Zhang, who died of illness on Feb. 24 in Beijing at the age of 97, appeared serene as he lay covered in white silk at a mourning hall of the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery in western Beijing.

Zhang was hospitalized at No. 305 Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in downtown Beijing last September suffering from heart and lung diseases. He died of respiratory failure early last Friday morning.

"Zhang was a broad-minded man. We often discussed Buddhism together. I hope he will be fine in heaven," said Yan Zang, a monk from neighboring Hebei Province, who said he had known Zhang for 30 years.

"He was easy-going and humorous. I am saddened that a man who had such a huge influence on me has passed away," said Zhang Suying, head of the copyright department of the Chinese Writers Association.

The remains of Zhang, were cremated later in the day.

Zhang, born in north China's Hebei Province in January 1909, was a Beijing University graduate and worked as a teacher for 14 years before he became an editor at the People's Educational Publishing House, China's leading textbook publisher, in 1950.

He had devoted his life to compiling textbooks and literary works on Chinese language, literature and traditional culture, as well as logic and philosophy. He became one of the very few scholars who had deep insights in both Chinese and Western philosophies.

Zhang was reputed to be one of the top three masters of Chinese national culture at prestigious Beijing University. Enditem