This episode is about the late, great Master Hsying Yun, a true dynamo of a monk, dedicated to the spreading of the teachings and practice of Buddhism in Taiwan, China and around the world. Master Hsing Yun has achieved so much in his lifetime that it is virtually impossible to relate but a small part of it here in the introduction. However, by way of offering a introducation, here is a quick outline some of his achievements in brief:
Starting in the 1950s, Hsing Yun started making many achievements at an early age. He taught numerous classes, built many schools for children, recorded the first Buddhist hymns, and was promoted as an executive in many Buddhist associations. In 1957, Hsing Yun established a Buddhist cultural center in which a variety of Buddhist books are published with training tools such as audio and visual aids. In 1959, Hsing Yun also supported the Tibetan movement against communist supression, and organized the first float parade in celebration of Wesak in Taiwan.
Perhaps one of Hsing Yun’s greatest achievements was his successful push for Wesak to become a national holiday in Taiwan, a wish that had been granted by former President Lee Teng-hui in 2000.
Master Hsing Yun was the founder and spiritual leader of Fo Guang Shan, a Buddhist organisation that has established around 300 temples and monasteries all over Taiwan, as well as in 12 other countries including China, the United States, Australia, South Africa, Canada, Brazil, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. He is also the author of 395 books in Chinese, many of which have been translated into other languages, notably to English. And all of this is just a brief outline, leaving out much of what Master Hsing Yun has achieved in his life.
The Life & Legacy of Master Hsing Yun
Sol Hanna
Welcome to Treasure Mountain. Venerable, how are you today?
Ven. Juefang
Hi Saul. Good afternoon to you. All good here. I hope you are well as well.
Sol Hanna
I certainly am. And I really thank you for taking the time to come on to our podcast and I'm looking forward to finding out about Master Singh Yun. Now, some of our listeners may be a bit familiar with Master Singh Yun, but many may not be. So let's start at the beginning. Could you offer a little bit of background about where Master Sing Yun came from? Thank you. So, Master Sing Yun was born in the year 1927 in China Yangzhou, which is actually in the southern part of China. So that was where he started at the age of twelve. He became a novice monk and then came to Taiwan Want in the year 1949 at the age of 22. And from there he built Buddhism, spread Buddhism, thought Buddhism to the rest of the world until he passed away on the 5 February 2023 this year.
Ven. Juefang
At the age of 97
Sol Hanna
wow, that's quite incredible and considering how much he achieved, it's amazing that he managed to make it to 97 now, I believe there is a rather astonishing story about how he became a novice monk could you tell us a bit about that?
Ven. Juefang
Yes, this story. Frankly speaking, I'm actually very inspired by this story. We as well. So we know about the Sino Japanese War during the 1930s and in that year where he became a novice monk, which is in the year 1939. There was one day when his mother brought him to Nanjing, which is not so far away from his hometown, to search for his father because his father was working in Nanjing. But they just lost contact. His mother brought this little child with her to find his husband. But they couldn't find him, so most probably he has died during that time. On their way back home, they passed by this temple, the Chichia Temple in Manchin. And they went in. So the abbot of the temple saw this little boy and thought, no, he looks like quite a smart, intelligent and kind little boy. So he asked him whether he would like to become a monk. And this little boy said, yes, I would like to. So from that day onwards, it's actually the first of the second lunar month in the year 1939. He became a monk at the age of twelve and until the age of 97, his only career, we should say his only thing that he has done throughout the life was to be a monk. MMM.
Sol Hanna
That's an incredible dedication. Now, Sing Yoon was not his birth name and in fact, I believe it wasn't even his original ordination name. How did Master Sing Yun come across the name and what does it mean?
Ven. Juefang
Yeah, soul. I think we have done quite some research on him. And of course, his name was actually Sing Yun was a name that he named himself. He wasn't his birth name. It wasn't the name given by his master. So his teacher, his master, gave him the name Xinju, which means to be enlightened at this moment. But one day, when the venerable master was reading in his Buddhist college in the temple, he came across this dictionary and he saw that the term Nabula, which is actually part of immense universe, so he thought the name Singh Yoon, singh Mint star Yoon is cloud. So he thinks that he's just like a little star. It's just like the floating clouds in the sky. He hopes to be able to be as immense as possible. He hopes to be able to serve all living beings as it is possible. That's why he named himself Xing Yoon.
Sol Hanna
It's a beautiful name. Now, Master Singh Yoon lived most of his life in Taiwan. How did he end up moving from mainland China to Taiwan?
Ven. Juefang
Yeah, that was actually part of history. So we know about the prostrate relationship prostrate's relationship to during that time. So he was part of the monastic I'll repeat a little bit about that. So we know about the cross straits relationships at that time. And he was actually part of the monastics carer. The monastics who helped with the sorry, Sol. How would you express the care team? The nursing team? Sorry. Yes. Thank you, Sol, for this question. So we know about the cross rates relations during that time between the Communist Party and the Guaming thumbs. Sorry, let me do it again. Yeah. Thank you. So for the question. We all know about the cross rates relationships and the political situations during that time. So the bar noble master was actually part of a monastic nursing team that actually took care of those people who had some injuries during that time. That's how he came from China to Thailand time.
