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Humanistic Buddhism for Social Well-being (II): An Overview of Grand Master Hsing Yun's Interpretation in Theory and Practice
Venerable Dr. Hsing Yun is the Grand Master of the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Order, the 48th Patriarch of Lin Ji Ch'an tradition, and the foremost Chinese scholar-monk of our times. He has been impressed, since his adolescence, with humanism as the all-pervading characteristic of the teachings of the Buddha. He has devoted a life-time of study, research, contemplation, discussion, and teaching to clarify and elaborate the philosophical concepts inherent in Buddhism and their practical implications. The ultimate result of this effort is the identification of core teachings of the Buddha, which are relevant and immediately applicable to life in this modern world. He calls these teachings Humanistic Buddhism (Renjian Fojiao). He sees in it an enormous potential for social well-being and individual advancement.
Remarks on Current Research on Taixu and the Pure Land in the Human Realm
One could translate the Chinese term commonly rendered “Humanistic Buddhism” more literally as “Buddhism in the Human Realm” (renjian fojiao 人間佛教). The term “human realm” (renjian 人間) has both an everyday meaning in modern Chinese and a more expansive technical Buddhist meaning. In everyday parlance, it means “the human world,” “humanity,” or “social relations,” and within a modern scientific world view, humanity exists in only one place—the planet Earth. Hence, English-language texts sometimes render the term “Humanistic Buddhism” as “Earthly Buddhism.” In traditional Chinese Buddhist texts, however, the term has a more specialized, technical meaning arising from premodern Buddhist cosmology. In this context, it indicates one in a list of five or six possible paths of rebirth. To be reborn in the human realm means that one’s past karma has led to rebirth as a human being, and in Buddhist cosmology, the Earth is not the only place where humans reside. The fact that the term renjian has different definitions in these two contexts has led to some confusion when scholars confront the terms “Humanistic Buddhism” and “The Pure Land in the Human Realm” (renjian jingtu 人間淨土). Variations in the way Buddhists and scholars understand the meaning and purpose of Humanistic Buddhism only compound the confusion.
On Modernity and Tradition in Humanistic Buddhism: From Master Taixu to Venerable Master Hsing Yun
Humanistic Buddhism was initially proposed by Master Taixu in early modern times, then refined in theory and verified in practice by a number of eminent monks. It now is a major ideological trend and practical model for Chinese Buddhism in Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao. Fo Guang Shan in Taiwan, under the leadership of Venerable Master Hsing Yun, has brought the model of Humanistic Buddhism development worldwide. This has become an important channel for Chinese culture to the world. How is it that Humanistic Buddhism has become a major Buddhist ideological trend on the Chinese mainland? How has it become the way for Buddhism to modernize and to survive? Humanistic Buddhism not only responds to the practical needs of this era, but it is rooted in long-standing Buddhist spiritual traditions and the Buddha’s original intents.
The Modernization and Globalization of Humanistic Buddhism and Chinese Buddhism
The most prominent element in the success of Humanistic Buddhism is the modernization and internationalization of Chinese Buddhism. Under the premise of returning to the original intents of the Buddha, advocates and practitioners of Humanistic Buddhism look forward to spreading the Dharma in ways that are readily embraced by people of current times. For example, in the 1950s and 1960s, Fo Guang Shan’s Venerable Master Hsing Yun was already advocating for reform in Buddhism: its ranks, its organizations, its administrative systems, its precepts, its means of propagating the Dharma, its education, its culture, and its internationalization.
The Harmonious Development Between Humanistic and Traditional Buddhism and its Issues
As is widely known, Humanistic Buddhism is a new movement of teaching, understanding, and practicing modern Han Chinese Buddhism. It has developed rapidly and gained broad support in Mainland China and Taiwan. It has been very successful in Taiwan and has far-reaching influence wherever Han Chinese Buddhism spread. This is especially true of Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s philosophy and practice of it. Such achievements have reinvigorated Buddhism and signal the arrival of a new era in the development of Buddhism.
