Earliest Foreign Account of China? // 9th cent. "Accounts of China and India" // Primary Source

This account gives us our first truly foreign perspective of life inside the Middle Kingdom - a place where the dead are fed until the living are bankrupt, and healthcare and education are subsidized by the state. Written in 851 and added to 50 years later by renowned Arab sailor Abu Zayd al-Sirafi.
Enormous thanks to translator Tim Mackintosh-Smith and the Library of Arabic Literature for the use of this translation. nyupress.org/9781479830596/ac...
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[@VoicesofthePast]

Hello all! Hope you enjoy the video. This is an extract from the book Accounts of China and India: nyupress.org/9781479830596/accounts-of-china-and-india/ and there is lots more on early China and India within it. Great read.

[@VoicesofthePast]

Also, at about 7.35 there is some Japanese writing instead of Chinese - forgive my silly mistake - language fail 🤦

[@user-jh9nx6tl1n]

@@VoicesofthePast Can you do the Suleiman's letter to Francis? Your voice is awesome.

[@TheRickfire]

Heading to 200k followers. Brilliant video yet again.

[@bethbartlett5692]

This was so well prepared and read. I found that the listening experience was both Informative and Most Relaxing. Perfect for New Moon in Pisces energies, a time to go within, to relax, to contemplate with harmony, and a bit of Self Spoiling is most appropriate. Completion and Beginning - 12th House Pisces with a New Moon - (Venus is excelled in Pisces the Ancient Vedics say, it is an energy that appeals to her, Feminine and Water Energies, Highly Intutive, Sensitive, Empathetic, and a most Spiritual place in the sky.) This audio was truly a perfect choice and I will be curious to listen when the Moon is in Gemini or Virgo, each ruled by Mercury, the planet of Communications as well as Tech/Mechanical/Marketing/Speech and Clarity. 💫 5 🌟's

[@TheRickfire]

@@bethbartlett5692 Timothy 2:11-15 But women will be saved through childbearing-if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.

[@Skibbityboo0580]

"They don't wipe with water after dedicating, but merely wipe with Chinese made paper without water." I know I'm not the only one who felt that sting.

[@daithiocinnsealach3173]

Wet wipes.

[@AntiTMG]

Coronavirus land

[@moshow93]

If you ONLY use tp then you are less cleanly than a dog or cat licking its own behind.

[@bhimakarma]

Ya I was raised using water to wash myself. People made fun of me when I got older and went to public school etc. So I devised the chocolate test. I would smear chocolate on my arm and then wipe it with paper and then wash with water and ask them You tell me which one is dirty?

[@anon-iraq2655]

you should if shit got on your hand, you wouldn't just wipe it away with a paper would you

[@dcs4947]

"they do not use turbans" "Not many date palms" I'll go on a limb and say this is a middle eastern person.

[@RonJohn63]

The text makes repeated references to Middle Eastern coins, says he's Arab, and the description says, "Written in 851 and added to 50 years later by renowned Arab sailor Abu Zayd al-Sirafi."

[@CrazyPangolinLady]

The subject is hatless, I repeat, hatless

[@davidgraczyk775]

DC S yes...that is what the title says... do you just click on videos without reading like “oh this picture looks nice”

[@dcs4947]

@@davidgraczyk775 No...the title says "Earliest Foreign Account of China? // 9th cent. "Accounts of China and India" // Primary Source". It doesn't say it's a middle eastern person. Furthermore, why so mad David? It's a joke.

[@hammadirfan31]

@@dcs4947 If you read the description it did say about an Arab person adding to the accounts.

[@alejandromedina4597]

His description of porcelain was excellent.

[@thorinpeterson6282]

Can I get a timestamp?

[@chainsaw5302]

@@thorinpeterson6282 4:46

[@deedebdoo]

“Bone china” is what we call the translucent type he described

[@blackcountryme]

Bone china

[@katutaistelija]

I find your lack of turbans disturbing

[@Jejak_Pengangguran]

katutaistelija the man folks wear some kind of cap

[@GIF_CANCEL]

I will never turn to the turban side!

[@jefferygoldmann2643]

Yellow turbin rebellion gonna turn that around

[@abdlhmdx]

It’s more to specify that the chinese wear something on their head but it’s not like the arab turban

[@jefferygoldmann2643]

@cloudyyo i didn't say it wasn't

[@reee2589]

And they DONT wear turbans.

[@andree1991]

THE HORROR!

[@saladcaesar7716]

Reee Tarrd also their women didn't veil.

[@ethandement482]

I want to edit this video with that line after every paragraph break.

[@proof4469]

I am literally shaking right now

[@faithlesshound5621]

They have very few date palms, to boot!

[@tat3179]

So basically, Tang China has a welfare system, a legal system based on writing, a public education system in urban areas, urban people in China probably could read and write, a sophisticated monetary system, modern centralised taxation and customs and contracts.

[@SilverforceX]

China had all of those things in ancient times, BC era.

[@aljawisa]

And no allodial title.

[@mareksicinski3726]

not modern also not 'welfare' and a legal system is not based on 'writing; in any case

[@BoRerunn]

And crippling wars

[@CCPJAYLPHAN1994]

And WESTERNERS came and said we're savage

[@daraghosullivan1157]

It’s striking how many elements of ancient Chinese society foreshadow what we consider modern practices.. Thanks for the insights.

[@ahronthegreat]

Ffs ur life is much easier and of course it’s similar they were still humans

[@MrAmitkr007]

China and India indeed invented and pioneered so so many things we take for granted today. Buttons, clothes, language, paper, taxes, bureaucracy, gold as reserve currency, zero, shampoo, basically hygiene, and so much more

[@robertmiles1603]

"The ruler never sits in judgement until he has eaten and drunk, lest he judge wrongfully." I cannot in words describe how important this is. You should never make a decision on an empty stomach.

[@dfgdfg_]

There have been studies that show judges are more lenient after lunch

[@johnyricco1220]

The Tang Empire was a shadow of its former self by the 9th century. In the mid-8th century the Anlushan Rebellion had wiped out a third of the population and the dynasty nearly collapsed. It was one of the greatest calamities of Chinese history. I’m stunned the government and society still seem very well organized in this account,

[@ruedelta]

The Byzantine Empire was a shadow of its former self after the Muslim conquests of the southern provinces, but remained influential and wealthy for a very long time. Similar situation - decay doesn't make itself apparent on the scale of human lives. You need the detached perspective of historical record to really assign these analytical descriptors.

