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During the 1400s, a rise in demand of luxurious goods and spices led to a dramatic increase in trade. Merchants traveled all over the world in search of extravagant goods like pepper and gold and with the aid of predictable monsoon winds, the Indian Ocean was the ideal method of travel and trade. Empires already involved in the Indian Ocean trade looked to increase its wealth and display its power to smaller domains. The Ming dynasty, for example, commissioned the imperial eunuch Zheng He on several tribute missions via the Indian Ocean to establish Chinese presence. At the opposite end of Eurasia, European kingdoms, particularly Portugal and Spain, wished to get involve and eventually control the lucrative business of maritime trade. Each hired explorers Vasco da Gama and Christopher Columbus, respectively, on missions to find quicker and more easily accessible sea routes to the Indian Ocean. As the Europeans realized the true value of trade, subsequent voyages of exploration came to be motivated by three factors: God, Glory and Gold. Ma Huan (an aide and interpreter on Zheng He’s expeditions), Vasco da Gama, and Christopher Columbus all describe the cultural and religious practices of the inhabitants in their accounts. However, Zheng He respects the people as he attempts to forge political ties with the places he visits, Vasco da Gama acknowledges and follows the people’s customs as he tries to establish trading relations with the people, and Christopher Columbus insults the indigenous population as he looks to conquer the lands and enslave the indigenous population.
In the excerpt from the travel account The Overall Survey of the Ocean Shores, author Ma Huan keenly observes the people of Calicut on the coast of India. They are...

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...and perspectives because he believes they are incapable of forming worthy judgments. Although Columbus could only find a small amount of gold and spices in the “Indies,” he was able to spread Christianity and convert the non-believers and bring glory to the kingdom of Spain. Sadly, his misleading descriptions of the native population led to inaccurate history textbooks in Europe while his discovery of the New World initiated European exploration, colonization and imperialism.
The three explorers, Zheng He, Vasco da Gama, and Christopher Columbus attempt to fulfill their sponsors’ missions as they explore various parts of the world. Although each explorer had different expectations to meet and perceived success in numerous ways, they all contributed to increasing interactions and establishing a wide range of trading networks among the diverse regions of the world.

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