Education for Buddhist Modernism: Buddhicised education and reform in Hong Kong schools

ABSTRACT

Starting with an initiative called Buddhicised education, there have been calls to reform Chinese Buddhism for a century. Based on documentary research of textbooks and in-depth interviews, this paper examines the reform of Buddhicised education in Hong Kong since 2000. Facilitated by the Hong Kong government’s education reform, Buddhicised education has gone in a new direction. The promotion of character education and caring for the heart have become more significant than ever in addressing the daily life issues and social concerns of students. Buddhicised education can be broadly redefined as life education for whole-person development in terms of beliefs, values, morality, character, positive emotions and spirituality. Reforms have been made in both the formal and informal curricula by incorporating moral and life education, contemplative education and sustainable education, as well as taking a student-centred approach such as experiential learning. This paper also discusses the implications of Buddhist modernism and the prospects of Buddhicised education in the religious education context of Hong Kong.

KEYWORDS:

• Buddhism
• Buddhicised education
• Hong Kong
• religious education

Introduction

Buddhism, which originated in India and has now spread throughout the world, has a long and complex history that spans more than 2,500 years. Today, Buddhism is a rich mixture of various cultural and intellectual currents from Asia and other regions globally (Prebish and Keown 2010). Variants of Buddhism have absorbed, accommodated and transformed local ideas and practices. As such, they have become hybrids in specific contexts. Modern Buddhism has emerged through a process of rapid social transformation that has come about by the Westernisation of various Asian countries in the past few centuries (McMahan 2008). Variants of Buddhism have dispensed or re-created certain traditional elements in an effort to accommodate a changing world, given the influence of Western science, philosophy and psychology. Buddhist modernism, therefore, presents dynamic, complex and heterogeneous processes and, in the case of Buddhism itself, was also reformed and transformed. Against this backdrop, the phenomenon of Buddhist reformers’ involvement in school education can provide us with additional insights into understanding the interplay between Buddhism and modernity. With this in mind, Hong Kong is a fertile ground for an in-depth case study.

Due to its decades-long British colonial legacy, which began in 1841, Hong Kong is a unique Chinese society that has a wide variety of vibrant religious beliefs and numerous faith schools implementing religious education (RE) (Tse and Ng 2022). In 2016, of the seven million people living in Hong Kong’s highly secular and multi-cultural society, there were over one million Buddhists, one million Taoists, 500,000 Protestants, 389,000 Catholics, 300,000 Muslims, 100,000 Hindus and 12,000 Sikhs, among others (Information Service Department of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 2019). Religious bodies often maintain and promote their particular religious traditions in their faith schools through RE. In response to social changes, the school’s RE must be adjusted and renewed in tandem with secular changes such as religious diversity in the student body (De Souza et al. 2006). It is important to explore how such religious bodies make use of their own religious traditions as resources and incorporate them innovatively into RE (Franchi, Conroy, and McKinney 2015).

Although there has been research reviewing the reform of Christian RE (Tse and Ng 2022), very few studies have looked at Buddhism or Chinese religions (Fung and Kong 2022; Wu and Lee 2021), which have been marginalised in terms of attracting the younger generation. In reviewing the current Hong Kong Buddhicised education programmes, this paper aims to fill the gap in the literature about non-Christian RE. In our study, we raise a number of research questions: How have Buddhist reformers reacted to the modernity and social changes of RE? What are the features of Buddhicised education in contemporary Hong Kong? What are the challenges for Buddhicised education in Hong Kong?

This paper examines the reform of Buddhicised education in the past two decades (2000–2020) through documentary research and in-depth interviews. In this study, a total of seven educators who have been involved in Buddhicised education were invited for interviews between March 2018 and December 2022. In order to understand the background of curriculum reform, the research team have approached three editors who have been involved in the project of renewing learning materials of Buddhicised education for the schools of Hong Kong Buddhist Association (HKBA). Furthermore, two experienced primary school teachers and two experienced secondary school teachers who teach Buddhist studies were invited for interviews for exploring the front-line experiences as well as challenges of promoting Buddhicised education in Hong Kong schools. In our in-depth interviews, we raise a few specific questions: How long have you taught Buddhist studies in schools? Are you a Buddhist? How do school principals in general arrange teachers in teaching Buddhist studies? Compared with other school subjects, how much time do Buddhist studies have for students? What are your comments on the old and new curricula and teaching materials design provided by the sponsoring body? What are your views on the prospects of Buddhicized education? In this paper, all the informants will be mentioned with pseudo names for protecting their identities.