Sol Hanna
Okay. One thing I discovered when I was doing research for this episode was an astonishing list of achievements by Master Sing Yun during his life as a monk. In fact, I think we could spend an entire episode just going through all of the many achievements of Master Sing Yun. But for the sake of giving just an overview of Master Sing Yun's achievements, could you outline what you think are some of the most significant of his achievements? Yes, I think you are correct to say that his achievements is just astonishing and immense. So I think the core of all that is actually his evocation and dedication and practice of humanistic Buddhism. And through this, it has changed the landscape of Buddhism, I should say, not only in Taiwan or China, but throughout the world that he has affinities with. So just to name a few, for example, about the modernization of Buddhism. So we know that as being part, being trained and brought up in Chinese Buddhism, he actually had a very rigid and we should say a very strict education in the temple. But he believed that Buddhism should be something that brings life, that brings happiness to everybody. It should be accessible to everyone. So there were a few things that he did. For example, the first thing was, apart from the traditional chanting with all the dharma instruments or the wooden fish, the traditional chanting, he actually wrote Buddhist hymns.
Ven. Juefang
So he believed that Buddhism should be of joy. It should be easy for people to come in. So during his lectures, his talks, and even the chanting sessions that he organized, there were a lot of singing. So in the early 1950s, he was actually the first monk in Taiwan to have organized, started a Buddhist choir, and also to published some albums, buddhist Himes albums. So since the 1950s until today, he has contributed a lot to the modernization of Buddhism. So that was the first thing.
Sol Hanna
Well, I do think perhaps just to give some context, also in some ways, Buddhism in China, as it had in many places, had gotten a bit stuck in terms of some of its traditions. And Master Singh wanted to make Buddhism relevant and accessible. Is that correct?
Ven. Juefang
Yes. So another example will be about the traditional text or the Tripitaka. So there were a lot of sacred texts that, frankly speaking, most people couldn't understand, not only not understanding the contents, but they may not even be able to read the words, especially where the Chinese sacred text, most of them did not have punctuations. So what he did was also starting from the 1950s, he actually published scriptures, sutras, every month, one sutra per month, where he actually modernized the language. The first thing he did was to add in the punctuation
Sol Hanna
marks and also to simplify the words. So from there, just one booklet or one sutra per month. He started the tributaka project, where the whole tributaka, the Chinese tributaka, there was a reedition. Since the 1970s, he started a community on that. And of course, the novels, the books that he wrote, there were a lot of things that make people felt very accessible. And other things like education. Also, since 1950s, when he was only in his 20s, he started the first Buddhist kindergarten in Taiwan in the temple where where he was in. So with that, since the 1950s, he started kindergartens, primary schools, like high schools, and to date, there are five universities throughout the world started, founded by him. So all these are his dedication to education. He's actually very humble, and I believe that it's quite true that he says he has never been to school because he was just too poor, his family was too poor to provide him an education. But he believed that education changes life. That is why he put in his best. He dedicated himself to bringing education accessible to everyone. And in his later days, in the recent maybe ten to 20 years, where he started writing the one stroke calligraphy, I'm not sure whether he have seen them. He couldn't move as much as he wished to due to his physical conditions, but he started to write calligraphy all in a stroke. So. These the proceeds from these calligraphies, he actually contributed them to foundations, to public funds, so that they would be able to continue providing education for all who needs that. So these are some of the things that I think he has done for the public and for Buddhism itself. One very important thing is about the equality of the Buddhist community, equality in two parts. One is among the monastics, which is we know that as a traditional religion, buddhism perhaps has more emphasis on the male monastics. But through him, he actually gave both male and female monastics equal opportunities because he believed that, irregardless of gender, it is the devotion to
Ven. Juefang
learn Buddhism, to practice Buddhism, and to serve all living beings that made a monastic a monastic. So his part, his contribution to the equality of monastics. And also the next part about equality is equality between monastics and lay devotees. So the monastics had a role to propagate the dharma but the lay devotees also the responsibilities of propagating Buddhism and also share their talents and make full use of their abilities to help Buddhism grow. So all these about equality I think is also instrumental to the development of Bongshind or the Buddha's Light International Association that he has founded and hence contributing to the development of Buddhism in the world today
Sol Hanna
think he showed a lot of foresight in trying to make more quality within Buddhism and get more participation as well. Now you just mentioned that he was the founder of Folk Huang Shan could you tell us what the word Folk Huang Shan means or the name means and could you tell us about its founding and the spread of Fog Wang Shan?
Ven. Juefang
Yes. So four Guang shan, four is Buddha, wang is light shan is temple. So four Guangshan literally means the Buddha's light mountain. Sorry, let me repeat again. So four guang shan, four means Buddha. Guang means light shun is mountain. So it literally means the Buddha's light mountain. So if you have a chance to go to Fufangshan today, you would see that it actually sits on a little mountain in Taiwan, in the southern part of Taiwan. But we know that what? Why did the venerable master started for Bang in the year 1967, which is on the sorry, let me repeat on this.
