Philippines

The recent destruction of the Philippines reminded me of our past history with them. It goes without saying that our occupation of the Philippines was one of our more darker periods in what would be our try at imperialism. At the end of all that misery, we went our separate ways and they got independence. However despite that, the Philippines, at least now, doesn't seem to hold a huge grudge against us despite the atrocities. What has happened since then? Perhaps we apologized awhile ago and they forgave. Who knows.

Akbar was truly one of the greatest leaders of all time. He brought together the many people of India into once empire. He tried to reach an understanding between all religions. What would have happened if his predecessors followed his lead? Would India been united and become a great nation, resisting any western attempted at colonialism? Would Akbar's religious unification become reality and all religions would find peace? India was already a great nation at that time. Who knows what could have been.

Mongols

An interesting question that comes up in Asian studies is how far could the Mongol war machine have gone? It was obvious that the Mongols were the best at warfare in the world at the time. With most of Asia under their heel, they were poised to strike into Europe. The only thing that stopped this juggernaut from sweeping across the rest of the world was the death of their leader, Genghis Khan. What would have happened if he hadn't died? More than likely they would have crushed whatever stood in their path. The Mongols had already defeated the Russians and probably would have no trouble crushing Austria, Germany, and any other power that stood against them. However one must also take into consideration that one fact remained: without Genghis Khan, the whole Mongol Empire would collapse. What would likely happen is if even if they stood over all of Asia and Europe, the death of their leader would mean the death of their empire. The real question would be what the effects would be of a Europe that was ravaged by the brutality of the Mongols.

Rome and China

An interesting question to wonder is what would happen if Rome and China actually met. The small things that they heard of each other didn't seem to interest either of them. Though if they were to meet, what would the results be? Would they work together and gain economically? If so, would this save Rome from destruction or only prolong it? Would the two empires, warlike by nature, go at each other in order to be dominate like Rome did to Carthage and China did to Vietnam? There are so many questions that come up that cannot be answered. Any reaction would deeply affect the future of both empires greatly.

Ancient India

Ancient India is more fascinating than I imagined. Seeing how it had numerous kingdoms and states clumped together was quite interesting. I never knew that Alexander the Great invaded India and not only that but he seemed to have a lot of respect towards them as he talked philosophy with them among other things. The many kingdoms that tried to unite India were also interesting. From Aryans to Maurya, so many tried to make an Indian empire but eventually fell. It is quite fascinating to see this history of a place most don't think about.

Religion in Asia

In reading the text, I found out how many religions were represented in Asia. From Confucianism to Daoism, many religions can be found in Asia. What was really interesting was that Judaism could have been found in Asia. Sure, it was a small part but you don't normally put those two things together. An interesting aspect of the reading was of how Confucianism played a big part in the culture of China even in the 21st century. This explains many practices that the Chinese had that I did not understand like the favoring of boys over girls in their one child policy. The hard working and self-improvement tenets of Confucianism can be seen in the fast economic growing pace in Asian countries. Overall, it is fascinating how so many religions can shape the cultures of so many nations even today.