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Rethinking the Precept of Not Taking Money in Contemporary Taiwanese and Mainland Chinese Buddhist Nunneries
Around two and half millennia ago, the order of nuns was established when the Buddha allowed women to join the Buddhist monastic community. Buddhist nuns play prominent and respected roles in the Therīgāthā (Verses of the Elder Nuns) from ancient India. The historical work the Biqiuni zhuan 比丘尼傳 (Biographies of Nuns) reports how Buddhist nuns influenced and contributed to Chinese Buddhism in the medieval era. In recent decades, there has been a strong revival of Chinese Buddhism, amid which Buddhist nuns have exerted an ever-growing impact on the monastic environment, and their opinions have gradually become very influential, particularly in Taiwan. Indeed, as aptly put by Chün-fang Yü (Light 1), “Taiwanese nuns today are highly educated and greatly outnumber monks, characteristics unprecedented in the history of Chinese Buddhism.” In Mainland China, some prominent nuns (e.g., Shi Longlian) have held posts in the official organization of Chinese Buddhism or made significant contributions to Buddhist education and Dharma teaching. However, contemporary Mainland Chinese nuns’ religious life has scarcely been explored or discussed. This study aims to rectify this imbalance by examining a central ethical issue of monastic daily life to which scant scholarly attention has hitherto been paid.
Chan Buddhism During the Times of Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun: Applying Chinese Chan Principles to Contemporary Society
Linji Venerable Master Yixuan 臨濟義玄 (d. 866) and Fo Guang Venerable Master Hsing Yun 佛光星雲 (1927–), although separated by more than a millennium, innovatively applied Chan teachings to the societies in which they lived to help their devotees discover their humanity and transcend their existential conditions. Both religious leaders not only survived persecution, but brought their faiths to greater heights. This paper studies how these masters adapted Chan Buddhist teachings to the woes and conditions of their times. In particular, I shall review how Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun adapted the teachings of their predecessors, added value to the sociopolitical milieu of their times, and used familiar language to reconcile reality and their beliefs.
BUDDHIST PILGRIMAGE: “FIXED AND PORTABLE SANCTITY FOR CHINESE BUDDHIST PILGRIMS”
簡報/PPT 香港中文大學利黃瑤璧樓G/F LT3 BUDDHIST PILGRIMAGE: “FIXED AND PORTABLE SANCTITY FOR CHINESE BUDDHIST PILGRIMS” 主講者 / Lecturer：Professor Lewis Lancaster 摘要 / Abstract： Buddhism has developed pilgrimage pa.....
New English Edition of Buddha-Dharma: Pure and Simple Offers Deeper Insights into Humanistic Buddhism
The new English edition of Buddha-Dharma: Pure and Simple was officially released by Fo Guang Shan Institute of Humanistic Buddhism (FGSIHB) in late August 2024, available as a three-volume box set. .....
Managing the Mind: at the Heart of Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s Applied Management
Venerable Master Hsing Yun founded Fo Guang Shan and established the operational management guidelines for the monastery: collective effort, leadership by system, doing only what is in accord with Buddhism, and relying on nothing but the Dharma. He also clearly defined the organizational principles and functions of Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA), so that both monastics and lay disciples have a set of regulations and procedures for the sustainable development of the Fo Guang community. The issues of financial control and the exercise of authority are inevitable in the operation of an organization. Venerable Master Hsing Yun also put forward his views on managing money, exercising authority, and handling human resources. In his opinion, the primary objective of managing human affairs is to manage the mind, which is no different from the practice of the Dharma. Furthermore, one must flexibly practice compassion and wisdom simultaneously, so that the entire organization achieves the ideal state of oneness and coexistence. Venerable Master Hsing Yun holds in high regard the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss as a realm where “all of the most virtuous people are gathered in a single place,” and looks up to Amitābha Buddha as the greatest management expert. He has infused a sense of sanctity into the secular concept of management, and also demonstrated a positive connection between worldly dharma and Buddha Dharma.
The Role of Chan Buddhism in East Asian Cultural Interaction during the Modern Period
Liao Chao-heng has a PhD from the Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology at the University of Tokyo. He is a research fellow at the Institute of Chinese Literature and Philosophy, Academia Sinica, and an adjunct associate researcher at the Chung-Hwa Institute of Buddhist Studies. His research areas include the history of East Asian Buddhist culture in the modern period, the history of East Asian cultural exchange, the history of Chan, and classical Chinese literature. His publications include The Middle and the Extremes, Poetry and Chan, Drama: The Emerging and Development of Cultural Discourse in the Buddhist Temples of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and The Loyalty of Bodhi: Loyalists in the Monastery and Late Ming and Early Qing Discourse of Fidelity.
Spreading the Dharma: The Second Basic Buddhist Interpretation Workshop
Grace Huang, professional Chinese-English conference interpreter, teaches strategies including “paraphrasing,” “sight translation,” “shadowing and “multi-tasking,” helping students master interpretat.....
Cultivating Social Historical Knowledge to Walk the Bodhisattva Path
In many regards, the future of Humanistic Buddhism can be considered in relation to its past. Developed as a response to social and political reforms in China during the transition from Qing dynastic rule to Republican governance, Humanistic Buddhism, as conceptualized by Master Taixu, proposed a reform of Chinese Buddhism that redirected its focus from ritual practices for the dead to emphasizing the human concerns of practitioners in this life. Thus, it prioritized an objective of engagement with human needs in a worldly context. While Humanistic Buddhism as expanded in Taiwan under the guidance of Venerable Master Hsing Yun maintains this focus on addressing human concerns, a reexamination of this historic foundation might prove fruitful in yielding new directions for the future growth of Humanistic Buddhism, especially in regards to its propagation throughout the world.
BUDDHIST PILGRIMAGE: “THE FOUR SACRED MOUNTAINS OF CHINESE BUDDHISM: PRESENCE OF BODHISATTVAS”
簡報/PPT 香港中文大學信和樓3樓李冠春堂LT1 BUDDHIST PILGRIMAGE: “THE FOUR SACRED MOUNTAINS OF CHINESE BUDDHISM: PRESENCE OF BODHISATTVAS” 主講者 / Lecturer：Professor Lewis Lancaster 摘要 / Abstract： One of the world’s lar.....
The Buddhist Maritime Silk Road Online Book Launch: the Long-Forgotten Voyage of Trade and Religion Back to Life
Prominent Buddhist Masters such as Faxian, Bodhidharma, Yijing, and Atiśa took sea routes to learn and propagate Buddhist teachings. Viewers’ comments and reflections: The Buddhist Maritime Silk Roa.....