[@possumsam2189]

An Lushan did not end the Tang by any means. The economy was still going strong and the late-Tang though divided by Jiedushi (Several of which were Former Yan) were still nominally held together by a stable central authority. 1.bp.blogspot.com/-y9vERUxRGf0/Wul8W-QLLTI/AAAAAAAAVHU/zlsPRyS8JckW_-QfqNlXPj2pXdDg8pHswCEwYBhgL/s1600/Tang_Fanzhen_820.jpg In fact, the Tang outlasted An Lushan, the Tibetians, the Uyghurs & Huang Chao, only to fall to the treachery of power-hungry Zhu Wen who slayed the Royal Tang family, deposed the Tang emperor & ushered in the era of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.

[@Yanzdorloph]

@@ruedelta the andalus was less than a shadow of its old might and advancement when the reconquista hppened, and the ottomans where but the shadows of thheir selves when they lost the balkans and got crushed by the russians and west europe ... this is how empires end all of them

[@quanyuan6760]

Anlushan is actually "Alexander" translated in to Chinese

[@elongreishinaski9800]

@@quanyuan6760 No, it is Rokhsan which is related to the Iranian name Roxanna as was named the wife of Alexander the Great.

[@xlyoutube]

“The Chinese treat each other fairly where financial dealings or debts were concerned." - Hearing this as a Chinese, I thought maybe we should bring back the wooden staves... A note on the taxation (10:15) : the per capita tax on the male population is because a piece of land was assigned by the government to every man when he reaches adulthood - he was expected to farm the land and pay a fixed tax every year, along with a maximum of 30-day labour when summoned.

[@Eshray]

That bit about the taxation was actually pretty interesting. On that topic, I wonder what rights a Chinese farmer had to the land they were assigned upon being assigned it. Could you, for instance, sell your land to another person? Could you grow cash crops and did you have the right to travel where your crops might be more valuable? Among other things. I find the inner workings of everyday life for ordinary people in ancient times incredibly fascinating.

[@xlyoutube]

@@Eshray In the first half of Tang Dynasty there were two types of farm assignments for every adult farmer : a 口分田 (Kou-Fen-Tian) or literally translated to "field-by-mouth", 80 mu per adult (approx. 5 Hectares). This is for food production and the land cannot be traded or inherited. The land must be returned and reassigned after the death of the farmer. the other type was 永业田 (Yong-Ye-Tian) or "Perpetual estate field", 20 mu per person (about 1.3 Hectares). This land is treated like the farmer's private property and can be traded. It can be used for cash plants too. Earlier policies gave out land by the household's ability to farm, e.g. ox owners receive extra land. The government officers receive their land according to their rank. They usually get significantly more than an average farmer and can continue to buy up more land from these farmers. During wars (Anlushan's rebellion) the farmers sign themselves into big landlord's household for their own security and naturally surrender their entitlement to land under their names and became tenant farmers. By mid-Tang, the aristocracy owned massive areas of land and the government gradually ran out of land that they could control to assign.

[@inthefade]

Treating each other fairly... Well that disappeared with the Lost Generation.

[@mareksicinski3726]

poll taxes were a common, hated feature of medieval governments.

[@anon2427]

X so it was just feudalism?

[@abdlhmdx]

Just so everyone knows, those travellers made it necessary to include that the people of the Tang empire don’t wear turbans because during these arab’s path to the Tang empire they had gone into many societies and cultures with most having their own versions of a turban or garment that shields their heads from the sun. So they had to mention how different a society was from their surroundings.

[@-TasyaNabila]

I think the arab travellers mentioned everything that is different between them and the areas they visit to take accounts on what trades should prosper if they do trade with them.

[@sahloull1]

@@-TasyaNabila that's exactly why he mention it for the first place and also i confirm what Toya said.

[@Dragons_Armory]

The way the Tang bureaucracy catalogs all manner of things and form various policies is nothing short of extraordinary. This level of management is quite robust even some 1300 years ago.

[@KinLee919]

but we are very good at recording everything.

[@camrendavis6650]

@@KinLee919 yes, very much so

[@erlingqiericyice1977]

Song has achieved more until Mongol came and destroy all those things

[@unifieddynasty]

@Timothy Dexter No they didn't. Don't make stuff up to serve your agenda.

[@qus.9617]

@Timothy Dexter If they did they would not have annals of the warring states, works of the grand historian (han) records of the three kingdoms (jin), history of the northern and southern dynasties (Northern Wei, Liu Song etc.), history of the 16 kingdoms (Song), history of the song dynasty and past (song), history of the Liao and Jurchen (Yuan), history of the Qing dynasty (Qing) and various other imperial records or encyclopedias. I am missing from my list other Chinese historian works and historians who documented and recorded previous dynasties, which by your assertion would not be possible had everything been destroyed. Chinese historiography can be thanked for that. Even Mongol aristocrats/emperors (Toqto'a) and Manchu scholars (Qianlong emperor) deeply loved Chinese history and published historian works, endorsed Chinese philosophies, governance, calligraphy, poetry, writing and Chinese culture in general.

[@Berkana]

15:45 basically, Tang dynasty China had a form of Social Security, but instead of getting a pension from the age of 60 or 65 or whatever it is nowadays, one qualifies to get paid when one reaches 80. Pretty impressive for a classical civilization. Also, this implies that there were some folks among them who reached the age of 80, which is way longer than what I had heard the typical life span was in pre-modern times.

[@user-hh2is9kg9j]

Many people reach the age of 80. What makes us think that not a lot of people do is the "average life expectancy method" which averages child deaths and young men in battles and lowers the average age drastically

[@Berkana]

@@user-hh2is9kg9j In medieval Europe, in those days, the life expectancy was something under 50, so anyone living to the age of 80 would have been a serious outlier. I wonder how common it was in various parts of the world.

[@Bialy_1]

@@Berkana In old times half of people was dying before age of 5... as there was no vaccination or antibiotics(so the avg age of death was low). And it looks that people in China were forced to work even when they were 79 years old. It would be a problem for most people even with modern medicine so in that time it was most likely a very rare thing to live for so long and be able to work until age of 80!

[@ruedelta]

@@Bialy_1 You're missing the cultural context. Elderly don't work, the kids are expected to provide for them. The 80 year old pension is probably a measure to not punish families for having parents who survive to that point, since it's unlikely that the children are capable of providing anymore (having gone into retirement as well). It is quite a reasonable and forward thinking policy really.

[@StudioArtFX]

@@user-hh2is9kg9j Thank you!! I have talked to people who literally believed that ancient people were 35 years old, looked 100 and died of old age!!!