In the following section, we firstly discuss the background of Buddhist modernism in modern China since the nineteenth century. After examining the core values of Buddhicised education and the development of formal and informal curricula, we will discuss the challenges and prospects, as well as the possible implications for Buddhist modernisation in Hong Kong.

Buddhist modernism in modern China

Buddhism was introduced to China over 2000 years ago. Since the late Qing Dynasty, Buddhism, along with other Chinese religions, were criticised as superstitious, non-scientific and backwards by Protestant missionaries, Republican elites and social reformers (Ashiwa and Wank 2009). In the early twentieth century in China, many people were illiterate due to a lack of public-school (state school) education. Most monastics were not well educated and unable to teach Buddhist knowledge. Facing the crisis of Chinese Buddhism in the late Qing, with insight from Christians and Orientalists, Buddhist reformers began new projects to change their practices and communities. Yang Wenhui (楊文會 1837–1911), the father of the Chinese Buddhist revival, visited Europe and later devoted himself to Buddhist modernisation (Welch 1968). Master Taixu (太虛1890–1947), one of Yang’s most remarkable students, further succeeded in reforming Chinese Buddhism into a world religion to resist the stigmatisation of Buddhism as a superstition. Taixu advocates ‘Buddhism for human life’, an ideal of modernised, humanistic, scientific and engaged Buddhism in modern China, through the establishment of Buddhist societies, a transnational Buddhist network, modern Buddhist institutes and Buddhist journals (Lau 2020). Buddhist modernism is multifaceted, with education as a key pillar. The new concept of ‘Buddhicised education’ (fohua jiaoyu 佛化教育), which emerged from the ‘Buddhicisation movement’ (fohua yundong 佛化運動) in the early Republican era, represents a Buddhist form of education that can be offered to the general public as civic education (Travagnin 2020, 111). Both the monastic community (sangha) and the laity are equally important. Compared with the concepts of Buddhist education (fojiao jiaoyu 佛教教育) and Dharma education (fofa jiaoyu 佛法教育), Buddhicised education takes a more inclusive approach to reach lay people, including non-Buddhists, and a more active approach in reforming society through Buddhism. Hence, Buddhicised education is distinctive in terms of its access (popularisation) and function (social engagement).

Buddhist schools in Hong Kong

The school system in Hong Kong is mainly composed of government-aided schools run by charitable organisations. Nearly 60% of these schools are faith-based in either Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestant Christianity, Taoism, Islam, or Confucianism (Kwong 2002). In the 1950s, in order to provide enough facilities to the large number of refugees entering the city within such a short time period, the Hong Kong government asked the Western churches and local Chinese charitable organisations to provide basic education to those living in poverty by building schools (Sweeting 2004). However, in such a multi-religious society, RE is only taught in government-aided and private schools with a religious background. With a great many non-adherents in faith schools, a mono-RE model is the mainstream practice, with a formal curriculum comprising Biblical Knowledge, Buddhist Studies, Religious Studies, etc., and textbooks written by the respective religious bodies. An informal curriculum, including morning prayers, festivals, rituals, contemplative practices and services, is arranged for students in these schools (Tse and Ng 2022).

While the earliest appearance of Buddhism in Hong Kong was during the Liusong (劉宋) period (429–479), Buddhism was not influential until the twentieth century. Compared with politically turbulent mainland China, British Hong Kong was relatively stable and many monks from mainland China migrated to Hong Kong for shelter and to settle. Buddhism began to prosper in Hong Kong, particularly in the 1950s after the civil war (Tang 2015). Since then, the number of Buddhist temples has increased. Following the trend of Christian churches’ involvement in school education, some Buddhist organisations became sponsoring bodies in providing public education for underprivileged children. The favourable religious and education policy in Hong Kong has provided an ideal setting for the implementation of Buddhicised education.

