By Shì Huìfēng

Taiwan Foguang Shan Monastery & Hong Kong University Centre for Buddhist Studies

Chinese Buddhism as it turns to face the world

Introduction

Adjudicators, Venerables, distinguished guests, friends, good afternoon everyone! My name is Huifeng, and I would like to talk to you on the subject of “Chinese Buddhism as it turns to face the world”.

Before sharing my own thoughts, I would like to first of all congratulate the Buddhist Association of China, and Chinese Buddhism in general, for its wonderful progress over the last few decades. The whole of China has gone through incredible political, social, religious, scientific and other changes over the last 100+ years, and events such as the World Buddhist Forum, and this seminar, indicate that the Association is firmly committed to keeping the Buddha Dharma in step with the times.

A Different Perspective

My perspective on this topic may differ from that of others – as you can see, my experience is that of a non-Chinese, participating in the sphere of Chinese Buddhism. As a New Zealander by birth, I shall thus confine myself to talking about Chinese Buddhism in so-called “Western” nations. Many have given excellent talks on a variety of issues, so because of my background, I hope that I have a unique perspective to share with you all today.

My experiences have been mainly with Foguang Shan, based in Taiwan, though I have also spent over a year here in Mainland China, and now two years studying in Hong Kong. As you may know, Foguang Shan has made great efforts in the area of Buddhist international relations. I have had the good fortune to be involved in quite a few conferences, programs and events in this area, as administrator, guide, translator, teacher or instructor. I have thus seen firsthand some of the successes and failures in this area of Chinese Buddhist international relations.

Buddhist Culture East & West

Many Chinese Buddhist organizations have wisely decided to emphasize the Buddha Dharma as a common element of Asian culture, for interaction with other Asian nations and Buddhist groups. However, the situation is quite different in relation to the West. The religious basis there is theistic and largely Christian, and the cultural ethos, political and other social ideals are also very different from China. As such, there is no easy “common ground” on which to begin relations, and misunderstandings on both sides may lead to tensions.

It is very pleasing to see, however, that more and more Westerners have a strong interest in Buddhism. As such, Chinese Buddhism should make the most of this situation, to develop specialist talent in the area of international Buddhist exchange. By having a group who are able to effectively convey and express Chinese Buddhism to a Western audience, more Westerners will be able to understand Chinese Buddhism and Chinese thought in general. This will in turn lead to reducing the obstacles in exchange and communication between both sides. In this way, the West will be able to develop that “common perspective”, and this will aid in cooperation between all parties involved.

Buddhism in the West

During this process of going forth out of China to spread the Buddha Dharma, we shall note one very important fact: that the predominant forms of Buddhism that are taking off in the West, are those from Theravādin, Tibetan and Japanese Zen traditions. As such, Chinese Buddhism is arriving somewhat late to the game, and is thus a minority group within a minority religion. Thus the basic notion of what Buddhism is in the eyes of Westerners, has already been written to some degree. This position has some disadvantages, but also some advantages too.

Disadvantages

For the disadvantages, it means that these other Buddhist traditions already have teachers who are fluent in the local languages, know the local culture very well, and many are already into their second or even third generation of Western disciples. We have to respect and understand the precedents that these groups have already established, in terms of presentation, theory and practice of Buddhism, its adaptation to new cultures. We cannot assume that Chinese Buddhism is the whole of Buddhism, but must accept that it is just one aspect of it. It also means that certain attitudes that work just fine in China, will either not work, or even have a negative result, in the West. For example, we cannot go around claiming that “Theravāda Buddhism is Hīnayāna, and we should reject it!”, or that “Tantric Buddhism is a dangerous corruption!” We cannot afford to offend other groups through behavior that they may feel is “sectarian”. This respect and understanding with other Buddhist groups involves a fair amount of work, but it cannot be overlooked.

When I say that Chinese Buddhism is a minority in the West, some may argue that there are many Chinese Buddhist temples there, such as temples in San Francisco or New York Chinatown. From the perspective of a Chinese immigrant this is true, but to the local people, it is a different story. Why? It is like reading the same news in a Chinese or an American newspaper. Although there are many such Chinese temples, the vast majority are catering only to the local Chinese community. The result is that although they are “inter-national”, they are still rather “mono-cultural”.

Advantages

But there are several advantages too, and we should learn from these as best we can. Probably the most important advantage is that Chinese Buddhism can act as an excellent bridge between these other traditions. This is because the Chinese tradition historically sits midway between rather early Theravāda Buddhism, and later Mahāyāna Tibetan Buddhism. Obviously, Chinese Buddhism is also the older brother of most forms of Japanese Buddhism too. As such, Chinese Buddhist groups should be able to relate to and work together with all these other groups, in a way that they are unable to do amongst themselves. China as the “Middle Kingdom”, can thus fill an important “middle man” central co-ordination role.

Another advantage is to learn from the mistakes of other groups. One of the biggest problems in Western Buddhism is that of “false gurus” claiming to be enlightened, but actually misleading and cheating others. Due to organizations such as the Buddhist Association of China, our situation here is quite systematic. We should provide a clear and transparent system of legitimacy and authorization for those Chinese monastics who are in the West, thus letting people know who is genuinely qualified to teach, and who is not. As a minority group, a good reputation will go a long way.

Conclusions – Two Key Points

Thus, the first steps that we require are: Firstly, understanding of foreign languages; and secondly, immersion in foreign culture and society. I can see that many here have excellent proficiency in various foreign languages, and this opens up the doors to communication and exchange. At this point, we may only be able to directly translate Chinese Buddhism to other countries and cultures. However, in order to translate the meaning, the very essence of the Buddha Dharma, we need to be fully conversant with other cultures and societies in a much broader sense. Often, this is only obtained by being fully engaged in that culture and language on a continuous basis over a long period of time. Much experience could be gained by combining events like this with students and teachers from other countries who are learning Chinese Buddhism. This could be arranged through either academic institutions or monasteries abroad.

We should thus seek some inspiration from some great Buddhist masters of old. For example, the efforts of people like Kumārajīva and Xuanzang, who not only traveled to other lands, but fully and totally immersed themselves in the local culture and language. Only by doing so were they able to effectively transmit the Dharma and act as great ambassadors between nations and cultures. Just like Kumārajīva, Xuanzang and others, we should be prepared to go to other countries for ten, twenty or even fifty years, in order to bring the light of the Buddha Dharma to the world.

May everyone here continue in their efforts with great success, as we spread and sow bodhi-seeds which shall one day produce a most wonderful harvest! My dear colleagues, thank you very much for your attentive audience, I hope you have enjoyed this short talk. Thank you!