[@Omar-dp5bh]

The writer was more descriptive when he said women don't wear turban, he might was a bit surprised because most nations at that time wore something over their heads, Christians and jews not excluded, nor men are, so it might have been disturbing for the writer when china men wore a cap and the women didn't, however, The comments are like mad, have they never seen a woman with turban, take a look at your grandma pics😒

[@cramerfloro5936]

Ikr? The absence of headscarfs is a pretty recent development in fashion, that started with the governing classes and expanded in the population only in the last few generations

[@Berkana]

14:02 their method of authenticating the two parties to a contract is rather brilliant. Writing over the seam where the two contract documents folded over each other meet, especially in Chinese written with a brush, is a great way to hinder attempts at forging either half. If either half doesn't match up, it is immediately apparent.

[@faithlesshound5621]

That's similar to the mediaeval English "indenture," except that there was no writing over the jagged line where the documents were cut into two.

[@telesniper2]

That is easily faked. This is after all China

[@12345krillin]

@@telesniper2 Care to explain how?

[@k.k.c8670]

@@telesniper2 the odd troll. Fox channel is down?

[@telesniper2]

@@k.k.c8670 looks like chang's butthurt that the only thing to cone out of China that lasted more than a month is COVID!

[@krabbcake8371]

9:22 im glad they acknowledged being hangry as a legitimate issue

[@joellaz9836]

Krabb Cake You’re not you when you’re hungry

[@1wor1d]

@@@sirkeg1 I read that study, but the one I read was only related to judges/magistrates not parole boards. Good time for the offender was start of the day or just after lunch. Worst time, just before lunch or end of the day. Previous studies have shown that repeated decisions make people tired, and they start looking for simple answers, As sessions drag on, judges may find it easier to deny requests and let things stand as they are.

[@RKroese]

He should learn how to fast proper, so he can deal with it always. If I were to be judged by him, I'd be sure to sent him a mighty gift: 12 course meal.

[@user-jv5bl4fi1y]

2:09 The Arabs used to describe the non Abrahamic religions, or Pagan Idolatries - as Magi or Magus, they have described some pagan European religions like that, when they conquest Spain, and when some travelers traveled to East Europe. It does not necessarily mean Zoroastrianism.

[@Kr4zYm0f0]

Its a Zoroastrian priest....

[@pastorwhiskey1301]

Magi means Fire Worshiper which definitely came from Zoroastrianism.

[@fupopanda]

Magi is Zoroastrianism. The Arabs adopted the word to refer to all paganism.

[@Suite_annamite]

Speaking of Zoroastrians, *the last rulers of pre-Islamic Persia, the Sassanids fled to the Tang courts of China.* It must've been awkward and bitter for them to have to meet Arab envoys or visitors.

[@roha1329]

@@Suite_annamite i don't think so, since the Abbasid had a lot of Iranians supporters. Just side note, Mesopotamia plain aren't originally belongs to the Indo-Iranians nor the Arabs.

[@tedhodge4830]

This is an excellent review without a lot of the mystical embellishments that seemed normal for the period, lol. I actually feel like this is an accurate period review of China. No people with dog heads or maneaters that worship the moon. I am impressed with the writer's objectivity and sense.

[@Rodrigo_Vega]

Actually is it just me or most of the accounts in this channel are pretty sensible and respecting on their comments on the cultures they meet?

[@fortred735]

@@Rodrigo_Vega If you look for the one about meeting the Russian Vikings, it is far from kind in the description

[@VoicesofthePast]

@@Rodrigo_Vega I won't deny there are some pretty eccentric ones, the Romans in particular seemed to enjoy some pretty wild claims

[@miracleyang3048]

Fort Red It sound you're just one of those Vikings LARPers who are mad cause the eye witness said something that didn't agree with their fantasies about Vikings

[@victoriap1561]

He actually met the Chinese, that's probably the difference.

[@horisontial]

A good way to encourage correct spelling! ".. So if there is an error, he is beaten with wooden staves"

[@---iv5gj]

could really use some of that in modern china, even TV subtitles and public banners are riddled with incorrect words, let alone day to day conversations by the general public

[@fenrirgg]

HERE! YOU WROTE "日" INSTEAD "曰" THAT'S PADDLING! >:(

[@ME-hm7zm]

My mother and her siblings went to a Catholic school where the nuns definitely were still doing that in the 60s/70s.

[@helldronez]

well you got beaten if you were on chinese family, i am got beaten cause i was left handed and forced me to write right handed

[@demonicwarrior1]

It's not really spelling but if you write a character incorrectly (use the wrong radical when writing a character EG: 狼 or 浪).

[@unifieddynasty]

"They don't wear turbans." [[ABSOLUTELY HARAM]]

[@mh2660]

unifieddynasty 😂 I love how close circle medieval people were. That Arab traveler must have been so culture shocked.

[@toxicmasculine77]

Well you're still close circle. Cause you don't know what "Haram" means. Just that the circles are different now

[@mh2660]

Mr. Suhaib why would you assume that? I was born Muslim. Just not one anymore.

[@Delgen1951]

Yeah not a decent Top hat or Darby in the bunch..

[@abdlhmdx]

unifieddynasty No it’s not, they made it necessary to include because these arab’s path to the Tang empire had them go into many societies and cultures with most having their own version of a turnban/cloth that shields their heads or face from the sun.

[@parhhesia]

Beyond all the cute details, what really stands out is that the government loooked after the poor, providing famine relief, free schooling, free medicine, pensions and access to justice.

[@YSLRD]

And kept the grain market functioning

[@mareksicinski3726]

this seems more like your view of it, it is not exactly accurate and the srouces etc

[@anon2427]

Sean Maher oh how things have changed

[@Ellon62]

@@CelticSpiritsCoven I really like it, but what do I know right?

[@maclee5381]

@@CelticSpiritsCoven Sure. Socialism as the concept we know today didn't even exist until a thousand years later. Besides, judging an ancient society with modern standards isn't very fair imo. Try doing that with 9th century Western Europe.

[@82dorrin]

2:25 "In dealing with thieves their practice is to put them to death. If they are caught" Well, that escalated quickly...

[@tmarritt]

The lesson being dont get caught.

[@ismaelsantos5378]

Having a conversation with my mother the othey day, I suggested the idea of reforming the penal system in the following way: -Crimes are punished with jail time, but the guilty has two options: A) They serve the full sentence B) They do half sentence, while working for some company under guard. While they are paid, the money goes to a personal account they won't have access to until they go free again. -Regardless of which way the guilty serves time, if they are caught in crime again, they get executed. No third chance for the wicked. This is part of a larger structure, if someone is interested I can explain further.

