My Brazil

After thirty three years back and forth to Brazil in business. On an average of a minimum two to five trips a year- Brazil in all these years have always amazed me.
I grew up in Brazil as a teenager -- I have arrived inito Brazil in 62, at an age of 13-14. Coming from Macao, Hong Kong and after a 45 days of ocean voyage. My first impression with Rio de Janeiro and Santos was impressive. Yes, from the age of 14-19, what a most "marvelous" period to be growing up in the city of Sao Paulo. Oh yes, that period of the Brazilian era we all well remembered as " Epoca de ouro" -- Or the golden age, where the wealth of coffee had turned the city of Sao Paulo, the most classical and enjoyable for a young teen with all the trimmings and attribute of a period where beyond the words of "cosmopolitan", "international" and "multi-national"-- It was a time that was a city of abundance --- we lived in an area called Jardins -- or "gardens". Oh yes, the street was called Bela Cintra, one block up from Rua Estados Unidos, and next to the club named - Paulistano, literally, people from the city of SP is called -- and "paulistas" for the rest of the resident from the state with the same name-- Sao Paulo.

The Chinese community in SP at that time also had its varies groups and ethnic diversity. Mom is Cantonese, so we have the Cantonese from Hong Kong and a few from Macao, but by in large, since dad had gone over to Brazil ever since 1956 or there abouts. Dad was from Shanghai and his origin home village was in Yuyao, the province of Zhejiang, the province immediately next to the known city of Shanghai, by birth place. Dad had gone to school in Sorbonne, Paris -- as one of the many progressive Chinese, immediately after the rise of the Chinese Republic --the focus was to find all sorts of cultural niches to build the future of China. There were those who had left for then Soviet Union, to Japan, to learn about militarism and others had gone on to the US for banking, finances and his group like Deng Xiaoping and Zhu Enlai, had gone on to France for philosophy and for humanities - and an array of all others had gone onto Germany and other regions in search for "values" for the new China's Republic. The civil war had taken father into Brazil -- if for no other reasons, based on his association of the many Chinese from Indo-China, like Thailand, Burma and Vietnam -- many of them had already left for Brazil and yes, Sao Paulo, and why? For Sao Paulo had resembled most of the European cities -- there have been contemplation of these many Europeanized Chinese, who had thought of Lebanon, Milan, Buenos Aires and finally Sao Paulo, Brazil. Based on the rising economy - and the vast European residents and the good mix of the many more nations, all had congregrated into the city of Sao Paulo.

Well, this is one of the many reasons and for now, I will just go by this basic reason and for us youngsters -- manybe not all will share my view and my understanding of Brazil , but for me, I have gotten so much out of Brazil and have benefited from the richness of the Brazilians -- where I have ventured beyond the living experience in one of the most sophisticated city of Sao Paulo, where I have also later ventured out to the interior of Sao Paulo, in Lorena, a city half way between SP and Rio, in the Valley called Paraiba and where I have tended to one of the old Italian Catholic order called Salesianos, or Salesians, from Turino, Italy. the same boys school I have tended in Macao --- and yes, my family's engagement with the Jesuits -- from the Matteo Ricci group in Macao, who had my entire family baptized and yes, my brother Peter and I , have been been given our Christian name - Peter and Paul, and most coincidentally, my name itself had me endeared ever since with the city who bears my Christian name and yes, I have enjoyed such wonderful coincidence, more so in reflecting over the name Paul, or Saul --Jewish by birth, Roman by citizenship and Greek by culture. All of the apostle 's multi-cultural attributes, some how had also created my other identity with the name Paul.

Well, enough said about this name of Paul. But I am forever grateful to my dad and to have my young age exposure to Brazil and from the city of Sao Paulo, to Lorena, in the interior of the state for schooling and ever since then, I have enjoyed all the richer engagement with all the rest of the culturally diverse regions of entire Brazil.

In 1964, two years after my arrival into Sao Paulo, I have began swimming competitively for a club name Hebraica , namely Hebrew -- and where my school mate , Ivan Szumuk, from Hungary, like many other friends of mine, mixed marriage of Christians and Jews, Hungarian citizenship --- we mixed and mingled, we swam, we played and we competed in many events, and in that year, I have become the first ethnic Chinese ever broken the state record , in swimming in 50M breast stroke. In those years and beyond, swimming in private clubs and where I have also swam against Mark Spitz, unbeknown to me that some years later, I saw his name surfaced in the Olympics. The cosmopolitan way of life in Sao Paulo had me meeting the many natioanlities, from the Egytian Jews, Sephardic Jews, who fled then the civil war in Egypt and war with Israel -- In my club alone, we have over tens if not more of languages. I have learned to cursed not only in Portuguese, but yes, in Italian, in Hungarian, in Arabic . and life was richer than ever -- it was all about sports and the endless weekend parties - like all teen agers, we were invited to all sort of parties. But in the use of the stories about parties, about dating and how the many of us, ethnic Chinese, where these are the pals I have met with my family's contacts, yes, we were a handful of young pals and yet, many of them who were attending to American schools, Chapel was the name of the American school and the other was Graded, a British origin, non religious English school, but then again, predominantly in these two schools were mostly Americans plus an array of the many other global nationalities. Yes, we, these handful of the ethnic Chinese kids had our fun and also our "minor gamble". We normally began our weekend evening, by the dinner engagement that almost the entire family had to attend, be that a new arrival of the immigrants from Asia, our family greeted them, befriended to many , and yes, the entire family had to attend to pay respect -- and the handful of us , as always, glancing over our watches nervously --- anticipating for the sort of activities beyond the tasty meals and the on going dishes upon dishes. Our focus then was about the parties after the dinner, be that of an American party, where most often, some of those youngsters, were or had just formed a musical band that sounded just like the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, or the Monkees, yes the American music and or the British music was dominated the psyche and the minds of the youngster then . However, where I have my other side of the social engagement, be that I was dating a young lady, where I was awaiting to be meeting them in a later date -- Later ? How late can that be ? Yes, there is a clock in us all -- the first the Chinese dinner, then the American parties, that can be going into late, versus the Brazilians, my other group, most often the parties began around or near ten or much later------- Yes, we all loved our party or parties and the clocking of the timing into those "three cultural zones".

Such were the ages of the many teens, a cosmopolitan and very culturally diverse city , with our own diversities, from culture to culture --- and our encounter of all the new arrivals of many nationalities and our mingle with the many marvelous, loving, affectionate, endearing Brazilians where unlike the Chinese or the Americans (from our social perspective), the Brazilians as always, was always a party that involved all generations. We were offered meals, yes, wines along with all the adults. Yes, the society we were involved also, yes, in the upper middle class of the Brazilians -- but it was never a class divide. In looking back, depend upon in where and how we do our own introspective analysis - as most of who had moved on up to the States for college , yes, many of our American contemporaries in college would have commented that our lives then in Sao Paulo, Brazil, were more of a elite class -- and we were.

