[ { "id": 205100, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1966", "page_number": 56, "title": "RAS-1966", "content_text": "SINO-WESTERN CONTACTS\n\n51\n\nsurviving specimen of a Middle Mongolian literary text, and an invaluable source on the customs and mores of the Mongols in their early formative period, has a lot to tell about the feuds and struggles of steppe tribes. But it remains singularly uninformative about the countries outside Mongolia. The campaigns against Russia, for example, are mentioned only in the most laconic terms. It is said in No. 274 \"they destroyed the towns of Ejil, Jayah and Meget\". Of these three only Meget, modern Mzcheti near Tiflis, is a town, whereas Ejil and Jayah are names of rivers—the Volga and the Ural respectively. And later similar confusion reigns between names of tribes and towns—the text mentions the \"population of towns like Asut, Sesut, Bolar and Man-Kerman Kiwa\". Asut are the As, the Ossetes; Sesut are probably the Saqsin; Bolar the Volga Bulgars; and Man-Kerman Kiwa means in Turkish the \"great town Kiwa\" which might refer to Sugdaq near Kaffa in the Crimea raided by the Mongols in 1223. All this shows a grandiose unconcern over countries that, after all, had become parts of the Mongol empire.\n\nThe situation is not very different if we turn to the Chinese sources. The dynastic history of the Yuan, Yuan-shih, compiled in 1368-1369 from existing records does not contain much on those parts of Asia that, at some time under Kublai Khan, had belonged to him who was also emperor of China. The compilers and historiographers whose work finally resulted in the Yuan-shih as we have it were mostly Chinese, and their attitude in writing a dynastic history was as a matter of course centered on China. It is perhaps significant that in the section reserved for foreign states in the Yuan-shih we find only entries of those countries which had always had ambassadorial contacts and so-called \"tribute\" relations with China, countries like North and South Korea, Japan, Annam, Burma and Champa. These were immediate neighbors of China. No special chapters were written on other Western states, even if they were dominated by Mongols—countries such as Persia or the Golden Horde or the Chagatai dominion of Central Asia. If they sent embassies or notifications the records must be looked for in the annalistic section (pen-chi). There are, it is true, a few data on Western Asia and even Russia scattered through the Yuan-shih, but they are extremely scanty. There is an appendix on the Western Regions to the section of political geography (YS ch. 63) where the kingdom of Uzbeg.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1966.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/bz60k0811", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 206651, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1972", "page_number": 199, "title": "RAS-1972", "content_text": "THREE CHINESE DEITIES\n\n193\n\nfrom the Imperial Palace. These Chinese expeditions sailed as far afield as the coast of East Africa, the Maldive Islands, Mogadishu, the Persian Gulf, Aden and Mecca, Siam, Champa, Java, Sumatra and Malacca, visiting more than thirty countries in South East Asia, the Indian Archipelago and the Indian Ocean.\n\nCheng Ho\n\nThe most famous of the admirals to command these expeditions was Ma Cheng-ho, a eunuch from the Imperial Palace and the son of a Chinese Moslem Hadji from Yunnan. The Admiral is remembered either as Cheng Ho or by his title, San Po Kung (2) and not by his family name which was the common Chinese Moslem name Ma ( ). The full title by which he was known after his death was San Pao T'ai Chien (2), the Three Jewelled Eunuch, but this in South East Asia has been shortened to San Pao Kung (ET). Cheng Ho's last expedition in 1430 visited seventeen countries from which tribute had ceased to be received, but after he died in about 1431 all official intercourse between these countries and China ceased.*\n\nWhere or when he was deified is not known. However, amongst the overseas Chinese communities which are mentioned below Cheng Ho is still prayed to for protection, both in everyday life and on short journeys. In the earlier days of the Chinese migrations to South East Asia, he was prayed to by the junk crews of the southern maritime provinces of China and the South Seas. Cheng Ho himself on his voyages is said to have prayed to Tien Fei, the Heavenly Consort (kt), the Chinese seafarers' goddess, who is now normally called Ma Tsu or Tien Hou. What a good example of Chinese toleration Cheng Ho was: or perhaps a good example of the prudent Chinese who takes the opportunity not to offend, and also backs all horses. Here he is, a Mohamedan who prays to Tien Fei for protection and who during one of his voyages erects a tablet in honour of the local Buddha.\n\nImages of Cheng Ho\n\nStatues of Cheng Ho are to be seen in temples in Singapore; in Malaysia in Muar and Malacca; in Sarawak; in Semarang in Java,\n\nSee J. V. G. Mills' edited translation of Ma Huan's Ying-yai Sheng-lan. The overall survey of the Ocean's Shores, Cambridge University Press for The Hakluyt Society, 1970.", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1972.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/gm80qf99h", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 210389, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1984", "page_number": 360, "title": "RAS-1984", "content_text": "339\n\nous. Even at the best of Chinese times local families enjoyed \"virtual autonomy from the imperial court\" (p. 163).\n\nRebellion against Chinese rule, indeed, was endemic throughout the later phases whether peasant led or fomented by leading families. The whole confrontation culminated in the major clashes with T’ang officialdom in the ninth century, which also saw an uneasy alliance of some Vietnamese factions with the inland Nan Chao kingdom.\n\nFor all his development of the Vietnamese pre-Chinese roots, this is not a unique position. Taylor's contention that scholars have tended to neglect this aspect (p. xvii) is not borne out by the work of others such as D.G.E. Hall (see his History of Southeast Asia, MacMillan, 1955) and George Coedes (see his The Making of Southeast Asia, Berkeley, 1966).