Manchuria was where Chiang Kai-shek lost China to Mao. Thereafter, Mao swept south below the Yangtze to destroy the Nationalist armies south of the river.…
View More The Liao-Shen campaign of 1948—Part 1
Month: June 2025
The Babas—Part 2
Their origins Victor Purcell’s The Chinese in Malaya, published in 1948, did not say that the Babas and Nyonyas were from a mixed Chinese-Malay parentage.…
View More The Babas—Part 2
The Babas—Part 1
Their origins The origins of the Babas are obscure and contentious, according to Felix Chia, author of The Babas. He says the first-generation Babas are…
View More The Babas—Part 1
Embracing Defeat
The title is striking. It seizes your attention. “Embrace” means to take up readily or gladly, like “embrace a cause.” In the book “Embracing Defeat”…
View More Embracing Defeat
Matsuo Basho and The Three Kingdoms
Below is a note I sent on Christmas Day, 25 Dec 2011, to my lawyers from Mount Fuji, Japan, while on tour. Merry Christmas from…
View More Matsuo Basho and The Three Kingdoms
China and Japan – Part 1
Emperor Hirohito’s surrender speech, delivered on August 15, 1945, over the radio, was in classical Japanese that was heavily influenced by classical Chinese, especially in…
View More China and Japan – Part 1
Buddhism in China – Part 2
During and post-Mao Under Mao, all religions, including Buddhism, were regarded as “feudal superstitions.” After Mao died, Deng Xiaoping allowed the restoration of religious sites…
View More Buddhism in China – Part 2
Buddhism in China – Part 1
Post-Western Encroachments Faced with the threat of the British and French taking territory by force, making China strong became a major concern of the Qing court…
View More Buddhism in China – Part 1
Majie – Part 4
The origins of Majie The phenomenon of women in Kwangtung who chose not to marry and sailed to Malaya to work as amahs has its…
View More Majie – Part 4
Majie – Part 3
The majie (as called in Nanyang) is a continuation of the Chinese women’s tradition of devotion to care and providing for her parents. The term…
View More Majie – Part 3