Yes, in any given home and house, we have our house cleaners, a group of maids who will be divided up to be doing the tougher chores of the house, yard work, garden work and the others will take care the house cleaning that can range from floor polishing (wood floors as well as ceramic floors that requires to be hand or machine waxed). there are the maids who did the laundry and shopping for house maidens. And for those others, we have chauffeurs and gardeners -- with house and homes that are generally fairly good sizes and with a good numbers of us with multiple siblings and or relatives, or visiting relatives.

Dating at that period of the 60s, the dating rituals were very rigid -- yes, no good lady would have gone out on a date without a chaperon -- and as in my case, on my first date, my girlfriend then had his older first cousin --- to have us chaperoned. Because no "good and respectful" young woman would go out ever "alone" on the first date. Even in the next few dates, as always, she was in generally well escorted, or to be accompanied by even "aunts" !!!!

I loved the family of my girl friend A Maria-- and I recalled very well, that no one lingering also outside of the house for long, the blink of a light was good enough to tell the young lady "time to be inside" --- those social and cultural values were all most universal - No good lady will be lingering on, much worse, to be held by any boys. That was a no , no .

I will move on a bit faster from my teen age life then in the sixties to present -- where I have gone forward from being a teen growing up in Sao Paulo, our social values and our manners and demeanor had sets of rituals and those values and rituals have to be guided and reinforced by almost all the society then .

Of course, we have out so called wild activities typical for any young men of our time. Such as in our behind schedule going home --try to be home -- promised to ones parents to be home alightly about midnight -- where almost, never we were home then, how about two, or even six and as late as eight the next morning .. Yes, the hormonic side of young men and the adventurous spirit of the few of us, had us driving fast, out racing area police --- when the streets and avenues were wide and cars were no where to be seen-- by the many daring dos, when the police cars were very docile and much less equipped - for the few us, who had out do the siren blinking police cars in their volkswagen beatles -- was part of the fun and game and maybe we all were influenced then by Jimmy Dean in "Rebel without a cause" or so it had gone. Regardless of our cultural and ethnic mix -- Louie was form Bolivia, Karol is from Poland, yes, Karol's family name had shown up in Encyclopedia Britannica -- and we all speak Portuguese fluently and also English --- Peter, Charlies and me with Kao and Jackson, all ethnic Chinese, we ate in dinners where our parents know of each other ---- and we all took off in separate cars to American parties, to Danish parties, French and I personally love as always, in those Lebanese homes -- maybe then, I felt in love with all those plush oriental rugs -- and the most hospital people with abundance of food, the Kibe, the esfihas --- but then again, we were all Brazilians with all the multi-cultural decorum, sound, taste and flavor.

Oh yes, food, fruits and all of that, is another most colorful momories for me -- the daily fresh squeezed orange juice, the jars and jars of fresh lime juices -- Brazilian food, the rice cooked with fresh garlic, onion and often, a touch with a couple slices of tomatoe, and even today I cooked my rice the Brazilian way , where my chilldren and my wife all have enjoyed it immensely , or until we all know rice is pure starch, and since then, rice now is out of the menu --- as the kids have all grown and no longer in the house -- but whenever there is the chance to make some rice, nine out of ten time, we do it the Brazilian way, not only my children, but yes, their pals, their school mates, or sport team members , and their parents --- Oh yes, Brazilian rice and then, the memories of the beans, the Paulista feijao -- as we called it, and for the longest time, my maids daily cooking, rice, bean, fresh salad and a slightly pan fried beef think steak with garlic, and yes, with eggs -- we called it " Bife a cavalo" become my most common meal. The same had gone on when I was in the boarding school in Lorena -- where the breaded fried "egg plants", or the parmagiana, the style of Italian cooking amongst the many Brazilians were ever so common. So, Brazilian food, its flavor, its taste and the abundance of fruit -- be that banana, mango, papaya, oranges, the abundance of all sort of fruits -- was one of the sweetest memories and the variety of ways in how to have them prepared, imagine, banana smashed in with sugar, or honey and the daily ten to fifteen shots of our Brazilian "cafezinho" had dominated my life for over twenty years -- or until when I have found out I am a diabetic 2 -- even so, the daily intake of ten cups or more "cafezinho" remains whenever I am in Brazil :)

The other three characters -- Journey to the West

The sandman, the second adjutant to the Tang Monk, was a monter who used to live near a sandy river bank -- another deity banished to the lower level of hell -- so to speak .. and the third character -- The Pig, or the pig with eight guarded laws --- From our children's pictorials, all of these characters are with human bodies, but all of them are dressed as humans, where the Monkey is the Monkey and the sandman was just a man with tons of hair -- or what is amazing is that the hair almost worked out us "full of sand" , at least, that is how I have been visualizing the Sandman, and the Pig with 8 guarded laws, has a pig face, but a human body as well. He symbolized gluttony, complacency, laziness and to a large degree, cowardice and yes "chicken" would have been a better word. Where the Sandman, and the fourth "banished deity" was the horse, the horse, a white horse who carried often the Monk and his many books and luggage. Both the horse and the Sandman represented more of the human "apathy" - another human frailty and all of them in the entire journey, upon facing any challenges by the road side demons and monsters, frequently had shown signs of retreat, or giving up ---- Because in this entire journey to the West -- in the underworld of the demons and monsters -- the prize of the "flesh" of this monk, would have been given them all - their immortality . Thus, the journey of this group has all the many challenges. Where often, these road side demons and villains, would have themselves camouflaged into the many forms of trickey -- Often they come to the monk as elder women, or young women appealing to be weak and helpless -- while in this exchange of "falsehood" or entrapment, as often shown in the novel, this pious and yet weak monk had fallen time and again by the deceptive ways of these "false" women ---- where the "sharp" eye, or the trained eyes of the Monkey, had them often spot on -- and in how the writer had characterize the sharp sense of the Monkey, and his quickness to strike any of the "demons" thriving to have a piece of the morsel , the flesh of this Holy monk--- his quickness to draw, or as to have them beaten or crushed by his famous "magic wand" -- a wand that can be called by the spell to become as small as a hair pin , to be hidden under his earlobe, underneath his skin-- or once this magic wand is drawn out into the open -- by the magic spell, the wand can go into the height that can reach heaven and to be as thick and heavy as any sizable mountain -- One stroke of this wand would have crushed these demons into pulps - Yes, the book and story was very descriptive and with all the vivid gore-- the same sites that would have also been stroke the pious monk and offending his Buddhist vow -- of to spare all living creatures. This contrast of the quick temper, quick alert and fast movement of the Monkey, the former "The Invincible Lord of heaven" , his struggle of his past fame and glory and now with the humility that was set forth upon him, not ever so willingly -- because in the segment, or upon the monks arrival into the Five Finger Mountain, prior to the Monkey 's release by the Monk, whom had heard the "calling" by this mighty and poweful, King of the monkeys, who had pleaded and begged for his release --At that particular moment and time, the appearance of the goddest of Mercy, or Guanyin , who had come to set up the conditions and the procedure of the Monkey's release, whereas she had moved one of her gold rings, which had turned into a "crown" of sorts, or a metal head piece to be permanently set onto the head of the Monkey. where the goddess of mercy had passed onto the Monk, with a special magic spell ------ Upon the repeat of the spell - this ring/crown will be tightening and be squeezing into the skull of the Monkey. Subsequently, in the many times of dispute between the Monkey and the Monk, or upon the Monkey quick fix, fast kill of the roadside demons, because the Monkey has his training , where his eyes can spot and see between real human to demons, as well he can also smell out the rogue ones --- His quick execution had often mistaken by the Monk, the direct offense for any Buddhist monk, who have made their vow to be pious and "killing" of anyting living is a major offense. Thus, this on going conflicts between the master and the Monkey disciple had there many episodes of exchange, and repeatedly, the Monkey had left and gone, or banished by the pious monk, nevertheless a weak monk, even the mission and the deeds of the Monkey was to guaded and to protect the Monks life and to secure his journey to the West --- in the story of this legend, this is where they all will meet the Great Buddha, and where all of the disciples will be able to attained their god and deity status by their deeds and protection with their guardianship of the Tang Monk. The mission and their "sacrifices" will give back their old status and more. The author's written story of this pilgrimage was colorful not only in the caricature of the characters, but every episode or chapter has a series of poems, beautifully articulating and expressing their next round of activities or the anticipated events -- such as the encounters they might have. The twists and turns of the entire novel, the give and takes and exchanges between the Tang Monk and the Monkey were the key ingredients of the novel. Thus, the Journey or the Pilgrimage to Tibet, or Journey to the West had become better known -- as the story of the Monkey King. It is a story, a novel that have been said and told a million times by all Chinese elders to their young -- and in old Canton, there is always the calling of any young boy --when they act disobedient and naughty-- they were told as I have been told -- " Ma Lau Jing", Ma-lau is monkey -- Jing-- means the spirit, or non human. or worse, a naughty, disobedient ghostling. One can put maybe the image of a naughty Casper --likeable by disturbing and annoying at the same time. All naughty kids were called by that name -- Ma Lau Jing :)