[@varalderfreyr8438]

@@ismaelsantos5378 Interested

[@insaneweasel1]

@@ismaelsantos5378 interested. Does that mean if you get arrested twice for something minor you die?

[@ismaelsantos5378]

@@varalderfreyr8438 The point of the system is to discourage going back to a life of crime. Most will pick the "half sentence with a job". This would mean that once you get out you have an initial capital to start your new life instead of being peniless and being forced back to crime. The education system would largely focus on practical classes, you know, stuff that will actually be useful outside of school, as well as history, with special point of explaining why Socialism is bad. As well as cultivating a competitive yet somewhat lenient enviroment. Students would have the exact same number of subjects on all years and paths. All rated from 0 to 100. At the end of every trimester the score would be posted. The top 3 get a high cash reward, the top 4-to-10 get lesser reward. Everyone else gets jacksquat. Extra curricular activities would be organized by a student council, which would be elected by the students and would form part of the administrative workforce at school, similar to japanese student councils. The thing is that would get paid, be required a minimum score and it would have curricular value. Physical training with focus on teamwork, as well as self defense and discipline, would be implemented. No "body positivity" hogwash. Arts would include drawing/painting, sculpting, playing music/dancing, etc. In terms of philosophy, while different thinkers will be explored, there will be a large focus on the teachings of Kreia (link at the end of this reply) Closed borders with very controlled migration. Abolition of all discriminatory laws and rules (ie: no more segregation, affirmative action, etc). No gun control laws. And basic weapon training would be part of the public school curriculum. The government would consist of 2 primary forces. The standard government made of elected representatives with the 3 powers separated. Term limits, as well as limited time terms, would be enforced on all branches to get rid of political stagnation. The second force consist of 3 agencies: -A watches over the police and brutally executes any corrupt officer, as well as watching closely the other two. -B watches over the executive and legislative branches and executes any corrupt representative, as well as watching closely the other two. -C watches over the judicial branch and brutally executes corrupt judges, and watches the other two. Regardless of agency, all members would receive the same training and they will be required to pledge an oath of loyalty to the nation and not the state or any political figure or party. Citizens would largely enjoy a liberal capitalist life built on the principle of acquiring wealth by helping society. Socialism in all it's forms (communism, fascism, current year radical feminism) would be outlawed and actively purged by both authorities and private citizens (who would be rewarded for providing information and/or hunting down themselves). That's right. Private citizens would have "Bounty Hunting" as an available career. Authorities would determine if a Wanted is "capture-only" or "capture and/or kill" (in the latter case capture would award a better pay than kill). Kreia (compilation of quotes) kzbin.info/www/bejne/faO9q4GYqc-nbaM Analysis of Kreia part1: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y4uThGOQbdGIisk Analysis of Kreia part2: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHawlJKJlNt0qc0

[@crazywilly3333]

It's remarkable that things like giving poor people the medicine they need or feeding kids in public school were apparently non-issues in 9th century China but are points of controversy in the modern USA. I wonder if there were people like that at this point in China as well, but they weren't prominent enough for this scholar to hear about them.

[@roodborstkalf9664]

That this system was existing in many cities is remarkable enough.

[@ahronthegreat]

U do realise the modern system is far better right ffs all u commenting that go live back then trust me ur lives aren’t that hard

[@crazywilly3333]

@@ahronthegreat you're right, the modern systems which guarantee healthcare for every citizen (which are employed by every developed nation except for the United States) are far better than 9th century China.

[@MadHatter42]

I'd say that throughout most of human history, the most sophisticated and comprehensive bureaucratic systems on earth generally belonged to the Chinese. This report provides very clear and honest insight into that system, by mentioning the wide-ranging educational, economic, and healthcare systems. I'm a little disappointed he didn't mention the civil service examination for government employees, but perhaps that wasn't quite so developed in the Tang as it would later become in the Song Dynasty about 200 years later.

[@SilverforceX]

Civil service exams was widespread even during Lao Tze and Confucius's time, so we're talking ancient China, well BC!

[@MadHatter42]

@@SilverforceX I don't think that's true, though. The civil service examination was based on understanding of the Confucian Classics, and Confucianism wasn't adopted as the state philosophy until the Han Dynasty in ~200 BC, several centuries after Confucius and Laozi. Before that, Chinese government was largely feudal, with power based on being related to the ruling house. The adoption of Confucianism signaled China's move from clan-based authority to merit-based authority, and even then, it took several centuries of development to fully realize that change.

[@ddl1472]

I remember the civil service exam was first introduced in Sui dynasty, and then inherited by Tang dynasty.

[@MadHatter42]

@@ddl1472 I think the exam system were around by the Tang, but at that time they were still largely limited to the nobility, making them more a formality than a real test of skill. It wasn't until the rise of Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty that the exams were opened to everyone, regardless of class background, making it a far more fair and comprehensive system of government At least, that's been my impression of the history, but I could be entirely wrong, too.

[@Fear_the_Nog]

Yes, which is why they are such good test takers, literally millennia of training.....

[@chrismaguire8165]

Wow ...Best travel diary ..felt like literally in China during that era .....kudos to traveler . A traveler account of foreign land with no prejudices and no malice

[@RahmanBae-st9cp]

Unlike the Europeans who actually burned one of the most important Islamic libraries in Spain, or maybe they deliberately made such a report with the intention of hiding it and keeping it for themselves, ironically not all important books in Spain were copied in the Egyptian library.

[@AvgWellInformedCitizen]

This channel is one of my newest additions to a long list of intriguing topics. Excellent choice of documents, keep up this great work! And thank you for your contribution. Sincerely well done.

[@VoicesofthePast]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@wothin]

@@VoicesofthePast yes your narrating (of other people's narrations) brings history to life. Much better than the usual style of simply saying what happened and how it was back then

[@omni5640]

If you could find it, maybe Zheng He's accounts of all the places he traveled on his 8 expeditions might be extremely interesting. I realise many of his records were burnt but you can probably find some on the internet. He went to places like Malaysia, Burma, India, Ceylon, Persia, Arabia and East Africa and saw loads of fantastical things that the insular Ming Empire was not used to.