Tung Lin Kok Yuen (東蓮覺苑), founded by Lady Clara Ho Tung, the wife of the late Robert Ho Tung, established the first Buddhist school for underprivileged girls in the 1930s (Tang 2015). Tung Lin Kok Yuen is the cradle of Buddhist education in Hong Kong because many girls who graduated from girls school have served as teachers of Buddhist studies.¹ Since the 1960s, the Buddhist community has made an effort to build and operate more schools. Among Chinese societies, Hong Kong has one of the strongest presences of Buddhist schools in the public school (state school) sector. Today there are eight Buddhist sponsoring bodies in Hong Kong, including the Hong Kong Buddhist Association (HKBA), The Heung Hoi Ching Kok Lin Association (HHCKLA), Chi Lin Nunnery, Tung Lin Kok Yuen, etc. Together, they operate 15 kindergartens, 16 primary schools, 20 secondary schools and 1 special school, serving around 3% of the total student population in Hong Kong in 2020. Schools run by these Buddhist sponsoring bodies aim at promoting the distinct values and practices of Buddhism.

Orientation of Buddhicised education

According to Venerable Kok Kwong, founder of The Heung Hoi Ching Kok Lin Association and a decades-long president of The Hong Kong Buddhist Association, Buddhicised education is understood as a departure from the traditional ‘thatch Buddhism’ (Qin 2003). Traditionally, monks lived self-sufficiently in seclusion in the mountains and forests. With the urbanisation of Hong Kong society, local Buddhism needed to transform itself from ‘self-sufficient Chan-farming’ to a new ‘urban form of Dharma promotion’. The target of education was no longer confined to the monastic community, but extended to ordinary people. Involvement in school education as a charitable service is also a form of social engagement. Second, Buddhicised education serves the function of moral education by purifying the mind and renewing the social ethos. Buddhicised education primarily aims not at preaching, but at cultivating good morals and positive values among students. The HKBA, the largest Buddhist sponsoring body, supports 8 kindergartens, 7 primary schools and 13 secondary schools, all with the common motto: ‘To illuminate wisdom and manifest compassion’ (Mingzhixianbei 明智顯悲). Both wisdom and compassion are not only core values in Buddhicised education but also daily practices in enhancing morality and spiritual wellness as part of holistic education. From our analysis of the curriculum and textbooks over years of development, the orientation of Buddhicised education can be summarised into the following three themes.

Cultivating wisdom and compassion as moral and character education

Living in a stressful cosmopolitan society with a high divorce rate, children and adolescents in Hong Kong face an array of challenges, and there is a rampant trend of juvenile delinquency. The head of educational affairs of the HKBA, Venerable Sik Yin Chi (2015), pointed out that some students suffer from the failure of moral education in a secular society. She considered that the most obvious drawback of modern education is a lack of spiritual and character education. The ultimate goal of Buddhist teaching is the cessation of suffering (dukkha), which is caused by unwholesome (akusala) speech and action (Gethin 1998, 119). Among the three major Buddhist traditions, the five Buddhist precepts are the shared basic ethical conduct for avoiding unwholesome actions and suffering. They include not harming others, not stealing, not engaging in sexual misconduct, not lying and not taking intoxicants. In primary and secondary Buddhist schools, keeping the five precepts is promoted as a moral foundation for cultivating calmness (samadhi) and wisdom (prajña/pañña), which holds the right view in understanding the karmic results of wholesome and unwholesome seeds.

Informant Ms. Liu,² the panel head of Buddhist studies at a primary school sponsored by HHCKLA, with over 20 years’ teaching experiences, highlighted the importance of planting wholesome seeds for children. Ms. Liu shared with us,

Although some people misunderstand Buddhism, we [Buddhist teachers] try our best to explain the content of curriculum so that students can acquire the basic religious knowledge through cultivation. I was educated in a Buddhist school when I was a child. There was positive impact on me, for example, the idea of avoiding killing and treasuring life. Therefore, I consider planting seeds in the mind of children is my mission in Buddhicised education.