Sol Hanna
Four guang shan literally means four is. Buddha guang is light, Shan is mountain. So for Huang Shan means Buddha's light Mountain Bong Shan is in the southern part of Taiwan, the Bernobo master founded for Bangshan in the year 1967 on the 16 May which is two days from today and we will be celebrating our 57th anniversary. So why did he started for Bangshan at that time? That year he was 40 years old. Why did he started for Bangshan? Because he wanted a bigger space so that he would be able to
Ven. Juefang
build a Buddhist college, a proper Buddhist college that would train monastics and lay people to learn Buddhism and also help with the promotion of Buddhism throughout the world. That was his initial reason why he started for Wang Shan. But of course, if we were to look at, if we read some of his memories or even some of the pictures that we have seen in his heart, he wanted a place where all people could come to learn Buddhism and to share the joy of the Dharma.
Sol Hanna
It. Could you tell us how many? Because there's many branches in terms of temples and monasteries today. How many are there exactly? Do you know?
Ven. Juefang
Okay, so for Feng, Shang started in the year 1967 in Taiwan because it started as a Buddhist college. So it actually attracted a lot of students from Taiwan and started with Malaysia and all around the world to pursue an education in Buddhism. At the same time, it attracted a lot of devotees, people who are interested to pray, to be part of Buddhism, to come to the temple. So from Taiwan it started to Malaysia and all around the world. So that's how Buddhism spread from Bobangshan started from Taiwan to the rest of the world. And today we have about 300 temples around the world in all five continents.
Sol Hanna
MMM. That's a pretty big impact. Now, he's quite an interesting character, because after he established this, what was going on to become a very successful organization, teaching Buddhism in many countries, he seemed to resign quite abruptly after 20 years, I believe it's in 995, he handed leadership over to one of his native disciples. Why did Master Xinyun do this?
Ven. Juefang
We know that in his teachings or his belief, he thinks that Buddhism there should be a proper constitution. Buddhism should be governed by a system. So when he started for Wang Shan, there was a constitution. There was actually he set up a board of directors. And in the constitution about the term of the abbot or the person in charge, the chair of the board of directors. At that time, the constitution states that the chair, which is the abbot or the Abbott, would have two terms. And in the extraordinary conditions, there could be a third term. Every term was six years. So he actually was there for the first two terms, twelve years. And because that was in the beginning of Bangshan, in this early years, he stayed for the third term, which is altogether 18 years. So I should say that in the year 19 50, 85, in the year 1985, where he stepped down as the epic, he actually followed the constitution of Shan. And since then, he has established a very good example that things should follow the system. And to date, we have got elections of the board of directors, we have the election of the Abbott. Until today.
Sol Hanna
I
Ven. Juefang
just want to say there has been quite a few abbots until today.
Sol Hanna
That's really good. I wanted to say on my own personal opinion, which is that I think this is an excellent example because so often in religious organizations, there's a bit of a cult of personality, and I think he very deliberately seems to have said, okay, we're not going to do that. We're going to be organized by good prince principles and good governance, and it's going to be about all of us, not just about one person. So I think that's a very inspiring example. Now, Buddhists outside of Taiwan and China may not know that Master Sing Yoon was a reformer of Mahiana Buddhism, and you mentioned earlier that he was one of the main proponents of humanistic Buddhism. Ah. Could you tell us a bit more about how Master Sing Yun was a reformer of Buddhism, particularly in the Chinese speaking world? And in particular, what does humanistic Buddhism what was changing in Buddhism, particularly in that Chinese speaking world? Okay? So I think a lot of people have questions about Humanistic Buddhism. So the Van Ho master believes that Humanistic Buddhism is just Buddhism. So it is anything that is thought by the Buddha that is needed by human beings is pure and is virtuous and beautiful. So any teaching that promotes the happiness of human entity is regarded as Humanistic Buddhism. So throughout his life, he has devoted his entire life to the Buddha, regarding him as this teacher and also taken Buddhism as this path. There are a few things, especially in terms of reform, that I would like to share with you. One is about building a system. So for Bangshan, as what we have discussed earlier, it is actually maintained. It is actually governed by a set of constitution, code of conduct. There is a board of directors. There are different communities, all working within their terms that they should serve. So I think this is extremely important, because as what you have mentioned earlier, it ensures the continuity of the organization, it ensures the continuity of the religion irregardless and not only repent depending on one particular person. So I think this part is a very great reform that he has done. The second is about the simplicity of the religion itself, as what I've mentioned earlier about him introducing Buddhist, him singing about simplifying the words, the written words of the scripts, the sutras, and also the text, I think this is also another thing that allows people to come into Buddhism ease easily. And there are also another thing is about the BLIA Buddha's Light International Association that he has established. So you mentioned that you gave me the question about him establishing founding for Bangshan, the temple itself, but. Actually a very important thing that he has done is also the founding of the Buddha's Light International Association that allows lay people from all walks of life, from all countries, people from all races, all cultures to be able to come into this association and play their part to contribute to the society. And of course, Bria currently is a member of UNESCO and has received this title since, I think, in the year 220 zero. And I think it allows Buddhism to step forward, to step up, to shoulder the responsibility that the religion has for humanity as a whole. So there are also other things that he has done. For example, he has started a lot of Buddhist weddings. So it also started in the year 1950s, during that time where he started to officiate Buddhist weddings. And this is actually quite important because Buddhism has always been seen by people as being living the world, something that is about letting go, about pursuing a religious life. But to him, he believes that everyone has a role to play in the world today. So for lay people, they have to contribute to their family, and the happiness and joy in their family is extremely important, both to the religion, but more importantly, to the world and to them as individuals. So these are some of the things that he has done, and I believe they are.
