The development history of Buddhism in Hong Kong

Hong Kong was originally part of Xin'an County, Guangdong. During the Tang Dynasty, it was a necessary place for trade and transportation in the South China Sea. It was called Tuen Mun in ancient times. In 1842, the Qing government ceded it to Britain and it became a British territory. So far, it has become an internationally renowned Eastern port.

Hong Kong Buddhism was introduced from mainland China as far back as 428 AD during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. The earliest Buddhist historical site here is the dojo where Zen Master Beidu lived in Xi in the Tang Dynasty, including Beidu Temple and Lingdu Temple. To this day, there are still Beidu Cave, Beidu Well and other relics. Buddhism existed there almost at the same time as Guangzhou.

Since the British took over Hong Kong in 1842, the population has increased day by day, and it has gradually developed into the world-famous commercial port it is today. It was not until 1916 that Buddhist scholars began to launch the Buddhist Association, and two years later the Paradise of Paradise was established. In 1920, Master Taixu was invited to teach the Dharma and started a trend of preaching Buddhism in Hong Kong. In 1925, people from the Shingon sect organized a lay community. Two years later, Master Maofeng made a special trip to promote Tiantai teachings and led many people to learn Buddhism. Therefore, interested people opened vegetarian restaurants such as Pantaotian, Weiyueguo, and Xiaozhien, and also circulated Buddhist instruments and scriptures to actively spread Buddhism. In 1928, the "Duoduo Buddhist Society" was established to promote the Pure Land. The following year, Zhulin Zen Monastery, Sarnath and Women's Buddhist College were founded. At that time, the trend of vegetarianism, preaching and preaching was quite popular, so the "Hong Kong Buddhist Federation" was established in 1931, and the "Hong Kong Buddhist Federation" was founded in 1932. The "Youth Association" was established one after another, and the monthly "Human Sea Lamp" was published in 1935. In 1936, Monk Xuyun presided over the first-ever "Water and Land Dharma Assembly of All Kinds of Destiny" organized by Tung Wah Hospital in Hong Kong. So far, Tiantai, Pure Land, Zen, Tantra, and even Faxiang sects have all been launched in Hong Kong, laying a considerable foundation for Buddhism. From 1949 to 1956, hundreds of monks came from the mainland one after another. At one time, about 40 monasteries in Hong Kong were very crowded. It could be said that they were full of talents. By 1960, more than 120 temples had been built.

At present, the largest temple in Hong Kong is Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island. It has long been known as "Hong Kong's No. 1 Zen Forest". During the Xuantong period of the late Qing Dynasty (1909 to 1911), Dayue and Dunxiu two The Zen master came here from Jinshan, Jiangsu to open the mountain. After 1912, the Main Hall underwent several expansions and was completed in 1969. The temple became one of the famous Buddhist temples in Southeast Asia. The temple also houses the world's largest bronze Buddha statue, which is 26 feet high and weighs 248 tons. It was consecrated in 1994.

The most prominent feature of Hong Kong Buddhism is that it is based on Mahayana teachings and embraces various sects. Among them, Zen, Pure Land, Dharma and Tantra are the most prosperous. According to the current situation of Buddhism in Hong Kong provided by the Hong Kong Buddhist Federation in 1988, there are currently 450 temples and temples, more than 30 Buddhist groups, two Buddhist colleges, 300 monks, and 2,000 nuns. , more than 650,000 Buddhists.