Buddhist teachers, especially those who were educated in Buddhist schools, perceive their significant role of moral education. Informant Ms. Lee, the Vice Principal and Panel Head of a secondary school sponsored by the HKBA, argued that students who understand the law of cause and effect in Buddhism would be mindful of their behaviour by not violating basic moral principles. ‘In Buddhist schools, traditionally Chinese language teachers take up the teaching of Buddhism. They are skilful to cultivate virtues and characters through literature. The passion of teachers is the key to be in touching the mind of students’, Ms. Lee explained by recalling her learning experience as a student in a Buddhist school. She took refuge in Buddhism when she was an adolescent in 1986. In summary, educators of Buddhicised education expect students to learn to practice moral life through understanding the foundational principle of Buddhism and observing precepts.

Cherishing the meaning of life as life education

In the past decade, various developmental challenges and situations, such as busy schedules and heavy school workload, experienced by Hong Kong adolescents have made them vulnerable to mental health disturbances. The call for life education emerged in Hong Kong in the late 1990s and, since then, has received a good amount of attention (Lee, Yip, and Kong 2021). Life education has been widely promoted in many Hong Kong schools as there has been a great need in recent years for enhancing well-being and reducing aggression to promote social harmony (Fung and Kong 2022; Lau 2021). In Buddhicised education, Buddhism is applied as a wisdom and philosophy of life that is inspirational and helpful in dealing with challenges arising from life and social problems, including challenges of identity, sex and marriage (Wu and Lee 2021; Fung and Kong 2022; Sik 2015). Emotional resilience can be established through the practice of self-compassion, which is positively related to well-being.

Cultivating harmony with other sentient beings and the nature of sustainable education

Venerable Kok Kwong pointed out that the material life and technological advancement of the global society have not reduced social conflicts and dissatisfaction and have also exploited the natural environment (Wen Wei Po 2007). Building a harmonious and sustainable society is a common goal of human beings in the context of global challenges. In Buddhist ethics, human beings are not seen as superior to other species (Harvey 2000, 184–186). Warfare, killing animals and exploitation of natural resources are due to ignorance and attachment to the self, which result in the harm and suffering of other beings. Establishing moral values and compassion is part of the ecological wisdom of Buddhism contributing to sustainable development.

In short, the current form of Buddhicised education includes cultivation of wisdom, compassion and harmony for the sustainable development of Earth and reducing the suffering of others. These core values are applicable for both Buddhists and non-Buddhists in Buddhist schools. In 2000, following the education reform of the Hong Kong Education Bureau with the publication of Learning to learn by Curriculum Development Council (2001) and values education for the twenty-first century, the HKBA reinforced ‘Buddhicised moral and values education’ with a ‘life-wide learning’ approach to provide students with problem-solving skills for daily life (Sik 2015). Textbook-based pedagogy is disfavoured by life-wide learning, which encourages students to learn in authentic contexts to achieve whole-person development with life-long learning capabilities in an ever-changing society (Education Bureau 2022). In the following two sections, the reform of the formal and informal curricula of Buddhicised education in Hong Kong will be examined.

Reforming the formal curriculum by engaging in life and values education

The Education Bureau has never established a curriculum guide for RE at the early childhood and primary school levels. Buddhist schools have developed their school-based curricula in the spirit of Buddhicised education. Buddhist kindergartens have developed experiential learning activities with an exploration approach for young children, while primary schools provide weekly lessons using textbooks provided by the sponsoring bodies of the HKBA and HHCKLA.

The Curriculum Development Council (1999) compiled a curriculum guide for RE in junior secondary schools. With a sub-section on Christian RE in Christian schools and a section on Buddhist RE in Buddhist schools, teachers are also allowed to develop their own school-based programmes. However, the RE curriculum at senior secondary level has been restricted by the public examination syllabus. For example, Buddhist Studies was an elective subject in the Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination from 1960 to 2011. Form five students with age 16–17 would sit an examination for it according to the requirements of Buddhist schools. The senior secondary syllabus for Buddhist Studies was revised in 2003, with a new section on applied Buddhism in daily life in addition to Buddhist history and Buddhist teachings based on the scriptures.