Ven. Juefang
I'm very grateful for what he has done.
Sol Hanna
Yeah, I think he's a quite a progressive and far sighted person within Buddhist religious circles. And in particular, I wanted to ask you about his work regarding interreligious dialogue and friendship. Could you tell us a little bit about that
Ven. Juefang
place? Okay, so as you know, that the Bernobo master, of course, he is actually a very highly respected monk in Buddhist community, but of course he is. Let me repeat this again.
Sol Hanna
Yeah. I think you have asked a very important question about interreligious dialogue to him. He believes that, of course, he has said that he has devoted his entire life to the Buddha and also taken Buddhism as his path. But I would like to share with you a very interesting story, a real life story that happened in Australia. So so in the year 2000 when he was in Australia. So one day there was this MP who asked him a question. And this MP asked him, which religion do you think is the greatest in the world today? And he answered, the one that you like, the one that you believe in is the greatest religion. And he said that everybody has their own father. So my father takes care of me. I love my father. Your father takes care of you. You love your father.
Ven. Juefang
It actually means that the Buddha as a Buddhist, I love Buddha. As a Christian, you may love God. So who is as great? We should respect each other's faith. We should back each other's religion. And there are actually two other things that happened that I would also like to share with you. So we know about the September 11 attack. And he was actually the first buddhist representative to be able to go into this site for prayer. And in his prayer, the first thing that he said is, great compassionate Buddha, great compassionate God, great compassionate Allah, please bless us. So to him, he thinks that everybody has the right to their own faith, everybody has the right to their own religion, and all should be respected. Another incident, another example would be in the year 2008, there was actually a typhoon in Taiwan. And fong shan, which is the Buddha's. Light mountain was one of the places that actually host a lot of these refugees. And we took care of them. Most of them are catholics. And instead of only having monastics, buddhist monastics taking care of them, there was this space, this hall, where the venerable master invited the catholic fathers, the catholic religious representatives, to come into our temple, to come into this hall to lead in the prayers for all these people who suffered in the typhoon. So in his heart, he believed that. Every religion is equal and everyone's faith should be respected. So in line of his philosophy, there were actually a lot of religious exchanges, whether in bokwangshan's events where there are religious interreligious prayer for world peace, there are a lot of conference that we have done between the different religions. And there are also some walkathons that in Taiwan and Fukuangshan itself, where we will start from Fukuangshan and the endpoint would be one of the churches around for bangshan. And of course, the Venerable Master has visited the Pope, the previous Popes, a few times. And since his passing away in March, actually, the current Abbott Sinbao of Wangshan led a group of representatives from Taiwan, religious representatives, representatives from Buddha's like international association to visit the current Pope. So there are a lot of such exchanges. And currently, of course, apart from Catholic oxanity, there is also interreligious exchanges with Islam and many other religions as well, depending on the local religion of the temple that is based in. Right.
Sol Hanna
I also believe he's been very interested in trying to understand, like early Buddhism, and he's been trying to build bridges between the different Buddhist traditions. And I think that's the fact that the traditions have been a little bit isolated from one another, I think culturally, linguistically for quite some time. And I think that he had the foresight to kind of say, well, we've got a lot in common, and let's try and find out what that commonality is. I don't know if you have anything to add to that, but that's the thing that struck me about Master Sing Yoon is that he was very interested in building those bridges between the Buddhist traditions.
Ven. Juefang
Yes. So as I mentioned earlier I'm sorry, is the recording still going? Yes, because there was a pause on my side. Right. Okay. Thank you for your question about this building bridges amongst different traditions of Buddhism, the Venerable Master believed that there is only one essence, there is one Buddha, the common Buddha that lived. In India and Buddhism that spread throughout the world today, because of different people living in different places, there could be different cultures, but the essence of Buddhism is still the same. So throughout his lifetime, he has tried to promote that different traditions should come together. One of the things that we could see in the Buddha Museum today, Buddha Museum is the first and only museum. Sorry, let me repeat again. Sorry. Thank you for bringing this question about bridging bridges for the different Buddhist traditions. The venerable master, he believes that we have the same Buddha irregardless of our cultures. It is because people live in different parts of the world. People have different cultures, and hence there are different schools or different traditions of Buddhism. But all of us, we have the same Buddhist Buddha's teachings, and hence we should come together. There are two examples that I would like to share with you. One is the building of a temple in Thailand. So in Bangkok there is this Pi Hua Temple. Pi is Thailand. Hua is Lotus or Chinese temple that the Vendable master built about ten years ago. So this is a temple that is really devoted to the dialogue, the exchange between the Chinese Buddhism and also the local Thai Buddhism. And we have seen so many monks from different schools in Thailand coming to the Taipa Temple for this buddhism, Buddhist dialogues and religious exchanges. Another interesting thing that we see is that if you have a chance to visit Fufangshan, please come to the Buddha Museum in Fu Bangshan itself. It is actually the only museum today. It is the only museum in the world today. That is how should I put it? If you have a chance to come to Fuangshan, please visit the Buddha Museum. So the Buddha Museum has one of its shrines. It actually has Thai Buddha statue enshrined in the Buddha museum. So that was also part of the Inter I should say the Interreligious inter Buddhism dialogue that the venerable master hopes to achieve.
