groups. Gesar has become a vivid practice and historical witness of the continuous development and exchange of multi-ethnic folk literature, "said Lin Jifu. The epic of King Gesar has been passed down for thousands of years through oral singing by folk artists, while some folk stories have broken through the limitations of language and geography and entered thousands of households through other art forms. Sun Jiaxiang, an elderly man who doesn't know a word, has been to the farthest place in his life, only 25 kilometers away from home, but he can tell more than 500 folk stories such as Bao Qingtian, the Three Kingdoms, and the Twenty Four Filial Piety. Where does such rich material come from? In 1997, Lin Jifu went to Zhenwan, Changyang, Hubei to meet Sun Jiaxiang, and the answer was revealed - these materials were all heard from rural shadow puppetry. Shadow puppetry embodies the common values of the Chinese nation, and its dissemination enables moral concepts to transcend regional and ethnic limitations, connecting them with a larger space. This is the process of the formation of moral and aesthetic concepts shared by Chinese culture, as well as the link between values and the lives of various ethnic groups, thereby continuously enhancing the cohesion of the Chinese nation in performances Lin Jifu said. The cultural commonality reflected in intangible cultural heritage has been the focus of Lin Jifu's research in recent years. In his view, focusing on "commonality" is the key to understanding and accepting different ethnic customs. Therefore, studying commonality can not only promote national unity and progress, but also greatly benefit the establishment of an independent disciplinary system for folklore studies. Who is the boatman shouting for? To find new "audiences" for intangible cultural heritage, there are countless stories in folk literature, but with the development and changes of society, some stories have gradually lost their audience. I have always believed that in the protection of the ten major categories of intangible cultural heritage, the inheritance of folk literature faces some problems, and the ability to 'live' is relatively weak. Because folk literature is about telling stories, singing, and giving epic speeches, these inheritors have no economic benefits. However, this kind of folk literature and customs precisely contains the profound cultural genes of the Chinese nation, "said Lin Jifu. How to achieve creative transformation and innovative development of intangible cultural heritage? Lin Jifu believes that the most important thing is to adapt to people's living and aesthetic needs. For example, "I play with mud in Jingdezhen" once became a hot topic on social media. Traditional porcelain making techniques are combined with bright colors and various shapes of dolls, small animals, and other items that are in line with modern popular aesthetics, such as cups, plates, music boxes, and other items that young people like. Some netizens jokingly said, "No one can leave Jingdezhen empty handed!" "The most core skill about Jingdezhen is porcelain making, which preserves the classic colors and patterns of Jingdezhen and innovates on this basis. This is the main path for intangible cultural heritage to integrate into life." Lin Jifu later added, "Innovation has boundaries, and its core skills and cultural genes cannot be changed. This is the foundation of intangible cultural heritage protection. So transformed. Combining local customs with tourism has become another way to protect and inherit intangible cultural heritage. Lin Jifu took the example of the boatman in Badong: Badong is located in the hinterland of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River in the southwest of Hubei Province. The river is densely covered with reefs and the water flow is turbulent, which brings great inconvenience to navigation. In order to unify the rhythm of sailing and boost morale, the boatman's horn was born, and the sound of "three feet of white cloth, hehe! Four liang of hemp, hehe! Stepping on stones, hehe!" can often be heard echoing in the canyon. Nowadays, wooden boats have long been replaced by motorized boats, but the boatman's chant still echoes along the banks of the Shennong River in the Three Gorges, becoming the calling card of the Three Gorges boatman Cultural Tourism Festival. The boatman's boat is a daily routine in the lives of the older generation, and now there is no need to pull fibers and sail. It cannot return to everyone's life. So it can be turned into a local cultural symbol for the construction of local cultural brands Lin Jifu said. What are the intangible cultural heritages of "storytellers" that need to be studied with a family and country in mind? What does folk literature study? In the words of Lin Jifu, folk literature is "storytelling and singing". As a scholar, he "specializes in studying people who tell stories". My interest in folk literature stems from Lin Jifu's upbringing. "Because I am a farmer's child, I particularly like folk literature. My experience of playing games when herding cattle as a child has made me deeply attached to my hometown and folk customs." In 1982, Lin Jifu became the first person in the village to enter a university. "To celebrate my entrance to university, the brigade spent 12 yuan to send a movie to my family. As a reward, my family invited someone to perform a shadow play in the village, which seems destined that I will embark on the path of studying folk literature in the future." After graduating from Central China Normal University in 1986, Lin Jifu gave up other better options and resolutely went to Xizang Agricultural and Animal Husbandry College to become a Chinese speaker Literature teacher. In the following 8 years, he used his holidays to read literature, conduct research, and wrote multiple articles on Tibetan folk culture and beliefs. From Xizang Agriculture and Animal Husbandry College, Central China Normal University to the Central University for Nationalities, he has always been at the forefront of teaching and enjoyed the pleasure of teaching. I feel very happy to be able to cultivate so many students. I often say, 'Teachers have limited energy, so if you are cultivated, you should have great aspirations. You should not only care about your personal home, but also have a heart for your country and the world.' In recent years, Lin Jifu has led students to the Gesar Culture (Guoluo) Ecological Protection Zone, Diqing Ethnic Culture Ecological Protection Zone, Qiang Ethnic Culture Ecological Protection Zone, Southwest Hubei Tujia and Miao Ethnic Culture Ecological Protection Zone, and Southeast Guizhou Ethnic Culture Protection Zone to conduct research on strengthening the sense of community of the Chinese nation. If we don't answer the questions of the times and some of the questions about the country's cultural construction, this is not what a scholar should do. Scholars should use their knowledge to serve the construction of the country and the improvement of people's lives. Only in this way can knowledge be valuable, and we will have a greater sense of achievement when we do it. "(Xinhua News Agency)