胡适（1891－1962），安徽绩溪上庄村人，因提倡文学革命、思想革命而成为新文化运动的领袖之一。兴趣广泛，著述宏富，在文学、哲学、史学等诸多领域都有开创性的贡献；英文写作、演讲能力俱佳，致力于向西方介绍中国历史文化，影响深远。历任北京大学文学院院长、中国驻美国大使、北京大学校长、“中央研究院”院长等职。

《胡适英文中国思想史授课纲要遗稿（整理本）》是胡适在1944年至1945年于美国哈佛大学讲授“中国思想史”的授课纲要，由手稿笔记誊录而成。本书集中展现了胡适对中国思想史、哲学、宗教等的深入研究和阐析，书中作者对中国三千年来的思想史进程作了提纲挈领性总结，将漫长庞杂的中国思想史理出了清晰的头绪。这部提纲式的著作为首度整理出版，具有独特的文献史料价值。

The Story of 天书 (The Book of Heaven)

In 1008, the Emperor Chên Chung (meaning the Immortalized Emperor) told the whole court that, a month before, he had seen a Messenger from Heaven who told him that, on an appointed day in the 1st month, a Written Message would come down from Heaven. He had prepared himself for over a month for its reception. 

On that day, it was reported that a piece of yellow silk, over 20 feet long, was seen hanging on the roof of one of the palaces, and that the silk seemed to be part of a wrapping for something like a scroll or book. 

The Emperor said: “Ah, the Heavenly Message has come!” Amidst congratulatory applauses, the Emperor walked on foot to the place, bowed twice, and sent two eunuchs to climb up the high roof and take down the Message. 

The Prime Minister, Wang Tan (王旦), knelt down & received it and presented it to the Emperor who put it in a carriage and himself led the carriage back to the Palace Altar where it was opened.

The Message consisted of 3 sheets of writings on silk, praising the Emp., urging him to continue in his good conduct, & promising him long & prosperous reign. 

In the 4th month, a second Book came—again in the Palace. 

In the 6th month, a third Book appeared on the Sacred Mountain, Tai Shan. 

Then began a series of Imperial pilgrimages to the various sacred shrines of old Siniticism & medieval Taoism. The Prime Minister always led the Imperial Processions, holding reverently the Book of Heaven! 

That was the melodramatic & comic epilogue of the Medieval Age. It was staged with clumsy fraud & poor taste. The fraud was so apparent that no loud comment was necessary. 

The motive behind the myth of the Books of Heaven was a desire on the part of the Emperor to cover up the failure of his military campaign against the Kitan Tartars (Liao) in 1004 and the Peace Treaty of 1005, under which peace was obtained by an annual subsidy to the Tartars.