Five Finger Mountain ---- The Monkey King

Preface -- My Journey to the West

The time has come where the many issues about muliti-cultural, intercultural, cross cultural issues that have come to the surface and over the past forty plus years. From all of the arena of the academia to actual life experience. I have come to the conclusion, the best way to review and to express the variety of the many cultural issues is best to be expressed by one's own experience. Ultimately, it is not only embracing the cultural environment we live in today, which in part or in whole have become transitional and moving -- people moving into different global regions and all are experience a variety of multi-cultural, cross-cultural, intercultural -- some have become transcultural and more over -- this latest and new awareness of "cultural issues" is in many ways most refreshing. Because it is no longer or ever again, to be "monocultural" ever again :) As a matter of fact, the world we live in was never monocultural, we have from day one, our immediate social and cultural environment have been diverse and mulit-cultural with the many different values that are shared under different sets of circumstances. What are today's our cultural values at home or at work? And even within a sect of the religion, say Christianity, have we not the many diverse groups that can go from the Greek Orthodox, to the Roman Catholics, to the protestants and the hundreds of subgroups that have been formed and reformed, or reshaped thoughout history ? All the many of them, under the name of Christians have their different form of worship, or behave ever so differently, but all are under the name of one historical figure named Christ ?

By my count, from a positive note, I guess, when our cutlures or our values are organic, meaning, it is dynamic, it is changing and transformational -- it is very healthy. I think the evolution of men and our ideas, our thinkings are also changing and hope for the better and to become ever more progressive -- and on that note, these changes and evolutions are the new adjustment of the new surrounding that we are moving into, or onto different sets of circumstances -- and these adaptive behavior by my count are healthy for the most part.

Cultures and values is what shapes our behaviors, and by our different way of behaving, individually or collectively have made the many different sets of values and some with distinctions that have made our human cultures diverse, different and at times, the diversity of ours is in harmony, and other times, the changes were also brought on by human conflicts and disharmony and always, with conflicts then come resolution -- often by not so harmonious means.

Books and history had told us the many stories, from fable to mythology and each and every cultural group can tell us about their legends, and again in those legends, most of that being said were all about the many conflicts and then solutions -- some of the stories were told most brilliantly and many were sung to us by songs, by ballads and others by poems as we all have the experiences of the many movies and before that theaters, plays. Time and again, all the stories were being said had revealed much of the values of the past and also, contemporary stories share with us values of today.

My idea of this book is not about sicence nor fictions -- I guess for now, I have yet become a fictional story teller. However, call it fate, chance or by whatsoever sets of circumstances, my life by my own measure has been immensely rich in the multi-cultural sets of settings that I was born into, and was raise and for the most period of my life, whenever I was asked -- "where are you from? " or "where have you been" , I have noticed that often I have to take more than a few minutes to give the questioners of my background. And for the most part, in the muilti-cultural dimensions of lives we live have today, multi-culturalism is no longer of any mystique or even curiosity, in fact, in the coming years -- the world is becoming much more global and much more multi-cultural than we can imagine. The medium and the technologies we have on hand and the communication devices have us all becoming "global" and if not in real context in being multi-cultural, we are already global. I will be addressing much of the differences ab out global and about muilt-cultural, divesity, cross cultural, inter-cultural to a larger extent by the passages of this book or where ever my story telling will take me.

But the real purpose of this writing indeed is for several reasons. First, for my children and for them to have a better understand of me, in fact, this had begun by my daugher's questions and I dare assume, there are many of her school mates, colleagues may have those very similar questions.

Secondly, and maybe more importantly, I have meant to write this book, with its title as my journey to the West -- and then some -- maybe also a journey of my returning from the West to the East, not only in physical terms, but more over, and most important of it all -- is about my personal values, thus, all of that also will reflect the many cultural values I have within me, these values for the most part, have been obtained, absorbed and retained by my life experience, from my journey began with China then heading western wards, by way of Brazil, north America and the rest of the global travel I have taken in all my life. And in this particular journey, as in my adaption of one of the best known Chinese children book, I will again , reemphasize a children 's book, as in my early childhood, what was registered, the very first impression of a character, of a monkey, a human like monkey, almost in every Chinese young men and women will know, a novel, a fable , and a fairly tale, of this monkey - yes, or Monkey King, as he was the king of the monkeys, and from his "daring act" , by his leap of faith, proving to all of the clan of the monkeys, where he had jumped and leaped over and into a waterfall, where with that gamble of faith -- he had found the so called "Waterfall Cave", a fairly land, with all the abudance of fruits and drinks and nectars --- of course, to the favorite of the monkeys. And thus, he has become king of all the monkeys, as being said in that legend.