With the education reform led by the Education Bureau, a new senior secondary three-year curriculum was introduced in 2009. ‘Ethics and Religious Studies’ replaced Christianity and Buddhist Studies as an elective subject for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) public examination (Curriculum Development Council 2014). The new curriculum includes two sections. Section One includes topics on ethical and social issues, such as human rights, euthanasia, surrogate motherhood, etc. Section Two concerns religious traditions, in which candidates can opt for either Christianity or Buddhism. One breakthrough of this new curriculum is that it encourages students to explore other faiths through experiential learning, such as Christian school students visiting Buddhist monasteries.³

Some Buddhist reformers who received higher education have contributed to the current curriculum reform. Reform of the senior secondary Buddhist Studies curriculum (for students with age 15–17) in 2003 also triggered a related curriculum reform for the lower years. Since 2010, with support from the Centre of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong, the primary (for students with age 6–12) and junior secondary school (for students with age 12–15) curriculum of Buddhicised education has been revised by engaging with themes of life and values education. A new set of supplementary textbooks called The Road to Enlightenment (Zhengjuededaolu 正覺的道路) was issued by the HKBA. The curriculum comprises the concept of three vehicles in three levels: vehicle of humans and deities (Primary 4 and Secondary 1), vehicle of liberation (Primary 5 and Secondary 2) and vehicle of Bodhisattva (Primary 6 and Secondary 3), all of which is composed of a spiral development of spirituality across different academic levels [see Table 1 New Curriculum of Buddhicised education with the concept of three vehicles].

Table 1. New curriculum of Buddhicised education with the concept of three vehicles.

Level	Unit/Theme
Primary 4 Vehicle of humans and deities	Three Jewels of Buddha, Dharma, Sangha
Primary 5 Vehicle of liberation	The Four Noble Truths
Primary 6 Vehicle of Bodhisattva	Four All-embracing (Bodhisattva) Virtues
Secondary 1 Vehicle of humans and deities	Comprehension of Life: Three Jewels, Dependent Origination of Life, Five Aggregates, Impermanence and no-self. How Life Operates: Karma, Observing the Five Precepts
Secondary 2 Vehicle of liberation	Two Paths in Life: The Four Noble Truths, Twelve Links of Dependent Origination, The Eightfold Path
Secondary 3 Vehicle of Bodhisattva	Compassion and Wisdom: Four All-embracing Virtues and the Spirit of Bodhisattva

The concept of three vehicles is suggested by Master Yin-shun, a close disciple of Taixu, in his book The Way to Buddhahood (1998). Yin-shun, the first Chinese Buddhist monk to receive a PhD,⁴ who promotes ‘human-oriented Buddhism’ in his whole life, criticises the mainstream thoughts in Chinese Buddhism about the way to Buddhahood being restricted to the vehicle of Bodhisattva only. He argues that the way to Buddhahood can be expanded to three vehicles. In other ways, practising well as human beings is as meaningful as aspiring to become a Bodhisattva. In the vehicle of Bodhisattva, the four all embracing virtues to be cultivated are loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity (known in Theravāda as the brahmavihārā: mettā, karuṇā, muditā and upekkhā).

The core principle of this curriculum is the articulation of dependent origination (paṭiccasamuppāda), which is a fundamental doctrine of Buddhist cosmology. This doctrine explains that all mental and physical states arise from and depend on conditions. It explains the formation and extinction of human life and sentient beings (Sik Hin Hung 2005). Understanding dependent origination could avoid growing spiritual ignorance and craving, which induce suffering. This doctrine provides a philosophy of life, values and moral conduct in Buddhicised education, so that students can articulate the meaning of life by exploring the nature of life and the world. With reference to the global orientation of perceiving life by Antonovsky (1987), an Israeli scholar, the new curriculum focuses on comprehending life, finding meaning in life and managing life, which all may enhance resilience and the ability to stress coping.

Under the doctrine of dependent origination, students are supported to make meaning and establish right direction in life. Students are encouraged to make an effort to achieve their own goals in their studies, sports and relationships. In the curriculum, there are sessions on appreciating the wonder of life, being grateful to family members and friends, building positive relationships with others and being kind to other people and beings. In their daily life practices, students are encouraged to observe the five precepts, practice meditation and develop wisdom. Observing the precepts can help to develop a disciplined way of life to create favourable conditions for achievement. Meditation practices help students establish mental calmness and avoid getting upset. Through wisdom, one will speak and act in the right direction without misunderstanding and delusion.