Humanistic Buddhism and the Modernization of Buddhism
In recent decades, rapid economic, scientific, and technological development has modernized human society in leaps and bounds. Hence, societies and cultures face the dual issues of how best to treat one’s tradition and how to adapt to the reality of a changing society. If a given tradition is the modernized “medium” (i.e. carrier of specific ideas) of its ideology, then the social conditions under which it operates form the “foundation” (i.e. the direction and strategy) for its modernization.
The Process of Modernizing Buddhism: Two Thousand Years of Rise and Fall in Human History
When Buddhism was transmitted into China over two thousand years ago, during the time of the Han Dynasty, Daoist ritual techniques and arts for achieving immortality were prevalent. As Chinese Republican-period scholar Tang Yongtong pointed out: During the Han period, other than the major rituals of worshipping heaven, earth, mountains, and rivers, there were many other types of sacrificial worship. Prior to the Qin Dynasty, there was already the belief that one must perform specific Daoist ritual techniques and arts in order evoke higher spiritual powers.
Humanistic Buddhism and It’s Humanization, Modernization, and Incorporation into Daily Life
Since the twentieth century, Chinese Buddhism has entered a golden age of development and an opportune time for the development of Humanistic Buddhism. As a stronghold of today’s Humanistic Buddhism, Fo Guang Shan has made great contributions to its development and shoulders the responsibility of creating a new era of Humanistic Buddhism. Since we have the good fortune of being able to participate in Fo Guang Shan’s development of Humanistic Buddhism, we naturally also bear its mission. This is a great opportunity that should be cherished. Venerable Master’s philosophy of Humanistic Buddhism is deep and wide like the ocean, and his undertakings have been brilliant.
When Mahāyāna Meets Theravāda: Humanistic Buddhism’s Challenges and Opportunities in Myanmar
From 15 to 17 February 2017, the United Association of Humanistic Buddhism of Chunghua (Zhonghua renjian fojiao lianhe zonghui 中華人間佛教聯合總會) organized a visit to Myanmar for a three-day meeting regarding harmony and dialogue between Mahāyāna and Theravāda Buddhism (Liang’an nanbei chuan fojiao ronghe jiaoliu fangwen zhi lu 兩岸南北傳佛教融合交流訪問之旅). As well as being noteworthy for uniting Mahāyāna and Theravāda Buddhist Schools, this crosstraditional exchange was important due to the involvement of the National Saṃgha Committee Chairman, Venerable Bamaw Sayadaw Dr. Bhadanta Kumarabhivamsa; other well-known senior Burmese monks; and Myanmar government officials. During their stay in Yangon, the monastic delegates joined in various activities including the Thousand-candle Offering, a forum on Educational Exchange on Mahāyāna and Theravāda Teachings, and visits to monasteries, Buddhist educational institutions and sites of historical interest in the company of Burmese monks and laypeople. Additonally, Tipitakadhara Sayadaw U Sundara guided them in the Vipassanā Meditation. To an extent, then, the group of delegates from Taiwan and Mainland China experienced Theravāda practices. Afterwards, Ven. Foxing from the Buddhist College of Minnan and Julia Jin, president of the Merit Times, each wrote on the possibilities for Mahāyāna and Theravāda union in the house periodical of the Fo Guang Shan Institute of Humanistic Buddhism.
Mapping Fo Guang Shan and the Spread of Humanistic Buddhism
With over 250 temples throughout the world, Fo Guang Shan (FGS) has emerged as a global Buddhist movement and significant force in the spread of Humanistic Buddhism. In this talk, I will demo an interactive map of FGS temples (existing and retired) developed by the project team at the Institute for the Study of Humanistic Buddhism at the University of the West. The map is constructed using QGIS technology and includes basic information for each temple (name, address, GPS coordinates) and a sliding timeline by which the user can view the historical spread of FGS temples across the world. QGIS allows for additional layers in which the user can also develop their own components (e.g., Taiwan’s population and GDP growth) and visually analyze the relationship of other data to the base map. As such, the interface provides scholars with a powerful research tool and significant starting point that can be used to investigate the geo-social dimensions of Buddhist institutions and understand the factors that have contributed to the growth of Humanistic Buddhism.