The beginning of the episode of this story of the monkey, a novel being written in the early part of Ming or even earlier has the many messages, subtle messages --- such as the writer who wrote about not only "individuality" or of individual expression, which many can find that self expression has always been the "air" of most poets, writers in that individual expression of esoteric, in that off the ordinary and with extraordinary "spirit" or "inspirations" that throughout the history of China -- these writers, poets have always such rich individual expression and of or into a "psychological realm" that is above all others-- these form of aspiration has also their own unique forms of individuality, often along with also that certain Dao and Zen/Chan detachment, or better yet, a form of psychological or mental evolution, going above and beyond of the ordinary --. Thus, in this novel so called "The pilgrimage -- or the journey to the West", at first, the story depicts the west bound Buddhist monk, during the first dynasty of Tang, where the story depicts the search for the first Tibetan Buddhist scriptures by the long and arduous journey of this monk, by the emperor has been well known and well written in Chinese history , as almost well known to all Chinese by the introduction of the Buddhist writings into the Tang period of China.

But this particular novel, a fairly tale like novel, almost totally fable like novel, by adding to the many more dangerous and adventurous elements into this journey by this Tang monk had added much more the delightful features and embellishment of this novel, retelling by this writer with added overt and also covert cultural and personal elements by the characterization of the Monkey. This Monkey or Monkey King became one of the four "ghost" or "fairly" characters to the entire Westward journey by this pious, religious monk, often symbolizes the total fragile, almost pathetic, but devoted, religious, missioned bound monk, characterized almost entirely by the Confucian values of obedience, filial obligation toward his mission and abide by the mandate of the emperor, with total focus of his search for the Tibetan scriptures. His devoutness and his purity of a man, however frail --- and in that "holiness" of his mission, he was blessed by the sympathy of the dieties, and one in particular was the goddess of mercy, or Guanyin -- or as to see and to hear -goddess. Thus, by the contrast of his human and monastic sort of meekness, the gods or the dieties had granted the monk of his very powerful consort and escorts. His four disciples in his entourage, consist first the most dexterous and powerful character -- the Monkey, the main character of the entire novel and also the most colorful and dexterous, resourceful and once was known as the "Best of best of all heavenly warriors" or "The invincible Monkey". Where the legend was also told, by his magical birth, the monkey was born out of a rock, and the rock was cultivated by the ages of wind, rain and celestial ages to have it crystallized into a certain "saintliness" and at the right time and the right hour, by the strike of a lightning -- out come this "stone monkey". Thus, all of these unusual and magical phenomenon surrounding the many events of this monkey, The many unusual signs - (The author was ever so clever to have severed the traditional Chinese cultural and family link, where he had the monkey born out of a rock -- thus, no ancestral bagage ) They monkey was already used to be the king of all monkeys and in his journey from almost "bestial" ghostlings like personal journey , as in the first part of the novel -- how this money had managed to have obtained the status and his cultural and "educational" transformation, from monkey and ape like creature to become then men, and in that transition, and by his mischievousness, he had not only warred and battled against the deities of heaven, his attainment into immortality, not based on virtue, but by his super intelligence, talent and his self acquired "magical" skills -- he came so close to have defeated the entire power elites of all the heavenly deities and have them all humiliated, degraded and almost subjugated. The entire novel, or at least, for almost half of the novel had dedicated to the "character formation" of the monkey. Whose personally development and his own formation into becoming known to both the world of the "demons" (or monsters, basically, most of them were all one time saints and fairies who have one way or another might have committed "sins" , from gluttony to lust, or greed) and then they have been casted into the lower strata of the universe, between the human tier and the heavenly tier -and this monkey by his own merit, his personal inquisitiveness and intelligence, who was an avid learner, inquirer, and forever curious, he who was bored by being the King of all the monkeys, has decided to leave the land of the monkeys, and to head toward the land of the "people", where through the many arduous journey, who had tried to hid his monkey tails, dressed as human -- and who had seek the masters of all magical and ballistic and martial arts ---and eventually, he had found one of the well hidden Buddha master and where he was housed and hosted by this master who had taught the monkey all the marvelous warring and protective skills, where the monkey has been able to ride with the cloud, and with a somersault - he can travel some 18,000 league in seconds, where he could have pulled off his own hair, with a whiff, all the hair become the replica of himself and thus, became all the many warriors and fighters as skillful as himself. Again, the early departure was due to the Monkey's own vanity, by showing off the many skills that was prohibited by the master himself. Through out of the entire story of this pilgrimage, the many characters of the Monkey had shown also basically the many human hesitation, reluctance and all the many flaws of our own character, totally well expressed by the many intransigence well expressed by the Monkey. The Monkey had all his combative victories over the heavenly deities and their warring troops. the Monkey had stolen the potion where he had gained "immortality", in other words, he could not be killed or destroyed by the ordinary punishment by all of the gods and he had challenged each and every one of them, or the entire hierarchy of the gods and goddesses --- in that marvelous mixture of the deities in the novel, mixing in the gods from both the Daoist sect, as well from the Buddhist --- and not until the rise of the Buddha himself, or Sikamuni --- at this last of the monkey's last mischievous act, challenging the ultimate supreme power of all the legend of gods -- Buddha had enlarged himself so immensely, reaching the height of sky or heaven, extending his palm -- as into a palatial platform and have asked the Monkey to leap over into his palm ----- And the Monkey had reach the top of the palm by one of his best known somersault -- with his ever present of arrogance, he had insulted the supreme deity -- not only had he tried to belittle the great Buddha, he had gone as far as to have himself relieved first, by urinating toward the front of the giant size palm of the Buddha, he then leaped to the back of the palm where he had defecated. At that juncture - the forever kind Buddha had turned to become incensed -- and with a flip of his giant size palm --- he had the monkey buried until the hill to be called - The Mountain of the five fingers. And with that gesture, the Buddha had warned of the Monkey "On account of your bestial arrogance, you will be buried under this moutain for up to five thousand years, or until that certain time, by the arrival of this kind monk of Tang dynastry, he will be the only one who will be able to lift the spell and the curse I have on you by removing this cursive signed ribbon".

Preface -- My Journey to the West

The time has come where the many issues about muliti-cultural, intercultural, cross cultural issues that have come to the surface and over the past forty plus years. From all of the arena of the academia to actual life experience. I have come to the conclusion, the best way to review and to express the variety of the many cultural issues is best to be expressed by one's own experience. Ultimately, it is not only embracing the cultural environment we live in today, which in part or in whole have become transitional and moving -- people moving into different global regions and all are experience a variety of multi-cultural, cross-cultural, intercultural -- some have become transcultural and more over -- this latest and new awareness of "cultural issues" is in many ways most refreshing. Because it is no longer or ever again, to be "monocultural" ever again :) As a matter of fact, the world we live in was never monocultural, we have from day one, our immediate social and cultural environment have been diverse and mulit-cultural with the many different values that are shared under different sets of circumstances. What are today's our cultural values at home or at work? And even within a sect of the religion, say Christianity, have we not the many diverse groups that can go from the Greek Orthodox, to the Roman Catholics, to the protestants and the hundreds of subgroups that have been formed and reformed, or reshaped thoughout history ? All the many of them, under the name of Christians have their different form of worship, or behave ever so differently, but all are under the name of one historical figure named Christ ?