[@VoicesofthePast]

Yessss, coming soon

[@mohammedalssamraey9581]

Somehow we all love Rice 🍚 and Tea ☕ Love to China from Iraq 🇮🇶

[@supahsmashbro]

♥️♥️♥️

[@belalabusultan5911]

according to this video, rice was the food of the poor, while the rich ate bread.... it is super weird since you can also learn that the kings of China ate with spoons and forks, and were the first people to invent these stuff, while also the chopsticks were proably rom there. it's like 2 nations in one country. I love rice too lol

[@belalabusultan5911]

@Charles Huang perhabs you'd need to study more of Chinese history, I am an Arab and can be surprised by my people's history.

[@papercat2599]

❤️

[@OneironauticalOne]

9:22 The ruler never sits in judgement until he has eaten and drunk. Lest he judge wrongfully. They knew about "Hangry" back then lol

[@willd1790]

iirc it's a real phenomenon even to the modern day, where studies have shown that judges will often sentence convicts differently depending on whether or not they've gotten the chance to eat. The Tang knew what's up lol

[@moosen1207]

He was mad about them using paper instead of water? Yikes he's in for a surprise in parts of medical Europe

[@noddlefoodle5691]

Oh my god did you see the video where a muslim scholar goes to meet Vikings! That video was a treat that's for sure.

[@hudsonalvarenga9095]

This channel just restored my faith in the usefulness of KZbin. Thank you.

[@abdullahsagga7195]

Wow that was amazing, I felt like I went back in time with that narration.

[@LostArchivist]

In a sense all historical counts do just that.

[@jesseberg3271]

I'm going out on a limb and saying that the village of the short people is an inside joke that the source didn't get.

[@KinLee919]

mabey a racism joke about japan.

[@wisdomleader85]

​@李钧 Right. Mabey.... Are you Australian?

[@jesseberg3271]

@Joe Blow I wasn't expecting quite so many people to join me on that limb.

[@domasselezenevas4007]

There is a village in China named Yangsi. It's full of dwarf people and the government is very secretive about it. Might be a coincidence but if it is that village then they've been there for more than a thousand years.

[@-haclong2366]

@@KinLee919 Japanese people were known as "dwarfs".

[@fisebilillah4406]

The objectivity of muslim accounts is really amazing.

[@Manxkaffee]

15:38 China with MediCare in the 9th century

[@erlingqiericyice1977]

@arnold jayeola it's not communism destroy them.. its mongol. China in 19th centuries are already destroyed twice. once by mongol and then by manchu Qing. little is left. Communism is just final blow

[@MariaMartinez-researcher]

@@erlingqiericyice1977 Which does include public healthcare. You bet that even in this dire circumstances, Chinese patients aren't dealing with insurance, primes, copays and premiums.

[@fsdds1488]

@@MariaMartinez-researcher If you are lucky enough to receive the treatment, Chinese hospitals have a budget that allows them to offer medical service under national healthcare scheme, thus they will be real conservative when it comes to major health problems, and its not unoften to see hospitals offer very limited service or even reject the patient simply because the hospital don't have the money for complete treatment.

[@user-ik4os8ne8p]

@@erlingqiericyice1977 LOL, Communism has built China from a weak and poor state nearly demolished by Japanese invasion and civil war to the second largest economy of the wolrd. Communism may have destroyed Soviet Union, but China is not Russia. It is true China was deeply hurt by manchu Qing both physically and mentally due to the fall of Ming(such a shame), but now we are recovering.

[@cockatyusha2359]

@arnold jayeola communists are major advocates of socialised health care. You don't know shit.

[@KMO325]

So Arab chroniclers were the most accurate and judgmental of the ancient/medieval era.

[@SahnouneKhaled]

Islam taught them to be fair and never propagate lies even about enemies and non Muslims

[@biotikmedia]

This is over five hundred years after the Roman one. It should be.

[@FOLIPE]

Because as middle men they were closer to China and Europe than Europe to China and actually traveled to both.

[@jordan_8329]

@@mh2660 the Romans sailed from Arabia to India and southeast Asia.

[@mh2660]

Jordan Gathany actually nvm they did go there. 😬

[@GiGi-wg9lq]

Such an advanced social system.

[@georgehunter2813]

The description of Tang period Chinese civil law and civil systems is interesting. The King regulates grain market price and fends off inflation. A youthful man pays, but the elderly man draws from the treasury.

[@Muramasa1794]

The Longest Day in Chang’an tv series I would recommend. A direct and phenomenal representation of Tang society, culture and clothing of that period 👍🏽

[@dtmt502]

those are often not accurate

[@Muramasa1794]

Dt Mt nah bro this one is different, was well received in China and won many awards

[@wenxiaomei]

@@Muramasa1794 To bad the director has to go and ruin the script, I wished that they had stuck to the plot of the novel. I couldn't rewatch it because the second half of the show was written so terribly.

[@Muramasa1794]

wenxiaomei yeah it kinda dragged on a bit and got off tangent

[@Muramasa1794]

anshu lieyi what house??

[@nobodyspecial9097]

9:22 glad to know that the Chinese keep to the "Rules of Acquisition". #214 - Never begin a business negotiation on an empty stomach.

[@MariaMartinez-researcher]

That's how Quark got his franchise of bars arrive to Freecloud. (Star Trek Picard)

[@TronUse999]

Star Trek🤣

[@mongol100mongol3]

Both india and china blessed with all kinds fruits and vegetation. Such blessed lands..

[@youtubeexpert2441]

Baghdad: has libraries and public baths and advanced medicine. China: has advanced financial system, take care of their citizens, and many flourishing cities. European historians: We shall call this era: tHe dARk Age! Edit: rephrased a sentence

[@roodborstkalf9664]

The Dark Ages were a myth, made up by public relation managers in the Renaissance

[@qetyghg9448]

@@roodborstkalf9664 yeap

[@kareemtheeb1478]

Europeans were not far behind. They took the levant from us in the crusades. Respect everybody. Now they are in thier golden age.

[@t6hp]

1st The dark ages were/is only used to refer to Europe, not the world. 2nd I'm from Egypt and I was taught this was actually just a myth, as the "dark ages" paved the way to many great things the world enjoys today by the Europeans. They were dark ages in comparison to the intellectual products produced in this period with the previous or the following periods. Egyptian history has many of those as well.

[@Sleepless4Life]

Well it is kinda true from their perspective. They didn't care for anything not European centric. Reality is often not even close.

[@joshuajacome8803]

Such a beautifully detailed chronicle. One can really imagine everything happening

[@chiangchengkooi9791]

What ever people may think about Chinese, they have the longest enduring civilization.

[@w462dh]

@@drderplington time will tell

[@thesatisfiedcustomer4869]

They had pensions for the elderly. Folk paid their debts and traded sensibly. Sounds a decent time and culture to live in.

