Swedish writer and professor Cecilia Lindqvist recently released her book Qin, in Chinese, with the title Guqin. The 77-year-old sinologist has been practicing the guqin for nearly half a century. The UNESCO has listed the ancient Chinese instrument as part of an Intangible Heritage.

During her visit to China last month, Lindqvist recalled how she fell in love with guqin upon first sight after she went to Peking University to learn Chinese in 1961. "When I touched a string out of curiosity, it gave a low and deep sound. I felt the whole house vibrate," Lindqvist recalls.

In the book, Lindqvist not only writes about guqin but also discusses its relation to music, poetry and the daily life of ancient Chinese literati. She regards the book as a memoir of her two years in China.

Lindqvist says she enjoyed learning 20 Chinese characters and practicing the guqin every day. "It inspired me to think about my attitude to life."

After she went back to Europe, she wrote China, Empire of Written Symbol, in which Lindqvist used Chinese characters to introduce Chinese culture. The book was rewarded the August Prize for the best book of the year in the late 1980s in Sweden.

Qin was published in 2006 and sold about 30,000 copies. It earned Lindqvist the August Prize for the second time.

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