In the independent Czechoslovak Republic, President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk played a profound role in influencing Musil´s important decisions and subsequent actions, even though their political and social opinions differed. Musil, at that time a student of theology, met Masaryk in 1889 in Turčiansky Sväty Martin in Slovakia. He recalled Masaryk´s emphasis on the necessity of having strong personal convictions when studying. Musil gave an inaugural lecture, How did I get to know the Orient, on 11th February 1920.In the auditorium, journalists and politicians were present, headed by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edvard Beneš. Musil´s plans for Czech Oriental studies were not only scientific and cultural, but also political and economic. Musil believed that for the newborn Czechoslovakian state the Orient could act as a substitues for colonies, since it could supply the country with raw materials in exchange for various products, and it could also offer its countrymen profitable employment opportunities. According to him, the government needed to systematically arouse interest in the Orient in Czechoslovakia and vice-versa, and also to use cultural links as the starting point for the establishment of active economic relations. Therefore, he believed it should be a national aim to establish an Oriental library, a school of living languages and a large Oriental institute. In 1920, based on Masaryk´s wishes, Musil began preparations for a great journey leading from Northern Africa to Southwest Asia, where he hoped to promote the political and economic interests of Czechoslovakia. The journey was postponed on several occasions and, in the end, never took place., Pavel Žďárský., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Czechoslovak Oriental studies were founded as a result of the lifework of Alois Musil, a Czech researcher of rural Moravian origin. In the independent Czechoslovak Republic President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk played a profound role in influencing Musil´s important decisions and subsequent actions. In 1919, after the destruction of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Musil wanted to leave Vienna and continue his lectures at Charles University inPrague. This resulted in a political campaign against him. Musil was criticized by nationalistic circles in Prague, which induced the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs to inquire of the French and British governments as to whether they might have any objections to Musil´s appointment as a tenured professor, given his activities during the war. Britain and France had no objections and in January 1920 Alois Musil was appointed Professor of Oriental sciences and modern Arabic at the Faculty of Arts at Charles University in Prague., Pavel Žďárský., and Obsahuje seznam literatury