| Chapter : | Introduction |
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be very careful in reading Chinese characters for the study of human affairs, particularly in Asian millenarian study. Another example which causes difficulty in translation follows: “Dong (Tung) (
) in the Chinese pinyin system means the East. “Xi” (
) means the West. However, “Dong (Tung)-xi (
) is usually used as “thing” instead of East and West. Without considering the contents and historical background, we cannot truly understand the Chinese meaning and could easily misunderstand the meaning of “i.” Despite the original meaning of Tung-i, the meaning of “i “began to be used for “barbarians” since the Chinese Han Dynasty. Later the Chinese called the Korean “Tung-i (Eastern barbarian),” and Westerners “Yang-i (Western barbarian).” The Japanese followed suit. The motivation of both the Chinese and Japanese for using the term “i” could have been to hide their jealousy or ignorance of advanced civilizations because ancient civilized Korean and modern civilized Western powers were so powerful. The Koreans mostly did not use the term “i” for the Chinese and Japanese because ancient Koreans established ancient Chinese states and the foundation of their states. The Chinese and Japanese ruling classes were originally Koreans. Kanazawa Sh
zabur, who was a professor at Tokyo Imperial University in the Meiji era, argued that ancient Chinese leaders who came from China to Japan used Korean last names.21 His argument is true.
Chinese Metaphor
In studying Asian millenarianism and history, one observes that Asians liked to use a metaphorical fashion in writing history, particularly history that is related to millenarianism. In Asia, the Chinese in particular, liked to use metaphors. The following are good examples.
Monsters' Heads and Foreheads
The ancient Chinese wrote that in the East there were monsters whose heads were bronze and foreheads were metal. In reality such beings did not exist. However, the strangers were called Tung-i. In ancient