Asian women today are placing more emphasis and putting more effort into their personal beauty routine. There was a recent study conducted by TNS Asia Pacific which reported that 59 percent of Asian women believe it is very crucial to attempt to look their best even before leaving the home in the morning. This is in comparison to the 39 percent of Western women who feel the same way. Asian women are among the most educated people in the world, but their beauty routine has not been neglected by and large. In fact, these women see personal beauty as necessary to having a good job and a solid education.
Zhang Ziyi was born on February 9th, 1980 in the capital city of China, Beijing. She is the daughter of an economist father, Zhang Yuanxiao. Her mother, Li Zhousheng, is a kindergarten teacher. She was raised with her older brother, Zhang Zinan, in a working class, urban section of Beijing. However, Zhang was originally interested in dancing and gymnastics as a career. She entered bravely into the dance world when she was only eleven years old. As turned out, she was accepted into a secondary school affiliated with Beijing Dancing College. She was four years in this school. During her time there, she earned some awards which included the National Young Dancer competition. Even so, her promising career as a dancer came to an end when she became interested in acting instead. It has been said that Zhang simply became frustrated by the art of dancing.
There is another characteristic about Qianlong Imperial Seals. Many of them had carved inscriptions which were taken from selected literature of China. As Manchu people, all the Qing emperors were conscious of their identity as "foreigners." This occured during their rule over the Han people of ancient China. So it was necessary for these emperors to have a thorough knowledge of Chinese culture... if they hoped to create a permanent social and economic stability! Therefore, they became careful students of the writings of Confucius. They even began to exercise Confucian rites to help persuade the Han people of their "Chinese" appreciation.
By the time of the Qianlong era, Han culture had spread into every aspect of Manchurian rule. The reason for this was that the Manchu people had been totally assimilated with the Chinese culture. The Manchus were so well absorded into China that the emperor had to issue an edict to "encourage speaking Manchu and practicing horseback riding and hunting." The Qianlong emperor himself was a fervent admirer of Han culture. He demonstrated his sincere knowledge of traditional Chinese thought and literature through the inscriptions located on many of his famous seals. Many of these inscriptions came from literature containing the wisdom of Confucius!
Harlan Urwiler
For more information, feel free to visit my website at: http://www.myorientalgallery.com/.
The Chinese Emperor Qianlong lived from 1711 to 1799 AD. His life is noted by several achievements. One of the most memorable is his contribution to Imperial Seals during the time of the great Qing dynasty. Qianlong was the fourth emperor in this noteworthy line. He is still famous throughout the world as a accomplished ruler with much ambition. Consequently, he left a compelling legacy for the world to see. Qianlong helped to create a prosperous time during his reign of more than sixty years. He was the longest reigning emperor in China's history.
Did you know that "pearl" is the official birthstone for month of June? This fact came about through the American National Association of Jewelers in 1912. It is also the birthstone for the Sun Signs of Gemini and Cancer. Freshwater pearls are given the first wedding anniversary, according to tradition. Pearls are also given on most third, twelfth, and thirty year anniversaries. Pearls are excellent gifts for the true lover!
In fact, it has been said that freshwater pearls offer the power of love to those who wear them. They also provide money, protection, and good luck! This is not a bad deal for the purchase of a fine pearl necklace which will beautify your life for many years to come. Furthermore, freshwater pearls are thought to give wisdom through experience. This is according to the laws of karma. They also cement engagements and love relationships. Pearls have been credited with keeping children safe from harm as well.
In ancient folklore, early Chinese myths told of pearls falling from the sky when great dragons fought each other. The legends say that pearls were thought to be the tears of the gods. Ancient Greeks believed that wearing pearls would promote marital bliss and even prevent newlywed women from crying. In short, a pearl necklace is an elegant present to give or receive for all these reasons. Pearls are some of the most special and beloved gifts of all time!
Harlan Urwiler
For more information, feel free to visit my website at: http://www.myorientalgallery.com/.