By my count, from a positive note, I guess, when our cutlures or our values are organic, meaning, it is dynamic, it is changing and transformational -- it is very healthy. I think the evolution of men and our ideas, our thinkings are also changing and hope for the better and to become ever more progressive -- and on that note, these changes and evolutions are the new adjustment of the new surrounding that we are moving into, or onto different sets of circumstances -- and these adaptive behavior by my count are healthy for the most part.

Cultures and values is what shapes our behaviors, and by our different way of behaving, individually or collectively have made the many different sets of values and some with distinctions that have made our human cultures diverse, different and at times, the diversity of ours is in harmony, and other times, the changes were also brought on by human conflicts and disharmony and always, with conflicts then come resolution -- often by not so harmonious means.

Books and history had told us the many stories, from fable to mythology and each and every cultural group can tell us about their legends, and again in those legends, most of that being said were all about the many conflicts and then solutions -- some of the stories were told most brilliantly and many were sung to us by songs, by ballads and others by poems as we all have the experiences of the many movies and before that theaters, plays. Time and again, all the stories were being said had revealed much of the values of the past and also, contemporary stories share with us values of today.

My idea of this book is not about sicence nor fictions -- I guess for now, I have yet become a fictional story teller. However, call it fate, chance or by whatsoever sets of circumstances, my life by my own measure has been immensely rich in the multi-cultural sets of settings that I was born into, and was raise and for the most period of my life, whenever I was asked -- "where are you from? " or "where have you been" , I have noticed that often I have to take more than a few minutes to give the questioners of my background. And for the most part, in the muilti-cultural dimensions of lives we live have today, multi-culturalism is no longer of any mystique or even curiosity, in fact, in the coming years -- the world is becoming much more global and much more multi-cultural than we can imagine. The medium and the technologies we have on hand and the communication devices have us all becoming "global" and if not in real context in being multi-cultural, we are already global. I will be addressing much of the differences ab out global and about muilt-cultural, divesity, cross cultural, inter-cultural to a larger extent by the passages of this book or where ever my story telling will take me.

But the real purpose of this writing indeed is for several reasons. First, for my children and for them to have a better understand of me, in fact, this had begun by my daugher's questions and I dare assume, there are many of her school mates, colleagues may have those very similar questions.

Secondly, and maybe more importantly, I have meant to write this book, with its title as my journey to the West -- and then some -- maybe also a journey of my returning from the West to the East, not only in physical terms, but more over, and most important of it all -- is about my personal values, thus, all of that also will reflect the many cultural values I have within me, these values for the most part, have been obtained, absorbed and retained by my life experience, from my journey began with China then heading western wards, by way of Brazil, north America and the rest of the global travel I have taken in all my life. And in this particular journey, as in my adaption of one of the best known Chinese children book, I will again , reemphasize a children 's book, as in my early childhood, what was registered, the very first impression of a character, of a monkey, a human like monkey, almost in every Chinese young men and women will know, a novel, a fable , and a fairly tale, of this monkey - yes, or Monkey King, as he was the king of the monkeys, and from his "daring act" , by his leap of faith, proving to all of the clan of the monkeys, where he had jumped and leaped over and into a waterfall, where with that gamble of faith -- he had found the so called "Waterfall Cave", a fairly land, with all the abudance of fruits and drinks and nectars --- of course, to the favorite of the monkeys. And thus, he has become king of all the monkeys, as being said in that legend.

The beginning of the episode of this story of the monkey, a novel being written in the early part of Ming or even earlier has the many messages, subtle messages --- such as the writer who wrote about not only "individuality" or of individual expression, which many can find that self expression has always been the "air" of most poets, writers in that individual expression of esoteric, in that off the ordinary and with extraordinary "spirit" or "inspirations" that throughout the history of China -- these writers, poets have always such rich individual expression and of or into a "psychological realm" that is above all others-- these form of aspiration has also their own unique forms of individuality, often along with also that certain Dao and Zen/Chan detachment, or better yet, a form of psychological or mental evolution, going above and beyond of the ordinary --. Thus, in this novel so called "The pilgrimage -- or the journey to the West", at first, the story depicts the west bound Buddhist monk, during the first dynasty of Tang, where the story depicts the search for the first Tibetan Buddhist scriptures by the long and arduous journey of this monk, by the emperor has been well known and well written in Chinese history , as almost well known to all Chinese by the introduction of the Buddhist writings into the Tang period of China.

But this particular novel, a fairly tale like novel, almost totally fable like novel, by adding to the many more dangerous and adventurous elements into this journey by this Tang monk had added much more the delightful features and embellishment of this novel, retelling by this writer with added overt and also covert cultural and personal elements by the characterization of the Monkey. This Monkey or Monkey King became one of the four "ghost" or "fairly" characters to the entire Westward journey by this pious, religious monk, often symbolizes the total fragile, almost pathetic, but devoted, religious, missioned bound monk, characterized almost entirely by the Confucian values of obedience, filial obligation toward his mission and abide by the mandate of the emperor, with total focus of his search for the Tibetan scriptures. His devoutness and his purity of a man, however frail --- and in that "holiness" of his mission, he was blessed by the sympathy of the dieties, and one in particular was the goddess of mercy, or Guanyin -- or as to see and to hear -goddess. Thus, by the contrast of his human and monastic sort of meekness, the gods or the dieties had granted the monk of his very powerful consort and escorts. His four disciples in his entourage, consist first the most dexterous and powerful character -- the Monkey, the main character of the entire novel and also the most colorful and dexterous, resourceful and once was known as the "Best of best of all heavenly warriors" or "The invincible Monkey". Where the legend was also told, by his magical birth, the monkey was born out of a rock, and the rock was cultivated by the ages of wind, rain and celestial ages to have it crystallized into a certain "saintliness" and at the right time and the right hour, by the strike of a lightning -- out come this "stone monkey". Thus, all of these unusual and magical phenomenon surrounding the many events of this monkey, They monkey was already used to be the king of all monkeys and in his journey from almost "bestial" ghostlings like personal journey , as in the first part of the novel -- how this money had managed to have obtained the status and his cultural and "educational" transformation, from monkey and ape like creature to become then men, and in that transition, and by his mischievousness, he had not only warred and battled against the deities of heaven, his attainment into immortality, not based on virtue, but by his super intelligence, talent and his self acquired "magical" skills -- he came so close to have defeated the entire power elites of all the heavenly deities and have them all humiliated, degraded and almost subjugated. The entire novel, or at least, for almost half of the novel had dedicated to the "character formation" of the monkey. Whose personally development and his own formation into becoming known to both the world of the "demons" (or monsters, basically, most of them were all one time saints and fairies who have one way or another might have committed "sins" , from gluttony to lust, or greed) and then they have been casted into the lower strata of the universe, between the human tier and the heavenly tier -and this monkey by his own merit, his personal inquisitiveness and intelligence, who was an avid learner, inquirer, and forever curious, he who was bored by being the King of all the monkeys, has decided to leave the land of the monkeys, and to head toward the land of the "people", where through the many arduous journey, who had tried to hid his monkey tails, dressed as human -- and who had seek the masters of all magical and ballistic and martial arts ---

