Buddhist Master Hsing Yun (星雲法師), founder of the Kaohsiung-based Buddhist organization Fo Guang Shan, died on Sunday at the age of 95.
Fo Guang Shan yesterday confirmed in a statement that Hsing Yun had passed away peacefully at 5pm the previous evening.
A memorial service is to be held at Fo Guang Shan’s Cloud Dwelling Building at 9am on Monday next week.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
Hsing Yun, born as Lee Kuo-shen (李國深) in 1927 to a poor family in China’s Jiangsu Province, became interested in Buddhism at age 12 after visiting Nanjing’s Qixia Temple while on a trip to the city with his mother in an unsuccessful effort to find his father.
After taking his religious vows, he graduated from Jiaoshan Buddhist Seminary in 1947. Two years later, he moved to Taiwan, where he taught and was editor-in-chief of the Buddhist publication Humanity Magazine.
In 1967, Hsing Yun founded Fo Guang Shan in Kaohsiung as a monastery with the purpose of promoting “the principles of humanistic Buddhism and foster[ing] peace and harmony among all peoples of the world.”
Fo Guang Shan gradually expanded into education, charity and media. It also founded more than 300 temples worldwide, as well as Buddhist seminaries, libraries and publishing companies.
Beginning in 1991, Hsing Yun established Fo Guang University and Nanhua University in Taiwan, University of the West in the US, Nan Tien Institute in Australia and Guang Ming College in the Philippines.
Since 2015, the five institutions have offered cross-enrollment and exchange programs as part of the Fo Guang Shan University Consortium.
In the past few decades, Hsing Yun also became increasingly involved in China, where he donated funds for the construction of temples and libraries, ran educational and cultural programs, and promoted cross-strait exchanges.
After suffering strokes in 2011 and 2016, Hsing Yun’s health deteriorated and he began making fewer public appearances.
He officially stepped down as director of Fo Guang Shan in 1985, but remained involved in its operations. The organization has been led by Hsin Bao (心保) since 2013.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) yesterday offered their condolences following Hsing Yun’s death, while expressing respect for his legacy of charity and compassion.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by