Pedagogically speaking, the curriculum incorporates ‘three kinds of wisdom’: (1) wisdom developed from listening, (2) wisdom developed through contemplation and (3) wisdom developed by spiritual practice. The curriculum contains 24 interactive activity-based lesson plans, with video clips, news footage, drama roleplay scripts and related newspaper clippings, films, songs and comics. This project also laid the foundation for a compilation of new course materials for S1 to S3, namely ‘Buddhist Moral Education and Values Education’, between 2015 and 2018 (Wang 2017).

New initiatives in the informal curriculum

Alongside the reform of the formal curriculum of Buddhicised education, our study has also examined the reform of the informal curriculum, with categorisation of contemplative education, service learning and sustainable education.

Cultivating mindfulness and kindness through contemplative education

Since the turn of the century, the number of students who commit suicide or suffer from mental health issues has increased. In the light of this, mindfulness education has been promoted to students in Hong Kong in some schools to enhance their well-being since 2007 (Lau 2017). With the support of a government-backed Quality Education Fund, several Buddhist secondary schools jointly launched a project on life education and contemplative education in 2004–2005. Roughly 600 adolescents learned to manage their anxiety and establish a positive philosophy of life through a series of interactive spiritual activities, including meditation practices, mini-lectures, videos, games and dramas. This school-based contemplative education programme was based on a sense of coherence and the doctrine of dependent origination. A follow-up study showed that contemplative education based on Buddhist teaching could enhance students’ self-esteem and ability to deal with stress (Sik and Wu 2015).

From 2016 to 2019, the HKBA carried out a project called ‘Bringing Awareness Meditation into Secondary Schools’, which was sponsored by the D. H. Chen Foundation. A meditation room was constructed in each participating school to further facilitate contemplative education. From 2020 to 2022, seven primary schools also received funding for the construction of a meditation room, which provides a tranquil environment with meditation mats (The Hong Kong Buddhist Association 2022). Buddhist and non-Buddhist students can also learn meditation practices to strengthen their mental capacity to develop calmness and inner peace.⁵ ‘Once a student told me that he guided his mum to practice meditation to avoid unnecessary quarrel with his father. Another student practiced observing breathing in and out for reducing stress over his examination’, shared by informant Ms. Lee from a HKBA secondary school. Through calming the mind with mindfulness practices, students can solve family issues and release the stress of study. The facility of meditation room is beneficial in promoting the wellbeing of students.

At a Buddhist primary school, another informant Ms. Wan, the Vice Principal who has taught Buddhist Studies for 36 years, excitedly shared with us that they designed a series of four sessions with mindfulness practices. ‘The activities for students of Primary One are with lots of fun. There is one session on mindful eating with candy. Another session is about mindful yoga. Teachers from other seven schools also came to observe our demonstrated lessons’, Ms. Wan was satisfied about their efforts made for improving the spirituality of students. Furthermore, her school also incorporated a mindfulness programme Sitting like a frog developed by Snel (2013), a female counsellor from the Netherlands. As recalled by Ms. Wan, over 20 teachers from seven HKBA primary schools have received one-year training of the programme.

Project learning and service learning

Under the education reform led by Education Bureau since the turn of the century, the teacher-centred and text-based learning approach has been replaced by student-centred experiential learning (Curriculum Development Council 2001). Concerning out-of-class learning activities, visits to traditional Buddhist monasteries are arranged to explore the history, architectural style, meal rituals and daily routine of Buddhist monastics through a project learning approach. As shared by informants Ms. Lee and Ms. Wan, the religious and spiritual experiences can enhance students’ independent learning and social skills to allow them to reflect on the meaning of life. A recent notable event developed was the ‘Visiting and Exploring Programme of Hong Kong Buddhist Temples’ in 2017–2018, in which 400 students participated (The Hong Kong Buddhist Association 2018).

Moreover, service learning has been rigorously promoted as life-wide learning opportunities for whole person development following the education reform. Buddhist schools strategically arrange students to explore the underprivileged, including visiting people suffering from poverty and sickness, in both Hong Kong and remote villages in China. Students are trained to have the right attitude and learn skills to practice compassion and empathy for those who are less fortunate. In Buddhicised education lessons, reflection on these learning experiences encourages students to consider the meaning of altruism and cultivate love, kindness and compassion.

