Fo Guang Shan

Fo Guang Shan (Chinese: 佛光山; pinyin: Fóguāngshān; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Hu̍t-kong-san; literally: "Buddha's Light Mountain") is an international Chinese Buddhist new religious movement based in Taiwan. The headquarters of Fo Guang Shan, located in Dashu District, Kaohsiung, is the largest Buddhist monastery in Taiwan. The organization itself is also one of the largest charity organizations in Taiwan. The order also calls itself the International Buddhist Progress Society.

Founded in 1967 by Hsing Yun, the order promotes Humanistic Buddhism. Hsing Yun's stated position within Fo Guang Shan is that it is an "amalgam of all Eight Schools of Chinese Buddhism" (八宗兼弘), including but not limited to Chan.

History

In 1967, Hsing Yun purchased more than 30 hectares in Dashu Township, Kaohsiung County as the site for the construction of a monastery. The groundbreaking ceremony was held on 16 May 1967.

Fo Guang Shan embarked on many construction projects, including university buildings, shrines, and a cemetery. In 1975, Fo Guang Shan's 36-metre tall statue of Amitabha Buddha was consecrated. In 1981, 15 years after its establishment, the Great Hero Hall was built. During these times, many other Fo Guang Shan temples outside the order's mother monastery were also built.

Shan

Shan may refer to:

People

Places

Buddhist chant

A Buddhist chant is a form of musical verse or incantation, in some ways analogous to Hindu, Christian or Jewish religious recitations. They exist in just about every part of the Buddhist world, from the Wats in Thailand to the Tibetan Buddhist temples in India and Tibet. Almost every Buddhist school has some tradition of chanting associated with it, regardless of being Theravada or Mahayana.

Traditional chanting

In Buddhism, chanting is the traditional means of preparing the mind for meditation, especially as part of formal practice (in either a lay or monastic context). Some forms of Buddhism also use chanting for ritualistic purposes.

While the basis for most Theravada chants is the Pali Canon, Mahayana and Vajrayana chants draw from a wider range of sources.

Theravada chants

In the Theravada tradition, chanting is usually done in Pali, sometimes with vernacular translations interspersed. Among the most popular Theravada chants are:

Kaohsiung

Kaohsiung City (Chinese: 高雄市; pinyin: Gāoxióng Shì; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ko-hiông-chhī; old names: Takao, Takow, Takau) is a special municipality in Taiwan. Located in southern-western Taiwan and facing the Taiwan Strait, it is by area the largest municipality, at 2,951.85 km² (1,139.72 sq mi), and second most populous (by urban area) with a population of approximately 2.77 million. Since its start in the 17th century, Kaohsiung has grown from a small trading village, into the political, economic, transportation, manufacturing, refining, shipbuilding, and industrial center of southern Taiwan. It is a global city with sufficiency as categorized by Globalization and World Cities Research Network in 2012.

The Kaohsiung International Airport is the third largest airport in Taiwan. The Port of Kaohsiung is the largest harbor in Taiwan, but not officially part of Kaohsiung City. The southern terminal of the Freeway 1 is in Kaohsiung. For north-south travel on railway, the city is served by the Taiwan Railways Administration stations of TRA Western Line and Pingtung Line. The Taiwan High Speed Rail also provides fast and frequent railway connection to Taipei. The Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit, the city's subway system, was launched in early 2008. Kaohsiung was the host city of the World Games 2009, a multi-sport event primarily composed of sports not featured in the Olympic Games. The city is also home to the Republic of China Navy fleet headquarters and academy.

Hsing Yun

Hsing Yun (Chinese: 星雲大師; pinyin: Xīngyún Dàshī; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Seng-hûn tāi su; born 1927) is a Chinese Buddhist monk and the founder of the Fo Guang Shan new religious movement as well as the affiliated Buddha's Light International Association. He was abbot of the order until his resignation in 1985.

Hsing Yun is a proponent of "humanistic" Buddhism, as taught by the Fo Guang Shan order.

In Taiwan, Hsing Yun is notable for his activity in political affairs, particularly as a supporter of the One-China policy as well as government legislation supported by the Kuomintang, and has been criticized for his views by those in favor of Taiwan independence and by religious figures. During the 2008 presidential election, Hsing Yun publicly endorsed Kuomintang candidate Ma Ying-jeou. During the second World Buddhist Forum in 2009, Hsing Yun asserted that there are "no Taiwanese" and that Taiwanese "are Chinese". In 2012 he said that the Senkaku Islands (also known as the Diaoyutai Islands) belonged to China. He has encouraged reconciliation between China and the Dalai Lama, though he has distanced himself from the Dalai Lama in the past for fears of causing rifts between him and his organisation and the Chinese government.