patriot Phan Boi Chau in Japanese elementary school textbooks
(Baonghean.vn) - To show gratitude to his Japanese benefactor, 10 years later, Phan Boi Chau returned and erected a "Gratitude Monument". The story has been included in textbooks for elementary school students in Fukuroi city (Japan).
According to documents at the Phan Boi Chau Memorial Site, in March 1909, when the Dong Du movement was operating effectively, the French colonialists colluded with the Japanese government to order the suppression and disbandment of all Vietnamese students studying abroad. The patriot Phan Boi Chau was also expelled from Japan.
Some overseas students secretly stayed to continue their studies and activities, so they encountered many difficulties and hardships. With his generous and selfless heart for the greater good, Dr. Asaba Sakitaro promptly supported and helped Phan Boi Chau and his comrades during this difficult period.
After more than 10 years of leaving Japan to return to China to do revolutionary activities and being imprisoned, Phan Boi Chau, along with his former comrades who had worked together in Japan, found their way to the hometown of Dr. Asaba Sakitaro (who had passed away at that time) to erect a stele to show gratitude to this benefactor in Unuyama, Higashiasaba village, Shijuoka province.
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| Doctor Asaba (left) and the image of Phan Boi Chau and his comrades next to the "Gratitude Monument". Photo: Thanh Cuong |
The monolithic “gratitude stele” is about 2.25m high and 0.8m wide, placed on a cement base and covered by a stele house. The entire stele house and stele are over 3.5m high, the stele text is engraved in Chinese characters, expressing the gratitude of Phan Boi Chau and his comrades to this local benefactor.
This is also a manifestation of the deep affection between patriot Phan Boi Chau and the Japanese people, acting as the first foundation for the Vietnam - Japan friendship.
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| The "gratitude stele" of Phan Boi Chau. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
The story of a patriotic scholar from far away who returned 10 years later to erect a stele to show gratitude has become a profound lesson about sincere friendship, recreated in textbooks of elementary school students in Fukuroi city - the hometown of Dr. Asaba.
During a working trip in early April 2017 to search for documents about Phan Boi Chau, the delegation of the Department of Culture and Sports of Nghe An was provided by the Fukuroi city government with the content of a lecture about the friendship between Phan Boi Chau and doctor Asaba Sakirato in the textbooks for elementary school students of this city; along with many other images of the patriotic Confucian scholar, a staunch revolutionary soldier in the late 19th and early 20th centuries of Vietnam.
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| A set of pictures used to teach history to elementary school students in Fukuroi City is displayed at the Phan Boi Chau Memorial Site. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
Currently, the lecture is on display at the auxiliary exhibition house of Phan Boi Chau Memorial Site - Nam Dan Town.
The full text of the gratitude stele is as follows: Memorial stele of Mr. Asaba Sakitaro We fled to Japan because of national disaster. He sympathized with us and helped us in our times of need, without expecting anything in return. He can be compared to a hero of the past. Alas! Now he is no more! The vastness of the sky and the sea, my heart cannot express, I have only carved my feelings in stone. Note that: “In the past, there were few people as generous as you. Your kindness and generosity covered everything inside and out. You helped us like the sky, and we owe you as much as the ocean. Until now, our will has not been fulfilled, and you are no longer here. Our hearts are in great pain, and it will never be relieved even after millions of years.” All members of the Vietnam Restoration Association respectfully take note. Spring of the year of the Horse Engraver: Osugi Kyokurei. |
Thanh Cuong
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