Furthermore, from our fieldwork, regular inter-school activities are organised by the Buddhist Youth Fellowship to encourage teenagers to participate in various Buddhist activities, including a Buddha’s birthday card design competition, a Buddha’s birthday writing competition and singing contests. For example, from 2011 to 2013, the ‘Education for the Heart’ programme at the primary school level included lectures on ‘Environmental Protection for the Heart’ and day camps for students’ spiritual growth.

Building a green campus for sustainable education

The new form of Buddhicised education plays a key role in promoting sustainable development and harmony by educating students to build a green campus, which encourages organic farming and vegetarianism alongside peaceful communities through compassion. Green Monday (2022), a plant-based lifestyle campaign started in Hong Kong, introduces students to the relationship between vegetarianism and sustainable development and promotes having at least one vegetarian meal per week. An activity called ‘Vegetarian Luncheon’ is held to enable students to experience a vegetarian diet, which promotes the concept of respecting life, a balanced diet and sustainable education.

In summary, with the facilitating force of education reform, the new change of the formal curriculum has included a new orientation of life and spiritual education with the three vehicles for students. For example, students are encouraged to keep five precepts for attaining the vehicle of humans and deities. The principle of dependent origination can provide resilience and well-being education for students. The new initiatives in informal curriculum motivate students to have daily life experiential learning with mindfulness practice, sustainable education with vegetarian diet and service learning.

Challenges of Buddhicised education in contemporary Hong Kong

With the effort of some Buddhist leading reformers and front-line teachers, the curriculum design and pedagogy of Buddhicised education has been improved. However, from this study, we have found some long-term challenges for Buddhicised education, for example, the common misunderstanding about the Buddha’s teachings and its ancient scriptures; marginalisation of Buddhicised education with very limited amount of lesson time; a heterogeneous school population in which most principals, teachers and students in Buddhist schools are non-Buddhists; and a shortage of well-trained teachers and insufficient continuous professional development.⁶

Misunderstanding of the Buddha’s teachings

Buddhism is a religion that originated from ancient India over 2500 years ago. Without philosophical and historical background, people in general easily misunderstand the religious traditions. Ms. Liu shared with us the difficulty of teaching Buddhism to primary school students, ‘As the concept of bodhisattva as a powerful god or goddess is an abstract and difficult concept for children. Therefore, we adjust these topics for primary four students with about ten-year-old. We invite students to visit elderly home and monastery so that they can understand the concept of compassion, a virtue of bodhisattva, through experiential learning’. Ms. Liu highlighted that the teachers have paid a lot of extra effort in adapting the curriculum and pedagogy of Buddhist Studies for children.

Moreover, Ms. Liu and her colleagues strategically include some daily practices of well-being for young students. For example, they invite students to listen to some soft meditation music for a few minutes before the start of the lesson. ‘The students not only can calm down for a while with the music, but also they can easily focus after a few minutes. If the students just finish a PE lesson or music lesson, their mind and bodies would be a bit active. Listening meditation music can facilitate the students to calm down before engaging in the learning activities’.

Buddhicised education as a marginalised subject

RE is a marginalised subject compared to the major academic subjects, such as Chinese language, English language and mathematics, in the school timetable. In schools with religious background, the amount of lesson time of religious studies is as little as minor subjects, such as music education and physical education. For example, at one Buddhist primary school, there is only one lesson with 35 min for Buddhist Studies. ‘As this is not a major subject, [the school] would not put too much time on it. For schools without religious background, they have this extra lesson time put on major subjects. Hence, it is impossible [for schools] to spend more time on it [Buddhist Studies]’, added by Ms. Liu, the panel head of Buddhist Studies. The assessment performance of all primary six students is submitted to the Education Bureau for their enrolment to secondary schools. Although Buddhist studies is counted for the submission, it is counted for one unit only. Major subjects, such as English and Mathematics, count for nine units; General Studies counts for five while Visual Art counts for three.