Reflection of Chinese history and how it links to my own reflection

1. You've been extremely exposed to the Chinese Culture, South American/Brazilian Culture, and the American Culture. Can you compare and contrast the 3 cultures? ....define your experience throughout all three of them... remember your age and the era you were there will influence how you feel about each place...

Also, tell me good things and bad things about each culture. Try not to be too bias, but be honest.

The first part of the history about me and then I had to reflecting back to tell you in and about my "perception" of China. It is not easy for me to tell you only from the time of my birth till today. Nevertheless, at least, for now, I have cleared some of the path, a long and agonizing path for the Chinese and China as a nation with all the humiliation and degradation forced upon them by the "powers" of the West. And now we can move on with the rest of the development.

Yes, I was born multi-culturally , even in the context of a nation called China, but its people, its many dialects - some 200 dialects and the vastness of the country had made China often hard to govern. But ever since the revolution of 1948 - my birth year. Yes, Mao Tse-Tung, the so called Communist Revolution he had created by way of Marxism and Leninism, where he had borrowed from then the ideology of the Soviet Union, with their revolution in 1917 to have overthrown the inept and decadent Romanovs of the Czarist Russia and ended the imperial era of Russia. Mao had rally the workers, the farmers in all remote regions of China for his revolution, at first, he tried to emulate the Soviets in the use of the city workers of Shanghai to have their uprising and failed. Mao had retreated to the country side and this is where he had gathered the support of the farm workers, opposing the landowners and to have followed Mao. Thus, Mao had learned from the Soviets of the revolution, but he had modified that by rallying his forces from the country side and eventually have the corrupted regime of KMT, or the nationalist party defeated. In that long struggle between the two Chinese parties, there was also the invasion of China by Japan. The two parties then had united for a period of time to fight the Japanese and later on, when Japan was defeated , the two party had gone back onto their struggle with one and the other -- and ultimately, Mao's party had since taken over with the majority of the Chinese, mostly poor peasants and their backing had defeated, the nationalist, or the KMT of Chiang, with overwhelming funds and arms and the support of the US and due to corruption and incompetence --the KMT had finally retreated into the island of Fomosa -"famous" in Portuguese and remains there till today.

My father had his reason not to be with either party. He had gone to school with all these men who were then divided by the Chinese civil war. We were considered land owners, with the rise of the communists, by the turn of the events, our family could have been implicated or would have been purged or harassed by the low rank and files of the revolution. Often, made with peasants who were more into revenge or personal persecution. Father had never mentioned much about the rights or wrongs of either party. I can only interpret his neutrality is also in his own way -- his respect for both parties and he had accepted the fate and the change of China -- be that Mao or Chiang.

Yes, economically, he had lost his company and other trade offices in Shanghai and in 1949, the entire family were moving out of Shanghai, and into Hong Kong. However, because Hong Kong basically is also part of Canton (now Guandong in the proper way in the pronunciation of mandarin, or Putonghua) and since my paternal grandmother had found it difficult to the language, she wanted to move back to Shanghai -- and I then had followed back with my grandmother as an infant. Why? Because, Peter, his Christian name, was born a year ahead of me and on that account, my mother was having difficult time to have enough milk for both of us. By my grandmother's suggestion, they have sent me back to Shanghai where there was this "wet nurse". (Imagine that, this lady had to give up her own milk to her kid, instead to have her child being fed with animal milk or other substitute just so I can be fed). And then that was my fate, where I have remained in China till 1952, or at age four. My mother demanded to have me come to Hong Kong and to join the family. It was already a high order with tremendous hazard to have me brought from Shanghai first to Guandong province and later, to have me smuggled into Macao - the Portuguese colony, and at that juncture, even the borders were porous, with documents that were not complete, to have a child to be brought from China into Macao was no easy ordeal. Mother managed to have me brought to Macao. And I remember vividly that I was at an age where I was taught to sing the Chinese Communist song "The East is turning red ..and the sun is rising". Basically a song was create to praise Mao. And a song like that is a clear sign of a "commie youngster" . My mother had already managed the tough task to have me smuggled accross the Chinese/Macao border. Now the next task is to have me going over with her to HK, from the Portuguese enclave to now the English --- a three hour boat trip where like all youngster I continued on to sing the "East is red.." Then mother had a great idea, just to prevent me doing the same with such song, a clear sign that I will be notified by the border agents that I was raised from mainland China. Mother had stuffed my mouth continuously with chocolate upon the crossing of the custom inspection. By me, as always, in retrospect, I thought that was one of the many brilliant maneuvers of my mother. My mother had not much of schooling, but in her household, I later had found that, there are trainings and teachings that are beyond school. By my maternal grandfather's status as a magistrate -- in those days,the Chinese followed that Confucian code, where the statement had said " A woman without education is most virtuous". On that note, many women then were kept away from schooling, however, in order for them to be wed, many of them had their mentors and tutors in house. In other words, not many of them were illiterate or uneducated. They were educated in such a way to stay subservient to their husband - at least, in gesture. Yes, the richness of the Chinese culture is beyond any few words and lines -- because , the collective way to say about China and Chinese today is very, very broad and very very rich.

My Cross Cultural Journey

1. You've been extremely exposed to the Chinese Culture, South American/Brazilian Culture, and the American Culture. Can you compare and contrast the 3 cultures? ....define your experience throughout all three of them... remember your age and the era you were there will influence how you feel about each place...

Also, tell me good things and bad things about each culture. Try not to be too bias, but be honest.

Well, in my writing and in what I am focusing now about Cross Cultural studies, the question you have raised is very broad and it will not be easy to answer them all, in the way I feel about the collective experience. But I will try my best to give you some bits and pieces. As we have shared much in my development with "Think-link" and in how I have emphasized in how we think of our lives in forms and in shapes. I will then take to the shape of round to represent my perception of life, about my culture/s and my engagement with my cultures that have been forever rich and continue to be enriching. As one get older, we become to become a much better alchemist and with more ingredients add to the "cauldron". So, remember well of the ideas of the ROUND, or SPHERICAL shapes are the only forms that I can integrate, or interface with my exposure with the many global cultures.