[@Fear_the_Nog]

they also had some form of socialized healthcare and universal education, as well as general social welfare, for feeding children anyway. However, it was still a monarchy, so freedom was only as free as the current king allowed....basically, the whole society prospered if the rulers were good, and it didn't if they weren't, with no voting

[@iceomistar4302]

@@Fear_the_Nog better than modern China under the communists.

[@meilinchan7314]

Here's something. Most people in mediaeval China, like everywhere across the world, would not live long to enjoy that pension. Remember, this was an age when a man's life expectancy was so short that girls had to be betrothed as early as the age of 6 or 9 just to ensure that there would be enough humans to overcome the effects of attrition from disease, overwork, and warfare. Some things they did not enjoy, we take for granted. 100 is the new 80 of our day like how 60 is the new 40.

[@danimotherofchickens479]

TheSatisfied Customer they beat the crap out of and abused people and were often cruel

[@CobraQuotes1]

@@iceomistar4302 modern china has all those things

[@ntluck1592]

I'm glad you got some Arab accounts in this channel considering they are the most traveled people in history. You should check some of the accounts they have on the Maldives people as well as India and others. A lot of them i read in Arabic so i'm not sure if they are available translated or not.

[@nerychristian]

Wrong. Europeans are the most traveled people. After all, they did discover North and South America, and were able to extend their empire to Asia.

[@MegaMackproductions]

@@nerychristian and mapped most of the World ACCURATLY

[@nusaibahibraheem8183]

@@nerychristian actually thats not accurate if you compare that these travels were several centuries before with even less resources available, everything you just mentioned was probably after the 15th century, If that

[@MegaMackproductions]

@@nusaibahibraheem8183 what the feck does that mean? Traveling to and from china doesnt make you the most traveled people.... europeans circumnavigated the world, mapped it out ACCURATLY, interracted with far more peoples than the arabs.

[@udad7625]

@@MegaMackproductions Well thats more than 500 years before Europeans did. Arab travellars reached scandinvia and Rus lands in the 8-9th centuries and Japan. Look at Idrisi map in 1154 and you will know how far Arabs reached from 7th to the 12th century.

[@jimmyshrimbe9361]

"Undercook chicken? Beaten with wooden staves." "Over cook fish? Beaten with wooden staves."

[@lolasdm6959]

Staves solve everything don't they?

[@nicholasm7822]

Badly carve a stave? Beat with wooden staves.

[@lollerich]

This was the most interesting thing I've heard and watched in weeks.

[@seekeeng3618]

It sounds quite modern, except for the wooden staves.

[@meilinchan7314]

Wooden staves are still a thing east of the Zagros. Also, ever herd of Michael Fay?

[@lolasdm6959]

Imagine you get the wooden staves if you jaywalk

[@longyu9336]

@@lolasdm6959 A few centuries ago policemen were quite rough and if you did not comply perfectly, they would sometimes use a nightstick on you.

[@lolasdm6959]

@@longyu9336 Yes, but I don't think the police beat people for not crying in funerals anymore.

[@tianwang]

It”s called a “discipline ruler”, today you can buy them, but mostly as adult toys….lots of them on Etsy

[@alexanderb7721]

I really want to know how you find these primary sources, as I love ancient history, especially Chinese history, and can never really seem to find the magical place where all those lesser-known historical writers dumped their work.

[@VoicesofthePast]

nyupress.org/9781479830596/accounts-of-china-and-india/

[@julioduan7130]

In China there are a lot of books about foreign countries written in Chinese .

[@nusaibahibraheem8183]

You are right most of these "lesser known writers" are ignored on purpose

[@StudioArtFX]

Joseph Scaliger. He has them all in his vault.

[@possumsam2189]

Hint: Historical Travel Literature

[@miracleyang3048]

Will the Chinese Du Huan account of Arabs be next? its one of the Earliest Foreign Account of Islam and muslims

[@kareemtheeb1478]

Yeah I hope that.

[@sami3566]

@@kareemtheeb1478 he literally describes Arab as nomad that eat only flesh

[@hamedalrashed722]

There are many similar books written in Arabic in 800-1500 on social life and people around the world. Ibn Khaldun for example

[@jayasuryangoral-maanyan3901]

16:03 that must have sounded much better in chinese lmao

[@xandercorp6175]

You mean in Arabic? It sounds pretty good in just about any language, if you value the content...

[@jayasuryangoral-maanyan3901]

@@xandercorp6175 it was stated as being a Chinese saying and it just didn't flow that well in its translation

[@spaghettimonstersjudgingyo504]

This level of complexity in the administration of government and the law is really pretty impressive for 1000 years ago. Our system of modern civil law was only codified by Justinian in the year 600CE. Lost soon after and then found again by Italians in 1000 CE. Codified again in the 1600's by the Italians and spread throughout Europe as Corpus iuris civilis, or Body of Civil Law. The legal system your probably living under today unless your country came from the British Empire. To my knowledge besides the Romans only the Chinese had government administration this complex that long ago.

[@tatefranklin4761]

I love how Arab chroniclers primarily make note of how few Arabian things people who lived on the other side of the world had.

[@caniscerulean]

Every chronicler writes in contrast to their own experience. Things we do the same are taken for granted, things that we take for granted ourselves are most interesting when we see someone do it differently, to whom it never even occurred to do it the way we always have, when we never thought to do it any other way.

[@aryanchakraborty5175]

How do you know he was Arab ?

[@tatefranklin4761]

@@aryanchakraborty5175 Because the video is titled "Arab traveller on life in Tang China"

[@aryanchakraborty5175]

@@tatefranklin4761 dude I rechecked it , and it was a Persian traveler

[@sami3566]

@@tatefranklin4761 he's Persian not arab

[@shanecarubbi7864]

Very fascinating, there government was alot more complex than I would have thought. Great video thank you. I can't wate to see what's next.

[@shibusiltan2152]

Start of video: They have no turbans! End of video: No people have blacker hair.

[@debutant1277]

Damn this channel is a blessing

[@AreHan1991]

Fantastic! Beautiful and informative

[@arthurfioratifaria3615]

But, as I watched this, I constantly told myself, in exclamation: "what level of civility". We western people usually think that we were pioneers in State, social, political and burocratical development, but, while our ancestors were bloodly fighting their wars in cities dirty and putrid, there were huge empires exisisting in the world... and we simply do not pay attention to then.

