Chin Kung

Chin Kung AM (淨空; pinyin: Jìngkōng; 13 March 1927 – 26 July 2022) was a Chinese Buddhist monk and scholar from the Mahayana tradition. He was the founder of the Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation, an organization based on the teachings of Pure Land Buddhism. He was known for his teaching of Pure Land Buddhism and work in promoting inter-faith harmony in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

Early life Born as Hsu Yeh-hung (徐業鴻, Xú Yèhóng) in Lujiang County, Anhui, in 1927 Chin Kung received some classical Confucian education from a tutor in his hometown. At the age of ten, he moved with his family to Fujian where his father was posted as a chief secretary for the country government. When the Second Sino-Japanese War erupted, Hsu's father joined the National Revolutionary Army. Due to the disruptions of war, which he described as 'unsettling and traumatic', he had to hike with other schoolchildren further inland to Guizhou province in the southwest to avoid battlefront areas. At the time, there was an oversupply of monks in Taipei, due to an influx of refugees from mainland China, and there was not enough positions in temples for them. Furthermore, associates of Lee were viewed unfavourably by the establishment, as lay dharma teacher Lee was frowned upon for intruding into what was seen as the domain of ordained monks.

Teaching and writing

Chin Kung became well known for using modern technology to spread the Buddha's teachings. Starting in the 1970s, his lectures were recorded on audio, videotapes, and then later on CDs and DVDs and the internet for wide distribution in many temples, where they can be freely passed on, at a time when Buddhist teachings were not readily available in electronic formats. In 2003, a lay disciple named Chen Caiqiong founded Hwazan TV, a cable channel that broadcasts Chin Kung's teachings 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Since the late 1990s, Chin Kung organised and participated in interfaith forums across the globe, emphasising the importance of education and exhorting religious teachers to set an example by practicing the teachings of the sages and saints in their daily lives, and humbly learning from other religions.

He resided in Australia for many years and was based in the regional city of Toowoomba, near the Queensland state capital of Brisbane. In 2001, he established the present form of the Pure Land Learning College Association in Toowoomba, Australia, to further propagate Buddhism and train Buddhist monks and nuns, and had started (as of 2005) 15 Pure Land Learning Centres across the world.

In the People's Republic of China After the suppression of religion in the PRC during the Cultural Revolution, there was a lack of religious teachers. He was recognised for "service to the Buddhist community in Queensland, particularly through the promotion of Buddhism and the fostering of interfaith activities between diverse ethnic groups, and to the community through support for educational and health institutions".

In September 2017, the "Association of Chin Kung's Friends at UNESCO" was established at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, aiming to "promote religious unity, restore religious education, and promote traditional culture". First, traditional Buddhism, the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni, which is very rare in our days. Second, religious Buddhism, which does not represent the real Buddhism but has become recognized by the society, as temples nowadays no longer practice intense teachings and meditation as they once did. Third, academic Buddhist studies as taught in many universities today, where Buddhism is treated purely as a philosophy. This is not comprehensive as the dharma covers everything essential to human beings. Finally, the total degeneration of Buddhism into a cult, which came into being in the late 20th century, and does great harm to society. Chin Kung tried to correct these misunderstandings and lead the public back to the original form of Buddhism as taught by Sakyamuni Buddha.

Books Chin Kung has authored the following books

The Art of Living Buddhism as an Education Buddhism: The Awakening of Compassion and Wisdom The Collected Works of Chin Kung Path to True Happiness To Understand Buddhism The Essence of the Infinite Life Sutra