Sol Hanna
Hmm look, I did want to address one area of controversy and that is Master Xing Yun's involvement in politics. He was born in China and lived most of his life in Taiwan. However, he was always he always supported the one China policy and has gone as far as saying at the World Buddhist Forum in 2009 that there are no Taiwanese and that Taiwanese are Chinese. He also returned to China and cooperated with the government there. Can you help us understand Master Singh Yun's motivations and his aims and whether these are even political aims at all?
Ven. Juefang
Yes. This is a very important question that I believe a lot of people are interested to find out. I think the venerable master, he is a religious figure. He knows his his responsibility towards the religion. But on the other hand, he also believes that he should be a responsible citizen of the world today. Being a responsible citizen, what does it constitute? It is somebody who's able to contribute to the peace in the world today. Because he knew, he said that he actually grew up during the wars. He knows the difficulties, the fear that people face in times without peace. That is why he has also devoted himself to the promotion of peace. It's only with that happiness is made possible. So either in Taiwan or in China or throughout the world, I think this is the main thing that he wants to promote peace. And where does peace comes from in the face of politics? Most of the time, it is about respect of a person, him. So this person, it is about the dignity, the life of a person that should be respected irregardless of the country or the citizenship. And to him, every living being is equal.
Sol Hanna
Hmm. That's a really good point. And I guess in one sense, from a Buddhist point of view, there is no nationalities. It's just there's just human beings and we're all one in one sense. So again, that's how far sighted he was, I suppose.
Ven. Juefang
Exactly. I think you know him. Look, we've arrived at the final question. I'd like could you please sum up the life of master Singh Yun by explaining what do you think his legacy is for Buddhism in the modern world? His legacy for Buddhism in the modern world? Let me repeat again. Okay, so thank you for your question. His legacy for the modern world? There are two aspects I should say. First is all the organizations, all the achievements, all the entities, all the things I should say, the things that he has done, that's his legacy. Bringing Buddhism, the modernization of Buddhism, the contribution of Buddhism to the world today. But on the other hand. I think that his legacy also lies in his philosophy. For example, the three acts of goodness. I have mentioned just now that he has put Buddhism very accessible to people. We know about the cultivation of Buddhism, as in the cultivation of a person. It comes through the body, the speech and the mind. So with this he says that we should do good deeds, we should speak good words and we should think good thoughts. He has enabled people to practice the Dharma, practice Buddhism so easily. And with this we could say that instead of being in the past, where people says that do not do something killing, no stealing, he has actually made it very positive. Do good, speak good, think good. And on top of this, he has actually. Reconfirm, reaffirm people about the Buddha nature that all of us have and this builds confidence for us to face ourselves and to face our life ahead that makes a happier living possible. These are the two parts of the legacy which I think to me it's very important.
Sol Hanna
Look, thank you very much Venable Jeff Hung for taking the time to join us today and to let us know about the life and legacy of Master Singh Yuan. Thank you once again.
Ven. Juefang
Thank you, Saul. Thank you. Hi Saul, I just like to ask you 7s hi Saul, good afternoon to you all good here. I hope you are well as well
Sol Hanna
it
Ven. Juefang
thank you. Seoul master Singh was born in the year 1927 in China Yangzhou, which is actually in the southern part of China so that was where he started at the age of twelve. He became a novice monk and then came to Taiwan in the year 1949 at the age of 22 and from there he built Buddhism, spread Buddhism, thought Buddhism to the rest of the world until he passed away on the 5 February 2023 this year. At the age of 97? 16s Yes. This story frankly speaking, I'm actually very inspired by this story as well. So we know about the Sino Japanese War during the 1930s and in that year where he became a novice monk. Which is in the year 1939. There was one day when his other brought him to Nanjing, which is not so far away from his hometown, to search for his father because his father was working in Nanjing. But they just lost contact. This mother brought this little child with her to find his husband, but they couldn't find him, so most probably he has died during that time. On their way back home, they passed by this temple, the chicha temple in Manchin. And they Abbott of the temple saw this little boy and thought oh, he looks like quite a smart, intelligent and kind little boy. So he asked him whether he would like to become a monk. And this little boy said, yes, I would like to. So from that day onwards, it's actually the first of the second lunar month in the year 1939. He became a monk at the age of twelve and until the age of 97, his only career, we should say his only thing that he has done throughout the life was to be a monk.
Sol Hanna
It.
Ven. Juefang
Yeah. So I think we have done quite some research on him. And of course his name was actually Sing Yun. Was a name that he named himself. It wasn't his birth name. It wasn't the name given by his master so his teacher, his master gave him the name Xinju which means to be enlightened at this moment. But one day when they honorable master was reading in his Buddhist college in the temple he came across this dictionary and he saw that the term nabula which is actually part of immense universe so he thought the name Singh Yoon Singh Mint star yoon is cloud. So he thinks that he's just like a little star. He's just like the floating clouds in the sky. He hopes to be able to be as immense as possible. He hopes to be able to serve all living beings as much as possible. That's why he named himself Sing Yun. 15s That was actually part of history. So we know about the prostrate relationships during that time. So he was part of the Man Gnostic monastic. I'll repeat a little bit about that. So we know about the cross traits relationships at that time, and it was actually part of the monastics carer, the monastics who helped with the sorry soul. How would you express the care team? The nursing team? Sorry. Yes. Thank you so for this question. So we know about the cross straits relations during that time between the communist party and the Guaming thumbs and the. Sorry. Let me do it again. Yeah. Thank you. So, for the question, we all know about the cross rates, relationships and the political situations during that time. So the Van Noble Master was actually part of a monastic nursing team that actually took care of those people who had some injuries during that time. That's how he came from China to Taiwan.