First and foremost, cultures are dynamic and never static and cultures do change and cultures also has a great deal of exchanges, knowingly or not, we are all have become very cross cultural in our day to day lives. And when we talk about cultures we have to first give the audience of the "Atmosphere" or the ambiance to get the point across. As in your case or our case. You were born and raised in Williams Bay, WI and then we know what that environment is like. And you have changed from Williams Bay now to Chicago. There now you have a city culture and your senses are different than when you are in the village of Williams Bay.

Since your return from Brazil and your "food" culture has changed, you have started to embrace and become almost a vegetarian, for better health and also that compliments your outlook in life. Thus, I am merely highlighting the changes of ones food and diet culture , along with your now added linguistic culture, from English, some Spanish to the greater fluency of Portuguese. This is merely the way I look at that we have to foster change for the improvement of our lives and the lives of those who we co-exist. With that said, I will try to answer you the best I know how.

Yes, I was born in Shanghai, China in 1948. In a household where my dad was originally from Zhejiang, Zhejiang province is the state immediately next to the city of Shanghai, a province extremely rich in history and where also known to be one of the most ancient tribes of China and immediately next to the center of the silk culture - or Suzhou. Your grandmother is from Guanxi province, the state next to Guangzhou, and according to her, her family is from near the city named Punyu. Her father was in the rank of a magistrate during the Qing dynasty and her family were sent there by the courts. Thus, most immediately, in that immediate household, both of your grand mother and grandfather have already both speaking more than just one of their native dialects -- and the common language then was called Mandarin, in today's official language in China is called Putonhua -- meaning, general tongue. or general say. In that same house, we have servants and indeed, many have come from also the other provinces as from Jiangsu, the province immediately north of Zhejiang on the banks of the River Yangtze. Zhejiang in the south side of the river and Jiangsu is immediately to the north as the mouth runs off to the sea eastward and that is where Shanghai is located. "Shang" meaning upper --- and "hai" means the sea. And because of the grandfather's business, we do have servants and cooks and chauffeurs and also, in that entire collage of people, there were many dialects were spoken. I trust that my wet nurse, the lady who fed me with her breast milk was a native from Shanghai and they have a very distinct dialect that I can fully understand, but can handle maybe 70%, but both of sisters and half brothers were all fluent because Shanghai become one of the longest stay for many of them. And at the same time, we all speak Cantonese. Amongst other possible dialects that were spoken in that same house, were Sichuan, literally translate that into "four streams" or "four rivers'. And their tongue come very close to the native tongue from Guanxi, in fact, your grandmother's "mandarin" were spoken with her Guanxi accent. I credit of my command of the many languages today from the hearing and listening and talking of all the dialects openly spoken in that household in Shanghai, in the French concession of Shanghai.

As you know, your grandfather was schooled in France and that had added to his linguistic portfolio and that influence of a very nasal language come also very close to the nasal intonation of the dialect of Shanghai.

Geographically and also politically, in 1948, the government of KMT, or Kuo Ming Tang, this translation was in the old vernacular of Cantonese, it meant to be the Nationalist Party, commanded by then Chiang Kai-Shek, his name is also in Cantonese -- it shows the mixture of a no unified Chinese language then. Chiang Kai-Shek, by my count was corrupted, was an American puppet and he was "rightfully" defeated by Mao Tse Tung, the communist party leader and who had won over the Chiang's regime and had forced Chiang to fled to the island Taiwan. Thus, there are the two China today. Just like the two Korea, the two Germany and the two Vietnam ..etc.

Again, cross cultural speaking, there are the two cultures - The communist party and the Nationalist party and yes, there are two cultures, political cultures.

My family have the many contacts, friends, business associates from or belonged or joined both parties. This painful civil war is where it was like Spain as one example, it had divided families from father to sons, and cousins and relatives that both had gone into the two separate political entities. In retrospect and in review of the history, Mao was the rightful winner and the leader. He had rallied the poor from the farms, from the factories and had led them away from then the feudal states. And before this civil war of the two parties, in the past one hundred plus years. China was abused, cheated and raped and destroyed by 11 international nations, who had looted not only the most precious collections of China that are all visible in all the global museums and burned down the best known a cultural relic of China, the Summer Palace in Beijing. At the same time, these foreign nations had looted also one of the richest Chinese relics located in western desert called Dunhuang caverns, literally, thousands upon thousands of volumes have been taken away by the Americans, the English, the French, the Russians and the Japanese -- all have been taken out not in one time, or one period, but over a period of twenty years or more of the on going stealing, hammering, chiseling out of the painted walls and sent back to Europe.

The Rape of China have all been started with one of the most tragic events in human history, in part it was at a time where China herself was far from being a nation, or a nation of a heterogeneous society. There have been two periods and two separate dynasties in China, China herself was ruled by the invaded Mongols, Mongols from the Western part of China near the Gobi desert. The best known of the Genghis Khan, and his son, Kublai Khan, as you can associate these emperors, nomads and tough warriors had ruled China in the dynasty called Yuan --- This is part of the cross-cultural China where the nomadic herds of the Mongols had become Chinese and have adapted all of the languages and court rules and procedures in the writing of the Han Chinese. We are the Han Chinese who are the 90% of the Chinese culture with a history dating back 5 thousand years and with the on going recorded history exceeding 3 thousand years. From the Yuan dynasty in the late 1400s, came next the best known of Ming dynasty. Yes, the Han had taken over the Mongol rulers. And the rise of the prominence of Ming had ruled over 200 plus years, where the known history of Ming were many, such as the Muslim Eunuch, by the name of Zhenghe had traveled to as far as to the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf and have visited all of East Africa. New records have indications that Zhenghe might have gone all the way to the Americas -- and this is where I am and I have shared much with the English author, Gavin Menzies with his two books written about Zhenghe, "1421, the year China had discovered America", where I have been in and out of the Amazons, and into Bahia and even into the Amazons --- all the way to Central America just to find and trace a couple of "possibilities" and more about my linguistic exploration into the Amazon with the 36 tribes in the Upper Rio Negro region -- and that one common language called Nheengatu - a common language created by the Jesuits - Anchieta in the combination of the two basic tongues of Tupi and Guarani. We will continue to explore of that viability or possibility of Zhenghe, in and around 1421 who had gone into the Americas when these voyagers had turned around from the Cape. Cape of Good hope.