[@arthurfioratifaria3615]

@arnold jayeola Yes I tottaly agree with you. My comment wasn't intended to say that medieval chinese civilization was better or more advanced than us, or any other great civilization in the world. Indeed every people has its shiny and obscure moments of history. I was only surprised because here in the West we usually look the mediterranean classic cultures with admiration ,as pioneers of many modern elements, but we right pass many other exemples of old but, yet, advanced civilizations, such as the Eastern ones. In my country for example, world history seems to be separated into West and East, North and South, when many events were simultaneously happening.

[@ObsessedwithZelda2]

Isn’t the idea of poor hygiene in medieval Europe somewhat a myth? (To go around the ultimate point of your statement, apologies)

[@armchairwarrior963]

All modern Western Bureaucracy is copy directly from China. The British was one of the first to adopt it. Once they figure their empire was getting big and hard to control.

[@arthurfioratifaria3615]

@@ObsessedwithZelda2 No problem. I think I expressed myself a little passioned in the first comment, hahaha. I fear I'm not expecialist on this hygiene subject. Probably, as history facts are aways changing (which is something good), most of the hysteriotipes portraiting medival europe as a place "dark", "poor", and "dirty" are somehow iluminist predjudice of the old times, and are now contested. But yet, is notable that regarding Hygiene of those times I think, considering that it varied a lot from time to time and place to place, compared to later and even earlier times, matters of public and personal hygiene weren't so good either... though sometimes not as bad as usually portraited.

[@faithlesshound5621]

This extract does not mention the national anonymised written examinations (at three levels) for recruiting Mandarins to the civil service, which started in the 1st century BC and continued till about WW I. The East India Company's agent in Canton commended this practice to his London HQ, and the idea was taken up by the British civil service and influenced other European and American nations, though they may have got the idea directly from China as well.

[@biliminsrlar5752]

I like your videos like this,keep up the great work!

[@VoicesofthePast]

Thanks buddy!

[@Goddamnitiwantaname]

The thing I took away from this video is that in Ancient China the worth of a man could be measured by the amount of pants he wears during winter.

[@sirkeg1]

Even today, one layer of silk long underwear, one layer of wool long underwear, then outer pants.

[@weirdofromhalo]

@@sirkeg1 Especially in the freezing North.

[@isitokaytoeatquick-wittedb2953]

I also learned that, and that I probably would've been pantless back then

[@UranijaZeus]

Such an advanced civilization.

[@caleb7475]

This was amazing. Hearing it like it was described over a thousand years ago.

[@xgraharax]

Nobody: any culture encounters another: they are unhygenic

[@scottyj6226]

In waiting for the one that calls a people over-hygienic

[@mindyourbusiness4440]

It's usually arabs who say that, because islamic hygiene should be done in a certain way (must be with water) otherwise they consider it nonhygeinic, they sill consider anyone who wipes as non-hygienic

[@johnyricco1220]

9th century Arab: Haha the Chinese use toilet paper Meanwhile in Europe: washing toilet rags for next use

[@LordLobov]

I thought europeans just fisted each other

[@unifieddynasty]

@@LordLobov Two kinks in one. Nice.

[@johnyricco1220]

@Revolutionary Communist In days of old When knights were bold And paper yet invented They wiped their as With tuffs of gras And were quite contented

[@digitalbrentable]

Can't top the Romans with their social toilets and communal sponge on a stick. Sit down with the fellas, have a chat, hang a shit, pass the shit-sponge along, and hit the brothel!

[@waltertaljaard1488]

In these dark medieval days, when toilet paper wasn't yet invented. They would wipe their .ss with a poll of grass. And walk away contented.

[@fsdds1488]

Sakh is quite similar to the Cantonese "caa4", thus i suspect that the author mostly stayed in southern China.

[@soufiane4293]

Yes. It is an account by an Arab merchant who was active in Guangzhou.

[@rete5132]

yes arabian nd other foreign merchants mostly stays in southern part as it is important centre of sea trade

[@ML-mi7ns]

anshu lieyi Norther Chinese are not as trade loving and open minded tho.

[@sami3566]

@@soufiane4293 he's Persian from South iran

[@sami3566]

@@rete5132 he's Persian

[@thatdutchguy2882]

So, before Frederick the Great King of Prussia the Chinese already introduced the concept of pensions and mandatory schooling for children. Learned something new today tnx 👍.

[@GL-ys8je]

And Healthcare

[@thatdutchguy2882]

@@GL-ys8je Yep, that too.

[@faithlesshound5621]

Work till you're 80 and you'll get a pension! Wow, Thanks!

[@bonawang4995]

ThatDutchguy FYI it was not mandatory schooling (actually there was no way any medieval government could have afforded that). The free education system could only cover a very small number of people, and students needed to get recommendations and pass some exams before entering.

[@meilinchan7314]

@@faithlesshound5621 : The global life expectancy was around 50-60.

[@Numba003]

The organizational bureaucracy of such an ancient people is surprisingly thorough. Wow. Merry Christmas out there everybody 😊✝️🎄

[@novaterra973]

2:00 Well, most people are gonna be unhygienic by that standard, since I am sure toilet paper is still more common than a bidet.

[@ab-wx3or]

Use a sink :P

[@kangaroofuno]

Toilet paper don't exist in the ancient world. What's a "bidet"?

[@novaterra973]

@@kangaroofuno Well, apparently it did exist, since the account mentions Chinese wiping their backside with paper. Bidet is basically a device you attach to a toilet seat, that washes your backside with a spray of water.

[@kangaroofuno]

@@novaterra973 What kind of paper did Chinese people use to wipe themselves? How does a bidet work without electricity?

[@kangaroofuno]

@washington gibz What's a punishment tool have to do with this comment thread about ancient Chinese toilet hygiene?

[@friedchickenridebarton1567]

Thank you for your channel and all the wonderful history and here we are 1,000s of years later still being human .

[@BryanCheong]

The traditional salt monopoly mentioned at 10:58 is maintained to this very day, the traditional monopoly of the ruler of China, which used to be most of the state treasury's tax revenues. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_National_Salt_Industry_Corporation

[@angusarmstrong6526]

Think this is my favourite KZbin channel!

[@richardmullins1883]

What a great idea for a KZbin channel. My new favourite

[@notarealpersonF]

These videos are gold

[@Underheaven8]

This is quite brilliant for a 9th century analysis.

[@coolepicperson4150]

I wonder how helpful this was to reconstructing Middle Chinese

[@deacudaniel1635]

I thought exactly about the same thing lol

[@Kariakas]

Great detail, very interesting.