\n\nIn spite of a heavy emphasis upon anti-Chinese rebellion and the throwing-off of Chinese rule, and earlier of the inculcation of Chinese cultural models, Vietnam at independence in the tenth century was not only a very impoverished and ravaged land, but also a pretty rude place. There was nothing of note in buildings; cultural levels were far below those expected in a T'ang province; and nothing to compare favourably with the grand styles of the contemporaneous Champa and Khmer kingdoms to the south and west.\n\nThis is an absorbing book, and a valuable contribution as filling some gaps in our knowledge of ancient Vietnam. It ends with fifteen appendixes—mostly descriptive essays on Vietnamese legends, migration, textual and geographic problems; a glossary of place names, titles, personal names, and terms and expressions in Vietnamese and Chinese.\n\nLEIGH R. WRIGHT University of Hong Kong\n\nPage 360\n\nPage 361", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1984.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/5h73wh572", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 214898, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1999", "page_number": 313, "title": "RAS-1999", "content_text": "287\n\nfive, offshore islets but, due to silting up over the years, they became part of the mainland. Mysterious caves within the mountain shelter altars dedicated to Buddha, different gods and genies based upon popular beliefs held by the area's inhabitants. Today, these caves still serve as religious sanctuaries. The mountains are also a valuable source of red, white and blue-green marble. At the foot of the mountains, skilful marble carvers create a great variety of objets d'arts.\n\nOur fifth day was spent in Hoi An. About 15 miles southeast of Danang, this charming old town was once a flourishing port and meeting place of eastern and western cultures in central Dai Viet under the Nguyen lords. Hoi An was originally a seaport in the Champa Kingdom; by the 15th century it had become a coastal Vietnamese town under the Tran Dynasty. In the beginning of the 16th century the Portuguese came to explore the coast of Hoi An. They were followed by the first western traders in the area. Then came the Chinese, the Japanese, the Dutch, the British and the French. In the early 1980s, UNESCO and the Polish Government took the initiative and funded a restoration program to classify and safeguard Hoi An's ancient quarters and historic monuments. The old town area borders the Thu Bon River to the South of the town. Le Loi Street was the first street to be built, about four centuries ago. The Japanese quarter with its covered bridge, Japanese style shops and houses followed half a century later, then came the Cantonese quarter a further 50 years later still.\n\nHoi An's ancient past is superbly preserved in its architecture. The old quarter is a fascinating blend of temples, pagodas, community houses, shrines, clan houses, shop houses and homes. One of the most remarkable historical architectural examples is the Japanese covered Bridge. Built by the Japanese community in the 17th century, the bridge's curved shape and undulating green and yellow tiled roof give the impression of moving water. Some pagodas and 20 Chinese clan houses stand in the centre of the ancient town. The clan house has been the meeting place for many generations of the same clan. Here they recall their origins and worship their ancestors. The Chinese migrant community built most of the temples and houses here over a span of 40 years, between 1845 and 1885.\n\nThe most characteristic examples of Hoi An's architecture are the old houses along Nguyen Thai Hoc Street. These elongated houses", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1999.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/s178b887x", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 214899, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1999", "page_number": 314, "title": "RAS-1999", "content_text": "288\n\nfront onto one street and back on to the street behind, thus, in a way linking two streets. All the houses are built of durable timber in a refined two-storey style. The front portion often serves as a boutique and the area behind is generally used as storage space. The interior living space has split levels with an inner courtyard open to the sky and a veranda linking several living quarters. One of the most remarkable features of these old homes is the diversity of their architecture. This varies greatly from one house to another in terms of space distribution, sculptural art, decoration and inner courtyard gardens. Space is utilized to the utmost. Walking in the streets of this beautiful and charming ancient town, a living vestige of the past, one can observe the influence of the architecture, sculpture and decorative Chinese and Japanese styles and the skills of the Vietnamese architects who have absorbed various influences and created something similar, yet somehow uniquely different.\n\nOur sixth day was spent in My Son Valley, 43 miles southwest of Danang. My Son was chosen as a religious sanctuary from the fourth century onwards. Many temples and towers were built here. Most were dedicated to kings and Brahman divinities, including the god Shiva who was considered the creator, founder and defender of the Champa Kingdom and the Cham royal dynasties.\n\nMore than 70 architectural works of different styles and eras once stood in this ancient valley but today less than 20 remain. Tragically, My Son fell within a “free-fire zone” during the American War and was almost completely destroyed by bombs. The French did the present restoration work. The Cham towers were ingeniously constructed of dried bricks stuck together with resin from the cau day tree. Once the tower was completed it was encircled by fires, which were kept well stoked for several days. The intense heat fired the whole structure completely melting and sealing the bricks and resin together to form a structure well able to withstand the combined onslaught of time and the elements - but unfortunately not 20th century bombs.\n\nOur tour ended in My Son and the next morning we left Danang for Hanoi and flew back to Hong Kong. I returned to Hong Kong with many emotions about Vietnam. It was once a tribal neighbour of China and the Chinese influence there was strong. I felt much affinity with the place and its people when I saw the tombs and I tried to interpret", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1999.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/s178b887x", "rank": 0 } ]