Thursday marks the 160th anniversary of the birth of Sun Yat-sen, the pioneer of China's democratic revolution and a patriot who dedicated his life to national independence, social progress and the wellbeing of the people.
As a scholar from Taiwan now teaching at a university in Shanghai, I have come to realize that Sun's legacy is not confined to monuments or textbooks. His influence is a quiet, unbroken thread that runs through daily life on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, including my own. For me, Sun is not merely a historical figure, but a living presence connecting the Taiwan of my childhood with the Shanghai of today.
When I was growing up in Taiwan, Sun's presence was everywhere. His portrait was hung above the blackboard in every classroom, watching over us as we began each school day. Nearly every city and town had a Zhongshan Road, a Zhongshan Park or a memorial hall in his honor, and many schools also bore his name, from Zhongshan Elementary School to Zhongshan Junior High School.
Sun's birthday on Nov 12 was a public holiday throughout my childhood. Schools held commemorative assemblies where we paid tribute to his portrait and listened to speeches about his Three Principles of the People: nationalism, civil rights and people's livelihoods.
Sun's thought was woven into our education. In high school, the Three Principles of the People was a compulsory subject tested in the college entrance examination, engaging students from all disciplines with his political philosophy. At university, courses on his thought were mandatory, making it an essential part of understanding China's modern history.
A few years ago, I visited Cuiheng village in Zhongshan city, Guangdong province, where Sun's journey began. Standing before the modest red-brick house he designed and built in 1892 with money sent by his elder brother, I was humbled by the thought of how such a small house could give rise to such a vast historical movement.
In the courtyard grows a tamarind tree he planted as a young man. Though struck by a typhoon decades ago, it refused to die, sprouting new branches from old roots — much like the man himself. In that moment, the great revolutionary became simply a devoted son of the village who loved his country beyond measure.
In Shanghai, I see how his legacy is honored across the Chinese mainland. In Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, visitors still climb the 392 stone steps of his mausoleum on Purple Mountain, one for each million of his compatriots at the time, to pay their respects before his resting place.
His name lives on in the streets we walk. In Taipei, I often strolled along Zhongshan North Road, where the Grand Hotel crowns a wooded hill above the Keelung River. In Shanghai, I now walk along Zhongshan East First Road on the Bund, where the colonial-era buildings overlook the Huangpu River. One name, two cities, at opposite sides of the Taiwan Strait. These roads are more than urban landmarks; they are shared spaces of memory, linking two cities that are central to modern Chinese history.
Sun's most enduring message is that "When the Great Way prevails, the world belongs to all the people" — a vision he distilled into four characters: tian xia wei gong, drawn from the ancient Book of Rites more than 2,000 years ago, yet recognized by every Chinese child today, as Sun wrote the phrase in his own bold hand countless times.
He dreamed of a China that was united, modern and prosperous, and believed that the nation's destiny rested in the hands of its own people. His legacy lies not only in the overthrow of a monarchy but also in his patriotism, concern for ordinary people, openness to new ideas and unwavering faith that the Chinese nation could stand tall in the modern world.
For those of us from Taiwan living on the Chinese mainland, his spirit has a particular resonance. The Zhongshan roads of Taipei and Shanghai, the schools, parks and other institutions that bear his name, and the commemorations of our childhood all lead back to the same cultural roots.
They remind us that despite the waters between us, our histories remain intertwined, and our shared heritage runs deep. More than a century ago, it was Sun who first raised the call: zhenxing Zhonghua, or the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. That cause, unfinished in his lifetime, is the road we are all still walking — together.
In his will, Sun urged the Chinese people to awaken the masses and unite in a common struggle with nations that treat China as an equal. At a time when some forces seek to sever the historical and cultural bonds across the Strait, remembering Sun is an affirmation that both sides inherit the same legacy, cherish the same memories and belong to the same Chinese nation.
The author is a professor of English at Sanda University in Shanghai.
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