As you may and may not know, Pedro Alvarez Gabral had found Brazil accidentally by his discourse coming out of Africa, drifted southwest from the known Cape current and got into Brazil in 1500. Eight years ago, Christopher Columbus had landed into Espanola (Today's Haiti and Dominican Republic) . The rest of the voyages of Magalhaes, or Magellan who had gone through the South Pole and went toward Asia was one of the first direct routing from the Americas to Asia. And since then, or since 1500, the trade of the Americas had began more with Asia than ever. To give you one of the perspective, where before the European had their sea routes reaching Asia. The journeys of the Polos, Marco Polo and one other Moorish, Arabic traveler who had gone to China and back was Ibn Battuta. By their description of then Cathay -- China. China was one of the wealthiest sovereign in the planet. In and between the discovery of the Americas, the Spanish had exported close to 228 million kilograms of silver from the Americas to China. 228 million kilograms of silver, translates into 280 million tons of silver. (in 2009 estimate of the silver cost @ 14.00 an ounce, it comes close to 300 trillion dollar in value). Indeed, by this record, China was indeed one of the wealthiest nation on earth and had been created not be force, or unlike the Europeans, China's accumulation of silver by trade came via two sources, first, by silk, yes, the first world "green industry", and second "green and natural industry" was by tea ---- Just imagine, "tea" was one of the real reasons that had cause the most humiliating and one of the longest period of history of China, a period of total humiliation, total degradation and with all the 228 tons of silver and the rest of the wealth all have been taken out by one drug -- OPIUM. Opium, secretively planted by a few families of the Jews from Palestine and Baghdad, in then India, today's Bangladesh was the plan made out by the European bankers by the name of Rothschild, five families located in England (The Bank of England), Holland, Austria, Italy and France had their grand plan to mobilize the one major family name Sassoon, coming out of Baghdad, then into India, or the colonial British India, in collaboration with the Rothschilds of England, Bank of England and also owner of then the most powerful trading company by the name of East India Company who had done all the transports and the conduit of the human drug trade - to have sold opium to China to the Chinese just so to created the trade and the attempt to retrieve the silvers the English had drained their own reserves bordering into bankruptcy.

China at that time was also most susceptible to the use of opium and here are the two reasons. First, in the southern regions of China, due to the distance from the court of the rules, then the Qing, yes, another invading tribe coming down from present day Manchuria. Who had gotten into the tail end of the other "corrupted" Ming rulers. The Mancunians were expert horseman with the good use of bow and arrows, they have already been well versed in the Han language for they were ruled also under the strong military posts in their region. They have managed to become a strong force by their own development of the so called "eight color flag" system and the system of command and mobility of their own military and the mass. They have developed a written language in the use of the Mongolian written language and have built their alliances with the Mongols by way of marriage and the network of kinship. In the early sixteen hundred , they have marching inside the great wall and taken over the Ming rulers and had named their own dynasty of "Qing" , it means clear with the link of water-- based on their own astrological study and Shamanism -- then, the dynasty had begun with the Chinese traditional Han character.

However, toward the end of the Qing dynasty, due to in fighting of the cousins, and the brothers, the Qing rulers had become weaken by their own with the rise of the most powerful empress Cixi, or Dowagger, The Qing empire was heading toward the end, by corruption and by the chaos and the lack of real rule of law.

It is under such sets of circumstances, the entry of the Opium become most attractive to the Chinese. The other cultural aspect of that was -- that in the Chinese traditional, the wealth of a family often goes first to the first born by the first wife. And that was the rigid rule. The son wife often had to be going through a very rigorous checks and inspections to make certain that this wife will have be be able to bear the family the healthy son for the future generations. In short, most of the women they family selected were generally plumb and not attractive, not even to the spouse. By my own psychological, cross cultural analysis. This move is where by not having the sort of woman of beauty which calls for attention and to avoid the potential troubles , where if the wife is less charming or in looks, there will be less trouble and the woman will also be most obedient to not only her husband, but the living parents. It is a pecking order and a system of control and manipulation. Subsequently, or generally, the man then often can select his second, or third wife/s as concubines and to his own pleasure and leisure. In so doing, the man will be content at the house and without going out to the spots like brothel, where he can be contracting diseases , and worse, the gambling house, where his or the family entire fortune can be at stake. Such was the arrangement for the FIRST BORN. Thus, the drug like opium had found its niche --- as opium the "tranquilizer" and the perfect drug to keep most of the men and later women of wealth to stay home and turning most of them with total docility.

The opium, by the import of the Jewish merchants, predominantly and later on had the participation of the Jardine and Mathewson s from Scotland, plus others , including prominent American families like the Roosevelt/Delano and at the end, opium and the trade of opium had turned China into the total ruination of China plus the 150 years of total humiliation of all Chinese. First, the sales of opium had triggered more merchants, who were in use of the opium profits and turned them back into merchandise, and with more arrivals of the Europeans for either opium import and then more Chinese goods to be sent to Europe and other colonies. It also then have the arrivals of the religious, making almost the same demand as the rest of the European and predominantly English merchant -- ethnic Jewish merchants and most of them were funded by the Bank of England -- The Rothschilds.

Jen, do you own wikipedia or Google check by typing "Opium War'. As you will see, where China had began to loose greater control by the various inequality treaties forced upon the Chinese, along with the massive amount of the Western religious and missionaries wanting in part to have a piece of China and others, wanting to convert Chinese by force to find salvation. While there are the many versions of the many reasons for the Opium War. But one of the most important part of it all -- it was the colonialism of the English by demanding the Chinese to grant them the "maritime" right to have ships anchor along the Chinese shores to conduct business -- and one of the business was opium, totally prohibited then by the Qing court. But corruption was so rampant that the Qing rulers have not enough forces to monitor the activities of these Jew merchants. And subsequently, when one of the Chinese admirals from Guangzhou had commanded the seizure of the illegal drugs and have all the confiscated opium to be set on fire and burned. Immediately , England had used such excuse and began their wars against Chinese. While Chinese in the south were literally winning against the English naval forces. But due the corruption of the Qing (Manchurian court), instead, they sent messengers to plead for peace instead and it began the sad saga in all of the inequality treaty here China had to cede Hong Kong to the English and the Kowloon become a hundred years lease from China to the English.

China continued to decline and invaded more and more by foreign forces, ceding and giving away silver in the tons to the Germans, the French, the Russians, the Japanese, Austria and all the more set up ports and demanding concessions to grant them to have military garrisons and to be abstain to any rules and laws of commerce -- directly on Chinese soil. Where in Shanghai, parks and public locales have been taken over by the British, by the French with signs written "Chinese and dogs are not allowed".

The Opium War had totally damaged the entire Qing empire and had cause more if not greater than the total ruination of two generation of the Chinese intelligentsia.

The most obvious is that, both cities of Hong Kong and Shanghai were literally built by opium money and by most of them Jewish merchants linked to the Rothschild empire. And by my account, this also have given the seed money for the Rothschild the "seed money" for the next two hundred of the global war industry and the future of the English/American post colonialism but to be ruled and influenced by the military industrial complex that had barely ended in our time today -- Maybe the bombing of New York-- 9/11 by Osama Bin Laden may be the good demarcation toward the end of the era of the American "MIC " .