Body and Mind in Chinese Martial Arts: A Conversation with Xu Xiangdong
What is the best state one can reach when practicing Chinese martial arts? Stillness—your body is not moving, but you are moving. Where...
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Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jul 23, 2018
Sky Lanterns and Walubi: My Waisak Day at Borobudur in 2018, Part 2
Although Vesak, or “Waisak” in Indonesian, is celebrated at the national level, the Buddhist community makes up just 1 per cent of the...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jun 26, 2018
Sky Lanterns and Walubi: My Waisak Day at Borobudur in 2018, Part 1
Borobudur has always enchanted me. Dated to the eighth and ninth centuries, during the Shailendra dynasty, it is the largest Buddhist...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Mar 25, 2018
Understanding Buddhist Astrology: An Interview with Dr. Jeffrey Kotyk
Buddhism and astrology might seem to be unrelated fields. Buddhism affords a set of teachings intended to liberate us from cycles of...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Mar 20, 2018
A Journey Through 5,000 Years of Tibetan History and Culture at the Capital Museum in Beijing
Tibet is not only romanticized in the West, but also among people of China. Situated on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the highest plateau on...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Feb 22, 2018
Migrating Beliefs: Chinese Buddhism in Penang, Malaysia
Penang State in Malaysia is probably the most religiously diverse place I have ever visited. Walking around George Town, the capital city...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jan 24, 2018
The Secularization of Pagoda Imagery in 18th Century Europe and China
The artifacts that we now categorize as “Buddhist art” were not always treated as art in their original context. Despite superb...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Dec 28, 2017
Rare 15th–16th Century Murals and Sculptures Found in Sichuan Province Shed New Light on Tibetan Art
In March 2017, Buddhistdoor Global interviewed Professor Luo Wenhua, a research fellow at the Palace Museum in Beijing and director of...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Nov 22, 2017
Tracing Artistic Developments from India to China: An Introduction to Zhou Mingqun’s Collection
“My goal is to build a systematic collection that illustrates how Buddhist art evolved from ancient India to China,” collector Zhou...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Nov 2, 2017
Buddhism and the Law of Attraction: Musings over a Father’s Writings to His Son in 1602
In the year of 1602, a father in China completed a text for his 16-year-old son. The father, Yuan Liaofan (袁了凡) (1533–1606), was a...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Sep 21, 2017
Looking for the Pure Land: A Visit to Xuanzhong Monastery
According to the major sutras of Pure Land Buddhism, the Larger Sukhavativyuha and the Smaller Sukhavativyuha, Amitabha Buddha’s Pure...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Aug 3, 2017
Wisdom is Light: An Interview with Venerable Master Miaojiang
My previous article focused on the Great Sage Monastery of Bamboo Grove on Mount Wutai and its abbot, Venerable Master Miaojiang,...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jun 29, 2017
Rebuilding a Buddhist Monastery in Contemporary China: Venerable Master Miaojiang and the Great Sage
Throughout the history of Chinese Buddhism, monasteries have played an instrumental role in spreading Buddhist Dharma. A monastery not...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jun 25, 2017
Humanistic Buddhism in Australia and Beyond: An Interview with Venerable Dr. Juewei
As an active member of the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist order, Venerable Dr. Juewei (覺瑋) is a lecturer of Applied Buddhist Studies and the...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Apr 27, 2017
Buddhist Art on Paper: The Unique Painting and Calligraphy Collection of Fan Keqin
When we talk about Buddhist art, one tends to think of sculptures in stone or bronze, or monumental caves and wall paintings. However,...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Mar 30, 2017
Buddhism and Abundance: Monastery of Tranquillity and Peace (Jing’an Monastery) in Shanghai
The city of Shanghai sparks alluring images: the glamour of the Paris of the Orient, the mesmerising breeze along the Bund, the Art Deco...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Feb 24, 2017
Life in America as a Chinese Buddhist Monastic: An Interview with Venerable Guan Zhen
In ancient Chinese literature, “the West” refers to India—the birthplace of Buddhism. Nowadays, as in most cultures across the globe, the...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Jan 27, 2017
The Making of Buddhist Wood Sculptures in China
According to the Ekottara Agama Sutra (增一阿含經), the first Buddha image was made of wood. It is said that when the Buddha was teaching his...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Dec 23, 2016
Buddhism in Contemporary China Through a Photographer’s Eye
According to the Washington, DC-based Pew Research Center, 18.2 per cent of China’s population—that is 224 million people—are Buddhists,...
Guoying Stacy Zhang
- Nov 25, 2016
An Illuminating Exhibition on the Transmission of Buddhist Art at the Palace Museum in Beijing
The transmission of Buddhist art from India to China is a fascinating topic. Indeed, how did pious and profound art, along with a complex...
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