After All the Ends Met
Since the ancient Chinese Civilization was first introduced to Japan, all through the eras of ancient kingdoms and the imperial dynasty, samurai worlds, and the modern empire of Japan to present-day democratic Japan, classical Chinese literature has been respected, taught, studied, and developed in Japan.
Today, the spirit of the ancient Yellow River Civilization is more rooted in Japan than in materialistic China.
Accordingly, it is not desirable at all that Americans loving the Roman Empire more than the Vatican blindly tie up with Chinese who respect Rockefeller more than Confucius nowadays.
SECTION I: Who Buy and Sell with China
Stop talking about China, but look at the China's export/import figures below:
(Click to enlarge.)
(Click to enlarge.)http://www.usitc.gov/publications/332/working_papers/EC200607A.pdf
The U.S. Government and Wall Street tried to manipulate China without involving Japan in the period around the Lehman Shock.
It is not a right attitude America should take as a global leader.
Some Americans might still shout "We are No.1 in the world," but their attitude is of the second class nation like China around 1995.
The U.S. Government and Wall Street should stop manipulating China even without involving Japan in this wake of the Lehman Shock.
And, they should not try to manipulate the Chinese Communist Party at all.
Finally, the U.S. should not join China trying to manipulate the Japanese political circle.
(From the above figures prepared by the U.S. Government, it can be inferred that Japan exports the U.S. via China, since Japan exports $95 billion worth of goods to China while China exports $120 billion worth of goods to America.
In other word, based on technology and knowledge imported from Japan, China is manufacturing products destined to the American market.
The dilemma of Japan lies between deflation beyond initial expectation and Chinese market secured for Japanese businesses.)
SECTION II: Confucius Wanted to Go to Sea
Once or around 500 B.C. Confucius said before his followers, "Ah, what a dreadful age we live in now! Nobody respects moral teaching. Nobody respects moral ritual. Nobody practices what is supposed to be practiced by human beings."
The great ancient philosopher continued: "I would rather like to get on a raft, go down the river, enter the sea, and leave for the east..."
Then, a senior follower of the great master said, "Master, let's build a big raft for us all to go on board. Allow me to lead others to prepare for it, sir."
So, Confucius said, "Oh, but where will you find such big trees, my friend?"
It is remarkable that Han people, including Confucius, originally from around the Tibet region held an idea that an ideal place was on some holy islands in the east sea.
According to a certain theory, the holy islands are the Japanese islands.
(As wars were so rampant in China then, people and soldiers burnt everything, including tress. The great Chinese plane had been once covered by great forests; but for agricultural cultivation and wooden fuels Han people cut them out over centuries.
It is also thought that to build a big and robust raft to advance on the ocean you need special or holy trees which could be only found in the holy islands, in my interpretation.)
*** *** *** ***
Not only Americans but many Japanese people are also under the illusion that Chinese people today are direct descendants of ancient Chinese in terms of cultural spirit.
For example, think of Manchuria where Manchus lived till 1945*. Manchus established the Qing Dynasty in 1616 that governed Manchuria and all over China till 1911. But, today Manchus were absorbed by Chinese or the Han people. There is nobody in China today who has inherited the glory of Qing.
In this way, Chinese today do not necessary inherit the spirit and tradition of the era of Confucius.
Especially, since the Chinese Revolution in 1949, the reign of the Chinese communist party has further cut any remaining natural linkage of the people with the ancient spirit.
That is why Chinese people must also learn Judaism, Christianity, and Islam to cope with negative influences of Western civilization and materialism.
In this context, Japanese people have leveraged ancient Chinese wisdom more critically than Chinese have done so as to dilute negative influences of Western civilization and materialism.
In other word, as Japan has various cultural antidotes, including Confucianism, it has been able to fully absorb Western civilization without fatal side effect.
Confucius helped Japan become the second largest economy in the world, in this context.
(*: When the Empire of Japan ceased to operate in 1945, Manchus also faced termination of Manchukuo and lost a chance of revival as an independent tribe forever, though the Empire was not necessarily a good guardian of Manchukuo at all.)
(http://www.zianet.com/jw_laurie/Sounds/mrsrobin.mid
Source:http://www.zianet.com/jw_laurie/midipage.html
God bless you please; Heaven holds the place for those who pray. This is an American song in the middle of change in social moral codes around 1969. In 2009, what changed, I muse?)
Joh 3:27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.