Sol Hanna
Yes. I think you are correct to say that his achievements is just astonishing and immense. So I think the core of all that is actually his evocation and dedication and practice of humanistic Buddhism. And through this, it has changed the landscape of Buddhism, I should say, not only in Taiwan or China, but throughout the world that he has affinities with. So, just to name a few, for example, about the modernization of Buddhism. So we know that as being part, being trained and brought up in Chinese Buddhism, he actually had a very rigid and we should say a very strict education in the temple. But he believed that Buddhism should be something that brings life, that brings happiness to everybody. It should be accessible to everyone. So there were a few things that he did. For example, the first thing was, apart from the traditional chanting with all the dharma instruments or the wooden fish, the traditional chanting. He actually wrote Buddhist hymns.
Ven. Juefang
So he believed that Buddhism should be of joy. It should be easy for people to come in. So during his lectures, his talks, and even the chanting sessions that he organized, there were a lot of singing. So in the early 1950s, he was actually the first monk in Taiwan to have organized, started a Buddhist choir and also to published some albums, buddhist Himes albums. So since the 1950s until today, he has contributed a lot to the modernization of Buddhism. So that was the first thing. 21s So another example will be about the traditional text or the Tripitaka. So there were a lot of sacred texts that, frankly speaking, most people couldn't understand, not only not understanding the contents, but they may not be even be able to read the words, especially where the Chinese sacred text, most of them did not have punctuations. So what he did was also starting from the 1950s, he actually published
Sol Hanna
scriptures. Sutras every month, one sutra per month, where he actually modernized the language. The first thing he did was to add in punctuation marks and also to simplify the words. So from there, just one booklet or one sutra per month. He started the tributaka project, where the whole tributaka, the Chinese tributaka, there was a reedition. Since the 1970s, he started a committee on that. And of course, the novels, the books that he wrote, there were a lot of things that make people felt very accessible and other things like education. Also since 1950s, when he was only in his 20s, he started the first Buddhist kindergarten in Taiwan, in the temple where he was in. So with there since the 1950s, he started kindergartens, primary schools, like high schools, and to date, there are five universities throughout the world started, founded by him. So all these are his dedication to education. He's actually very humble, and I believe that it's quite true that he says he has never been to school because he was just too poor, his family was too poor to provide him an education. But he believed that education changes life. That is why he put in his best. He dedicated himself to bringing education accessible to everyone. And in his later days, in the recent maybe ten to 20 years, where he started writing the one stroke calligraphy, I'm not sure whether you have seen them, he couldn't move as much as he wished to due to his physical conditions, but he started to write calligraphy all in a stroke. So. These the proceeds from these calligraphies, he actually contributed them to foundations, to public funds, so that they would be able to continue providing education for all who needs that. So these are some of the things that I think he has done for the public and for buddhism itself. We one very important thing is about the equality of the Buddhist community, equality in two parts. One is among the monastics, which is we know that as a traditional religion, buddhism perhaps has more emphasis on the male monastics. But through him, he actually gave both male and female monastics equal opportunities because he believed that, irregardless of gender, it is the devotion to learn Buddhism, to practice Buddhism and to serve all living beings that made a monastic a monastic. So his part, his contribution to the equality of monastics. And also the next part about equality is equality between monastics and lay devotees. So the monastics had a role
Ven. Juefang
to propagate the dharma, but the lay devotees also shouldered the responsibilities of propagating Buddhism and also share their talents and make full use of their abilities to help Buddhism grow. So all these about equality I think is also instrumental to the development of Bongshan or the Buddha's Light International Association that he has founded and hence contributing to the development of Buddhism in the world today.
Sol Hanna
You?
Ven. Juefang
Yes so for one, Shan four is Buddha, wang is light, shan is temple. So for Huang Shan literally means the Buddha's light Mountain. Sorry, let me repeat again. So four Guang Shan, four means Buddha, huang means light, shan is mountain. So it literally means the Buddha's light mountain. So if you have a chance to go to Fu Bangshan today, you would see that it actually sits on it sits on a little mount in Taiwan, in the southern part of Taiwan. But we know that. But why did the Bannobo master started for Bangshan in the year 1967 which is on the sorry let me repeat on this. Four Guang shan literally means four is Buddha, Guang is light, Shan is mountain. So for Huang, Shan means Buddha's light mountain bong Shan is in the southern part of Taiwan, the Venoble master founded for Bangshan in the year 1967 on the 16 May, which is two days from today and we will be celebrating our 57th anniversary. So why did he started for Bangshan at that time, that year he was 40 years old. Why did he started for Bangshan? Because he wanted a bigger space so that he would be able to build a Buddhist college, a proper Buddhist college that would train monastics and lay people to learn Buddhism and also help with the promotion of Buddhism throughout the world. That was his initial reason why he started for Wamshan. But of course, if we were to look at, if we read some of his memories or even some of the pictures that we have seen in his heart, he wanted a place where all people could come to learn Buddhism and to share the joy of the Dharma.
