“Seek knowledge even if it is in distant China.” These are famous words uttered by Islam’s founder, the prophet Muhammad. I was reminded of them recently by a friend.

If it is true that knowledge is to be found beyond the Great Wall itself, it is also true that the Chinese realize that they do not have a monopoly on knowledge. It is the reason that the pragmatic Chinese nation is sending its students oversees in droves.

In the last academic year more than a quarter of a million Chinese students came to study for either their undergraduate or graduate degree in the United States. This is according to a report issued by the U.S. State Department in conjunction with Institute of International Education. At Park University, Chinese students comprise the second largest number of international students.

I thought for this week, I would talk about China. I mean there are more than one billion Chinese people on earth. One in six people is Chinese. I have had the privilege to room with a Chinese student, so what follows comes from knowledge gleaned from my interaction with him and other Chinese students on campus.

Did you know that Park University offers elementary Chinese language classes? The course offered is only two semesters long but I think it is worth it. I started learning how to use chopsticks while taking this class. However, it was while living with a first generation Chinese-American family that I truly honed my chopsticks skills. Now, I am master at chopsticks use with rice and noodles.

I have always been interested in the political views of ordinary Chinese people.

I have only had one Chinese student with whom we have discussed extensively his views. It is difficult to peer behind the wall.

The Internet is strictly policed by the government. In fact, this is the reason the derisive moniker “The Great Firewall of China” has been coined to explain this state of affairs. Most of the Chinese students on campus don’t really want to discuss politics. I can’t tell if it is because of apathy or fear. Apathy is quite normal for young people worldwide and fear might be because of not being used to free speech.

I have always been fascinated by the culture of China. Its growing influence on the African continent is felt daily. In Kenya, China Radio International (CRI) and CCTV International were my windows into what lay beyond the Great Wall of China. CRI even had a Swahili service station. Generally these stations are tasked with the job of communicating China’s rich cultural experience to the rest of the world.

The longest lasting civilization in the world is that of China. There is a rich history that stretches for 5,000 years. It explains why the people there have the tendency to think long term.

Certain aspects of Chinese culture I understand and respect very much. For example, the strong filial attachment that is part of the cultural fabric. As an African, I can relate to this.

The Chinese have a lot of reverence for anyone older than them. It doesn’t matter if this person is older by a few years or a few centuries.

At home, this starts with the parents. Children are taught to honor and obey their parents. Mandarin itself has vocabulary for differentiating between an older brother and older sister. The family that is alive is also taught to revere their ancestors.

Every family in China is keenly aware of its family tree. Case in point, the longest recorded family tree in the world is that of Chinese sage Confucius. The philosopher has more than two million members in his family tree. That is 80 generations that have been meticulously recorded.

Officially, China is among the only four remaining Communist countries in the world. The other three are Vietnam, Laos and Cuba. However, I will say that my interactions with Chinese students on campus, you would never know this.

I have friends who are very much the consumerists. I have had a friend who I know secretly cannot understand my obsession with shopping at the thrift store. I am dirt cheap while my friend is on the opposite end of the spectrum. He insists on buying expensive stuff even though he is a struggling college student like me.

Every time he buys an expensive shirt, I am sure Mao turns over in his grave.
The Chinese have embraced a form of state capitalism. The government is very much involved in business and all means of production.

The government still gives individuals a great leeway to control. The just ended Alibaba IPO is a testament to that. The Communist Party of China tolerates billionaires and millionaires so long as they don’t dabble in politics. Kind of like what Vladimir Putin does across the border.