The Chinese civilization has been through 5,000 years and more of change, but can still be traced back to its original roots. It contains layer upon layer of our nation’s deepest pursuits of the mind, and represents the cultural identity of the Chinese nation, offering rich nourishment for our life and growth as a nation. It was born on Chinese soil, but has come to its present form through constant exchange and learning from other civilization.

The Chinese characters that our ancestors invented thousands of years ago are still in use today. Over 2,000 years ago, China saw an era of great intellectual accomplishments, with we refer to as the “hundred masters and schools of thought.” Great thinkers like Laozi, Confucius, and Mozi investigated the universe and the Earth, explored relationships between people, between the individual and society, and between human and nature, and propounded deeply sophisticated systems of thought. Many of their ideas continue to have a profound influence on the lives of Chinese people today - ideas like the moral injunction of fidelity to one’s parents and brothers, to the monarch, and to friends; a belief in the need for propriety, justice, integrity, and honor; the notion that the benevolent love their fellow human beings, and that humans should treat one another with kindness; and the belief in Nature and humans being in harmony, in the Tao following what is natural, and in the unceasing pursuit of self-improvement. Chinese people have their own value system through which they view the world, society, and life itself. This unique and time-honored intellectual realm gives Chinese people a powerful sense of national confidence and has cultivated a national spirit with patriotism as its core.