Sol Hanna
55:52
You.
Ven. Juefang
Okay. So for Feng Shang started in the year 1967 in Taiwan because it started as a Buddhist college. So it actually attracted a lot of students from Taiwan and started with Malaysia and all around the world to pursue an education in Buddhism. At the same time, it attracted a lot of devotees, people who are interested to pray, to be part of Buddhism, to come to the temple. So from Taiwan, it started to Malaysia and all around the world. So that's how Buddhism spread from Boganshan started from Taiwan to the rest of the world. And today we have about 300 temples around the world in all five continents. 32s We know that in his teachings or his belief, he thinks that Buddhism, there should be a proper constitution. Buddhism should be governed by a system. So when he started for Wang Shan, there was a constitution, there was actually he set up a board of directors. And in the Constitution about the term of the Abbot or the person in charge, the Chair of the Board of Directors at that time, the Constitution states that the Chair, which is the Abbot or the Abbott, would have two terms and in the extraordinary conditions there could be a third term. Every term was six years. So he actually was there for the first two terms, twelve years. And because that was in the beginning of Bangshan, in this early years, he stayed for the third term, which is altogether 18 years. So I should say that in the year 19 50 85, in the year 1985 where he stepped down as the EPIT, he actually followed the Constitution vision of Shan. And since then he has established a very good example that things should follow the system. And to date, we have got elections of the Board of Directors, we have the election of the Abbott until today. So there has been quite a few habits until today. 67s So I think a lot of people have questions about Humanistic Buddhism. So the banhu master believes that Humanistic Buddhism is just Buddhism. So it is anything that is thought by the Buddha. That is needed by human beings is pure and is virtuous and beautiful. So any teaching that promotes the happiness of humanity is regarded as humanistic Buddhism. So throughout his life, he has devoted his entire life to the Buddha regarding him as his teacher, and also taken Buddhism as his path. There are a few things, especially in terms of reform, that I would like to share with you. One is about building a system. So for Bangshan, as what we have discussed earlier,
Sol Hanna
it is actually maintained. It is actually governed by a set of constitution, code of conduct. There is board of directors, there are different communities, all working within their terms that they should serve. So I think this is extremely important because as what you have mentioned earlier, it ensures the continuity of the organization, it ensures the continuity of the religion irregardless and not only repent depending on one particular person. So I think this part is a very great reform that he has done. The second is about the simplicity of the religion itself, as what I've mentioned earlier about him introducing Buddhist, him singing about simplifying the words, the written words of the scripts, the sutras, and also the text, I think this is also another thing that allows people to come into Buddhism easily. And there are also another thing is about the BLIA Buddha's Light International Association that he has established. So you mentioned that you you gave me the question about him establishing founding for Bangshan, the temple itself. But. Actually a very important thing that he has done is also the founding of the Buddha's Light International Association that allows lay people from all walks of life, from all countries, people from all races, all cultures to be able to come into this association and play their part to contribute to the society. And of course, Bria currently is a member of UNESCO and has received this title since, I think, in the year 220 zero. And I think it allows Buddhism to step forward, to step up, to shoulder the responsibility that the religion has for humanity as a whole. So there are also other things that he has done. For example, he has started a lot of Buddhist weddings. So it also started in the year 1950s, during that time where he started to officiate Buddhist weddings. And this is actually quite important because Buddhism has always been seen by people as being living the world, something that is about letting go, about pursuing a religious life. But to him, he believes that everyone has a role to play in the world today. So for lay people, they have to contribute to their family. And the happiness and joy in the family is extremely important, both to the religion, but more importantly to the world and to them as individuals. So these are some of the things that he has done, and I believe they are.
Ven. Juefang
I'm very grateful for what he has done.
Sol Hanna
Okay. So as you know, that the Bernoull master, of course, he is actually a very highly respected monk in Buddhist community, but of course he is let me repeat this again. Yeah. I think you have asked a very important question about interreligious dialogue to him. He believes that, of course, he has said that he has devoted his entire life to the Buddha and also taken Buddhism as his path. But I would like to share with you a very interesting story, a real life story that happened in Australia. So in the year 2000 when he was in Australia. So one day there was this MP who asked him a question. And this MP asked him. Which religion do you think is the greatest in the world today? And he answered, the ones that you like, the ones that you believe in is the greatest religion. And he said that everybody has their own father. So my father takes care of me. I love my father. Your father takes care of you? You love your father.
Ven. Juefang
It actually means that the Buddha as a Buddhist, I love Buddha. As a Christian, you may love God. So who is as great?
