Why did the Governor of Okinawa go to Tongzhou, Beijing to offer incense to China | Ryukyu | Shangxiang
To the Ryukyu ancestors who slept here day and night
Say "thank you"
I want to say "thank you" to the Ryukyu ancestors who slept here day and night. The incense used during the worship was passed down from ancient China... On the afternoon of the 4th, the Japanese governor of Okinawa, Yucheng Danny, came to the Ryukyu National Cemetery site located in Zhangjiawan Town, Tongzhou District, Beijing, and offered sacrificial items such as ghost coins and wine to the deceased. He clasped his hands together, murmured softly, and used Ryukyu customs to worship for about half an hour.
·On July 4th, Danny Yucheng visited the Ryukyu Kingdom Cemetery Site.
Yucheng Danny said that if he could receive it, he would be very happy. "I want to continue to steadfastly maintain the connection between Ryukyu and China created by our ancestors, and strive to create a peaceful and prosperous era."
Zhao Zhengyuan, a Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo and associate professor at the School of Humanities at Southeast University, told Global People: "Okinawa was originally named Ryukyu and was a vassal state of China during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Zhangjiawan was an important port and gateway to the Grand Canal." At that time, many envoys and officials of the Ryukyu Kingdom landed on Fukuoka and headed north along the Grand Canal, disembarking at Zhangjiawan and transferring to carriages to enter Beijing. They stayed for several months or years, and those who died or died during this time were buried in Zhangjiawan.
The site of the Ryukyu Kingdom Cemetery is hidden in a overgrown farmland in Zhangjiawan, but it is the highest level of burial in China's Ryukyu Kingdom Cemetery. It buries 14 Ryukyu political and academic figures, including the tribute envoy, official student, Chen Qing envoy, and Du Tong official.
In the 57th year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty, when Yang Liangui, the Grand Councilor of Ryukyu, paid tribute to Zhangjiawan, he unfortunately passed away and was buried here, becoming the first Ryukyu person to be buried here. The earliest official student of the Ryukyu Kingdom buried here was Cai Hongxun, who was sent by the Ryukyu Kingdom to study Sinology at the Imperial Academy. In the second year of Yongzheng's reign, he passed away due to illness and was buried here.
Among the Ryukyu people buried here, the most famous one is Lin Shigong, who is considered a hero of the Ryukyu nation. He came to Beijing in the late period of the Ryukyu Kingdom to petition and demand that the Qing government intervene in Japan's annexation of Ryukyu. Lin Shigong later committed suicide, hoping that his generosity in dying would contribute to the restoration of Ryukyu.
The Ryukyu Kingdom and China have had friendly exchanges for over 600 years, and Yucheng Danny hopes to pass on this historical tradition. "I would greatly appreciate it if my visit could serve as an opportunity to ignite a wave of searching for Ryukyu relics in China."
Yucheng Danny was originally named Yucheng Kanghong. In 1959, he was born in Okinawa and Nagagimura, Japan. His father was a US military stationed in Japan, and his mother was from Okinawa. When Yucheng Danny was still in his mother's womb, his father was transferred back to the United States and never returned. He was raised by his mother alone and had never seen his father, let alone spoken English.
As he grew up, Danny Yucheng worked in various professions, including social welfare activities, interior decoration, band manager and singer, and radio anchor. Danny was his stage name during his time as a singer. Due to the more well-known stage name, after entering politics, Yucheng Danny continued to use this name. In addition, over a decade of experience as a radio anchor has honed Danny Yucheng's authentic Ryukyu dialect, making him even more popular in the local area.
It should be noted that after Okinawa was "returned" to Japan by the US military in 1972, the Japanese government began to implement assimilation policies towards Okinawa. Only Japanese can be spoken in schools, and it is strictly prohibited to speak Ryukyu dialect. Anyone who accidentally speaks Okinawa will have to hang a "dialect letter" sign around their neck for public display. For most of his life, Danny Yucheng has been tirelessly fighting against this assimilation policy.
Although he has half American ancestry, Yucheng Danny only recognizes his Ryukyu ancestry. On many occasions, Yucheng Danny wears Ryukyu style island shirts. When he was elected as Governor of Okinawa twice in 2018 and 2022, he performed Ryukyu traditional dance. He also referred to Okinawa as Ryukyu on multiple occasions.
·On September 11, 2022, Danny Yucheng performed a traditional dance after winning the governor's election.
Zhao Zhengyuan has been traveling to Japan for many years and has conducted in-depth research on cultural exchanges between ancient and modern East Asia. He exclaimed with emotion, "China and the Ryukyu Islands are separated by a strip of water, and the influence of Chinese culture on the local area of Okinawa continues to this day. The Governor of Yucheng worships the Ryukyu Tomb and clearly conveys to the people of China and Japan and the international community the desire to inherit this historical tradition, which will help further promote cultural, business, and tourism exchanges between Okinawa and various parts of China."
The governor of Yucheng's visit "also conveyed to the United States and Japan the desire of the people of Okinawa not to use Okinawa as a springboard to intervene in Taiwan Strait affairs, which will undoubtedly play a positive role in promoting peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region".
