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 Chinese Pure Land meditation master and
educator.
Born in 1927 as Yae-Hong Hsu in Luchiang County,
Anhui Province, China. Grew up in Cheino, Fukien Province,
China.
He attended the National Third Guizhou Junior High School and
Nanjing First Municipal High School. Went to Taiwan and worked
in the Shijian Institution (1949). He spent the next thirteen
years, while working, to study sutras, history and philosophy
under the guidance of the eminent Professor Dong-Mei Fang, a
Tibetan Living Buddha Master Zhang Jia, and well-known Buddhist
Dharma Master Bing-Nan Lee, a successor of the great Pure Land
Master Yin-Guang. He is also versed in teachings of various
Buddhist schools, Confucianism, Taoism and other religions. He
has spent most of his time and effort in studying, practicing
and teaching Pure Land Buddhism in which he attained his
greatest achievements. In 1959, he was ordained at Lintzi Temple
at Yuanshan in Taipei, and received the name Chin Kung.
He held many prominent positions in Taiwan. Was the Instructor
at the Tripitaka Institute at Shipu Temple (1960); Committee of
the Propagating Teachings Committee (1961): Member of the
Planning Committee of the Buddhist Association (1965): Chief
Instructor at the Buddhist Seminar for University Students,
Buddhist Association (1972); Professor and Editor at the
Association of Buddhist Sutras, Commentaries and Translations
(1973); Professor in the Philosophy Department at the Chinese
Culture University; Professor of the Spiritual Living Course for
East Asian Catholics at Fu Ren Catholic University (1975);
President of the Chinese Buddhist College (1977); and President
of the Chinese Pure Land Practice Research Institute (1979). He
is currently the abbot of Hwa Dzan Monastery and the Corporate
Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation.
Started lecturing abroad (1977) and later emigrated to the
United States (1985). During his residence in United States he
contributed tremendously to race relations, promotion of
morality and peace which won him the Honorary Citizen award from
both the city of Dallas and the state of Texas (1995). Since
1995, he has been instructing lecturers under the sponsorship of
the Singapore Buddhist Lodge and the Amitabha Buddhist Society
of Singapore, as well as being their Director of Education. And
currently establishing the Buddhist Educational College, the
first college of its kind in Singapore, to nurture and train
resources to propagate Buddhism.
He has established more than 50 Pure Land Learning Centers and
Amitabha Buddhist Societies around the world, mostly in Taiwan,
Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, North America, Australia, Spain
and England. He pioneered the use of information technology for
extensive propagation in Taiwan and free Buddhist resources
distribution worldwide. He has also given talks through radio
and television in several countries. |