[@ryangerrard4048]

Great video, great channel

[@daniyalk713]

this man who documented it must've been the best of all in his field

[@LauftFafa]

we still love to praise a semi fictional so called marco polo instead of those . ibn batuta for example have achieved what marco couldnt even dream of .

[@burnwankenobi803]

LuftWaffe ME 109bf Marco Polo was a master assassin ibn buttsack cant hold a candle to that

[@roodborstkalf9664]

Why bash Marco Polo ?

[@meilinchan7314]

Marco Polo was trying to write something that could sell as factual entertainment. And he was outshone for a few good centuries by the even more fantastic and less trustworthy John Mandeville - assuming such an author even existed to begin with. And the West hasn't really grasped much of Middle Eastern literature bar the Qur'an and Alf Laylah wal-Laylah.

[@mahdiabderraouf5795]

@@burnwankenobi803 Is this how your parents have raised you?

[@thedstorm8922]

@@burnwankenobi803 You sound like a 12 year old

[@Danny66115]

this is top notch content 🙏

[@kahlilg9824]

And this my friends, is why I subscribe.

[@-TasyaNabila]

It would be really interestimg to hear Ibn Battuta's accounts on places he visited 😁

[@VoicesofthePast]

Coming soon!

[@menaseven9093]

Nice Arab traveler description of China. The Chinese were using toilet paper. the Chinese wrote contract for loans.

[@sami3566]

He's Persian

[@krisaloisio2596]

I have to say it's egalitarian of the ancient Chinese to educate all kids literacy. The kids of poor families were taught in a public school and they were fed meals there.

[@Suite_annamite]

No Asian or Sinitic societies were "egalitarian" in that not everyone could ever be what they wanted to be, they were just meritocratic : if they got "street cred" from a powerful person, they could get promoted easily. But that kind of mentality also breeds nepotistic corruption.

[@Fear_the_Nog]

I wouldn't call it egalitarian but they did have a social welfare system that included retirement, healthcare and education

[@jkid4855]

The public education is more so ppl can conduct trade properly and to find smart ppl who can continue to learn so that they can enter into exam system to become public officials. It's more a way to farm talent.

[@choister420]

Your channel is litt af

[@saretgnasoh7351]

5:23 "Any goods that the ruler needs, he also takes, but he gives the very highest price for them, and pays immediately" Wow, why the ruler did that? He can pay cheaper than market price "If the price of grain rises too high, the ruler release stocks from his granaries and sell it at less than the market price" wow.........

[@iniudan]

Because he is the ruler, basically he there to get first pick on the best item, while also encouraging merchant who bring high quality good to come back and if it encourage merchant to bring back higher value item, in hope to get top sale with the ruler, so will the value of the 30% tariff also increase.

[@RedStar0723]

This practice of price control (particularly of grain) had been introduced more than 1000 years before the time of this account.

[@saretgnasoh7351]

@@RedStar0723 to some "wise" ruler, not all ruler Maybe it can be count only by one hand

[@RedStar0723]

@@saretgnasoh7351 Actually the policy was first mentioned by the chancellor of Qi (a Duchy but often called a kingdom/state), Guan Zhong, around 600BCE. Various versions of the policy were adopted in other states during the Spring Autumn/Warring States period. By the Han Dynasty (200BCE) it became institutionalized state policy. The policy continued to evolve but whenever the national government was strong enough to do so, it was implemented.

[@ankhi3585]

If a ruler pays the low price for goods he looks poor and weak. He is supposed to look better than his subjects otherwise why should he be the one ruling them.

[@Innovate22]

1:50 History proves once and for all that the Arabs invented that OG “Ass Wipe” burn 💩🧻🔥

[@kaltonian]

Bloody interesting m8 thank you

[@dasgupta9288]

When common Chinese were wearing fine silk clothes, people in most of other countries were still naked or wearing tree barks

[@Haotheman]

@sneksnekitsasnek it's true

[@sami3566]

In India

[@Thecognoscenti_1]

Grape wine was actually cultivated in China until the Five Dynasty and Ten Kingdoms Period when China lost Gansu, where most grapes were grown.

[@roodborstkalf9664]

Interesting, someone took it from China of did Gansu went independent ?

[@voidvector]

@@roodborstkalf9664 China actually lost Gansu during the Tang dynasty. During the "An Lushan Rebellion" (a civil war), the Tibetans took over Gansu and Tarim Basin (Xinjiang). The "Changqing Treaty" afterwards cements that. Tibetans had a more warrior culture back then.

[@jumpvelocity3953]

@@roodborstkalf9664it would be very rare for a province to just go “independent” without any prior nation or idea of a nation (in the academic sense), as it is an essential component of the independent nation-state.

[@anonimosu7425]

I like how “They do not wear turbans” is emphasised.

[@RafaelCosta-oi3be]

This channel if wonderful! Thank you for the service, can you tell us what is the name of the harp songs used?

[@thorinpeterson6282]

When English were working their peasants to death and obfuscating any sort of higher learning the Chinese were paying their elderly a pension

[@roodborstkalf9664]

In those times the English had Alfred the Great, who was quite a scholar. The guys who were killing and working to death ethnic Anglo-Saxon peasants had similar names as yours and where mostly from Denmark and Norway.

[@danimotherofchickens479]

Thorin Peterson uh the Chinese beat and punished the crap out of people life was hard and they had no freedom

[@supahsmashbro]

Westerners cry about "freedom" when they're "free" to work till death paycheck to paycheck. The drug they're fed is that they're "free" and love "human rights". You're the most enslaved when you're used but believe you're free. Chinese are VERY optimistic for the future, I hope the west can get it's shit together, they'd be less warmongering

[@kaikart123]

@@supahsmashbro Chinese are not "free" and work till death paycheck to sometimes no paycheck, The drug they're fed is that they're "free" and love "human rights". You're the most enslaved when you're used but believe you're free. Westerners are VERY optimistic for the future, I hope the China can get it's shit together, they'd be less warmongering

[@jamzy9]

@@kaikart123 imagine thinking the chinese are warmongering when US has be at war none stop for at least 20 years whilst regularly couping elected leaders and propping up dictators

[@philmay7834]

After listening to the fairness of this ancient way of life, it would appear we have lost our way with each other.

[@subutaynoyan5372]

Well, all this is in piece times. Besides, authorities could just boil you in hot oil for being at odds with them and all. Rape was common in old world. Massacring people by the score etc.

[@sgcl10658]

These descriptions are fair, unlike Roman's descriptions about China

[@rezazazu]

The description of that sak drink which I guess is our very own tea was wondrous 😮😊

[@AhanSalty]

The voice are quite gallant indeed