Sol Hanna
We should respect each other's faith. We should respect each other's religion. And there are actually two other things that happen that I would also like to share with you. So we know about the September 11 attack, and he was actually the first Buddhist representative to be able to go into this site for prayer. And in his prayer, the first thing that he said is, great compassionate Buddha, great compassionate God, great compassionate Allah, please bless us. So to him, he thinks that everybody has the right to their own faith, everybody has the right to their own religion, and all should be respected. Another incident, another example would be in the year 2008, there was actually a typhoon in Taiwan, and which is the Buddha's. Light mountain was one of the places that actually host a lot of all these refugees. And we took care of them. Most of them are Catholics. And instead of only having monastics, buddhist monastics, taking care of them, there was this space, this hall, where the venerable masks have invited the catholic fathers, the Catholic religious representatives, to come into our temple, to come into this hall, to lead in the prayers for all these people who suffered in the typhoon. So in his heart, he believed that.
Ven. Juefang
Every religion is equal and everyone's faith should be respected. So in line of his philosophy, there were actually a lot of religious exchanges, whether in bokwangshan's events where there are religious interreligious prayer for world peace. There are a lot of conference that we have done between the different religions and there are also some walkathons that in Taiwan and Fukuangshan itself, where we will start from Fukuangshan and the endpoint would be one of the churches around for bangshan. And of course, the venerable master has visited the Pope, the previous Popes a few times and since his passing away in March, actually the current Abbott Sinbao of Wangshan led a group of representatives from Taiwan, religious representatives, representatives from Buddha's like international association to visit the current Pope. So there are a lot of such exchanges and currently, of course, apart from Catholic oxanity, there is also interreligious exchanges with Islam and many other religions as well, depending on the local religion of the temple that is based
Sol Hanna
in. 47s So as I mentioned earlier I'm sorry. Is the recording still going? Yeah, because that was a pause on my side. Okay. Thank you for your question about this building bridges. Amongst different traditions of Buddhism, the venerable master believed that there is only one. There is one Buddha, the common Buddha that lived in India and Buddhism that spread throughout the world today because of different people living in different places, there could be different cultures, but the essence of Buddhism is still the same. So throughout his lifetime, he has tried to promote that different traditions should come together. One of the things that we could see in the Buddha museum today is. His Buddha museum is the first and only museum.
Ven. Juefang
Sorry, let me repeat again. Sorry. Thank you for bringing this question about Bridging bridges for the different Buddhist traditions. The venerable master, he believes that we have the same Buddha irregardless of our cultures. It is because people live in different parts of the world. People have different cultures, and hence there are different schools or different traditions of Buddhism. But all of us, we have the same Buddhist Buddha's teachings. And hence we should come together. There are two examples that I would like to share with you. One is the building of a temple in Thailand. So in Bangkok there is this Pi Hua Temple. Pi is Thailand. Hua is Lotus or Chinese temple that the Vendable master built about ten years ago. So this is a temple that is really devoted to the dialogue, the exchange between the Chinese Buddhism and also the local Thai Buddhism. And we have seen so many monks from different schools in Thailand coming to the Taiwan Temple for this Buddhism, Buddhist dialogues and religious exchanges. Another interesting thing that we see is that if you have a chance to visit Fufungshan, please come to the Buddha Museum in Fu Bangshan itself. It is actually the only museum today. It is the only museum in the world today. That is how should I put it if you have a chance to come to Fu Wangshan, please visit the Buddha Museum. So the Buddha Museum has one of its shrines. It actually has a Thai Buddha statue and shrined in the Buddha Museum. So that was also part of the Inter I should say the Interreligious inter Buddhism dialogue that the venerable master hopes to achieve. 40s Yeah. This is a very important question that I believe a lot of people are interested to find out. I think the venerable master, he is a religious figure. He knows his responsibility towards the religion. But on the other hand, he also believes that he should be a responsible citizen of the world today. Being a responsible citizen, what does it constitute? It is somebody who's able to contribute to the peace in the world today, because he said that he actually grew up doing the wars. He knows the difficulties, the fear that people face in times without peace. That is why he has also devoted himself to the promotion of peace. It's only with peace that happiness is made possible. So either in Taiwan or in China or throughout the world. I think this is the main thing that he wants to promote peace. And where does peace comes from in the face of politics? Most of the time, it is about respect of a person. So this person, it is about the dignity, the life of a person that should be respected irregardless of the country or the citizenship. And to him, every living being is equal. 17s Exactly. I think you know him.
Sol Hanna
His legacy for Buddhism in the modern world, there could be two aspects. Let me repeat again. Okay, so thank you for your question. His legacy for the modern world? There are two aspects I should say. First is all the organizations, all the achievements, all the entities, all the things I should say, the things that he has done, that's his legacy. Bringing Buddhism, the modernization of Buddhism, the contribution of Buddhism to the world today. But on the other hand. I think that his legacy also lies in his philosophy. For example, the three acts of goodness. I have mentioned just now that he has put Buddhism very accessible to people. We know about the cultivation of Buddhism, as in the cultivation of a person. It comes through the body, the speech and the mind. So with this, he says that we should do good deeds, we should speak good words, and we should think good thoughts. He has enabled people to practice the dharma, practice Buddhism so easily. And with this, we could say that instead of being in the past where people say that do not do something, no killing, no stealing, he has actually made it very positive. Do good, speak good, think good. And on top of this, he has actually
Ven. Juefang
reconfirmed, reaffirmed people about the Buddha nature that all of us have. And this builds confidence for us to face ourselves and to face our life ahead that makes a happier living possible. These are the two parts of the legacy which I think, to me, it's very important. 14s Thank you, Saul. Thank you. Hi, Sol. I just like to ask.
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