It may surprise many of us in the West that Asian women work in more equitable environments than we ever imagined! In fact, it has been noted that the gap between women's income and that of men is tightening much more quickly throughout Asia than it is in the West. A famous Chinese proverb puts it this way: "Women hold up half the sky." Many Asian women still desire to fulfill their traditional role as wives and mothers in the home. Even so, they continue to have more disposable income than ever before. It may surprise many that Asian women spend seven times the amount of household income on an annual basis as Asian men.
Harlan Urwiler
For more information, please feel free to visit my website at: http://www.myorientalgallery.com/.
Who is an "Asian" woman suppposed to be? Many people think in terms of either Chinese, Japanese, or perhaps Indian or Korean women. Most forget about the Southeast Asian countries including places like the Philipppines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia... or even Northern Asian countries like Pakistan. Regardless of the stereotypes we see in most Asian marketing adds for various products, it is important to have a complete view of Asian women based on the facts.
It has been said that Asian women include a "melting pot" of unique ethnicities. Each ethnic group has its own special cultural heritage. For practical purposes people in the West tend to think of Asian women as one group. However, at some point we must ask ourselves what traits define the modern Asian woman best? There are a few facts which may help us better understand this growing demographic in the market place of the world.
So... bronze ritual sculptures were believed to have "spiritual" power in ancient China. There is a well known account in Zou's Commentaries to consider. The story goes like this.... In the third year of Lord Xuan (605 BC), the Duke of Chu attacked the nomads in the north. He then marched his troops to the Zhou capital at Luoyang. When he arrived, a victorious military parade was then conducted for all to see. This duke's intention was to take political power away from the weakened king of the Zhou dynasty. However, the duke was greeted by the Zhou king's minister, Wang-sun Man.
The Eastern Zhou period in China's ancient history saw great and rapid social changes. Creative experiments with materials opened up broad opportunities for decorative, representational art. Consequently, there are unique examaples of human figurines made out of jade and wood in addition to bronze. Expanding commerce and interaction between separate ethnic groups contributed to changes in ritual bronze vessels. By 600 BC, iron became the material used to create weapons and agricultural tools. Precious metals such as gold and silver were used as inlays, but sometimes for making vessels too. However, the material bronze remained the superior metal of prestige!
Traditional Confucian values were strengthend during Japan's modernization period, then reinforced in the decades of war and expansion. These ancient values told women that they were dependent on their fathers, their husbands, and their sons throughout the course of their lives. Social momentum also carried these ideas into the early postward years of Japan's history. In fact, they retain a great residual influence in society in which the Japanese woman serves as the center of family life. However, the modern reality is undergoing slow but persistent change as Japanese women are transforming their roles in society and the world.
At the end of the 19th century, an ambitious Germany was looking for a place in China to establish a colony. After two German Catholic priests were killed by Boxer rebels in 1897, German troops were sent in to maintain a presence at the city port of Qingdao. The Chinese were quickly forced into an agreement to lease the surrounding Bay of Jiaozhou to Germany.
Before the first frigate moored in the bay, Qingdao had been a quiet fishing village. However, German officers, sailors, and traders were soon promenading up and down the Kaiser Wilhelm Ufer and dining in the seafront Prinz Heinrich Hotel. They drank beer from the Germany brewery, which later achieved fame in many parts of the world under the name "Tsingtao." The success of Qingdao Pijiuchang is due not only to German expertise but also to the spring water collected from nearby Lao Shan.
Gong Li, China's most internationally popular actress, has been a dynamic and creative force in the new era of Chinese film. It all began in the 1980s when her career started in Zhang Yimou's "Red Sorghum," (1987). As a result, her budding career began with great fanfare and international acclaim. Li has come to signify a new generation of Chinese woman. This Chinese woman grew up surrounded by ancient traditions which tended to restrict the role of women in Chinese society. However, this woman has reached out toward feminism... and has become empowered! Some of Li's other films include "Ju Dou" (1990), "Farewell My Concubine," (1993), and "Memoirs of a Geisha," (2005).