For the junior secondary curriculum, the HKBA tried to integrate Buddhist Studies lessons with a humanities subject, ‘Life and Society’, so that Buddhist values could be incorporated into the formal curriculum. However, this proposal was resisted by teachers, reflecting the inferior position of RE in school curriculum.⁷ With the restructuring of the academic system of the senior curriculum, the number of students taking Ethics and Religious Studies has dropped drastically (Wong and Lee 2012; The Hong Kong Buddhist Association 2012). In the New Secondary School curriculum, candidates normally take only six subjects for the DSE public examination, including four core subjects and two elective subjects. Ethics and Religious Studies is not a priority for the two elective subjects when considering university entry requirements. Furthermore, with a low birth rate as a result of the pandemic and a new wave of migration, the current threat to every school in Hong Kong is the shrinking number of school children, which may result as school closures (Yiu 2022).

Another challenge faced by all Buddhist schools is the secularisation of the society. As Ms. Lee pointed out, all Buddhist schools are government aided schools, where students are assigned by the Education Bureau. Most teachers and students in Buddhist schools are non-Buddhists. ‘Buddhist schools are always weak minority compared with other schools. Nevertheless, we expect all teachers and students to understand and respect Buddhism. This is the basic requirement’. Ms. Lee emphasised that teachers should embody the spirit of care and compassion and pass them on to students.

Shortage of well-trained teachers

Teachers are the souls facilitating the cultivation of values of religions and spirituality. The lack of well-trained teachers may be one of the biggest current challenges to Buddhicised education. So far there is none of a systematic education programme offered to newly joined teachers. Most Buddhist Studies teachers have learnt anew when they started taking up the teaching assignments. For example, at the primary school of Ms. Liu, there are totally only four teachers who are responsible for teaching Buddhist studies of 18 classes from primary one to six. ‘I have already taken seven classes. Another teacher takes up five classes. We arrange only those who own basic knowledge of Buddhism to teach the children’. Ms. Liu explained that it is a usual practice as the teaching team is a small one compared with those major subjects.

Ms. Wan, who was approaching retirement in three years, explicitly expressed her worries about exploring successors in Buddhicised education. In her school, there are over half teachers with their own faiths of either Catholic or Protestant. In their normal practice, the principal respects the will of teachers without forcing them into teaching Buddhist Studies. ‘There are currently a total of six teachers of Buddhist Studies in our school. Although there are two young teachers who are interested in teaching Sitting Still like a Frog will join our team, there is still a lack of teachers in the long run’, Ms. Wan explained. She wished that the change of image of Buddhism in the society can help attract more young teachers to join the team.

Ms. Yip who has taught Buddhism in secondary school for 15 years felt optimistic about Buddhicised education.⁸ Ms. Yip has been educated in schools with Christian background only. Yet she was interested in Buddhism in her undergraduate study after joining a youth programme led by Venerable Hin Hung. ‘Nowadays there is increasing number of trendy spiritual activities developed in the society. The image of Buddhism is not as old-fashioned as that in the last generation’. Ms. Yip shared with us some recent examples: a local young social entrepreneur David Yeung initiates Green Monday movement, which promotes sustainable diet locally and globally; the training of Zen photography with mindfulness practice promoted by a celebrity monk Venerable Chang Lin has been very popular in Hong Kong.⁹

Conclusion

Buddhicised education, proposed by Taixu a century ago, aims at taking an active approach to transform society into one embedded with core Buddhist values. Drawing on the legacy of Yang Wenhui and Taixu, Buddhicised education in Hong Kong can be considered as part of a large project on reforming Chinese Buddhism by modernising Buddhism and engaging with ordinary people and the secular world. As shown above, Buddhism in Hong Kong has sought change amid changes to Buddhicised education. Our case study has shown how the HKBA has renewed Buddhicised education to promote positive moral and life values for the next generation. The aim, coverage and form of Buddhicised education have also changed in tandem with social and educational changes, including curriculum reform, with a reinterpretation of ideas, new content and pedagogical innovations incorporated into the formal and informal curricula of schools. As discussed earlier, to facilitate both Buddhist and non-Buddhist students deal with the current individual and social problems of daily life, such as mental health and climate change, a ‘diverse learning experience’ approach with daily life applications has been provided. This includes field trips to religious sites, interaction with the underprivileged, meditation practices, organic farming, etc.

Venerable Taixu’s vision of Buddhicised education is roughly about popularisation and social engagement. When putting the ideas into practice in Hong Kong, the HKBA has further extended them by creating a new form of promotion and communication that institutionalises and systematises Buddhicised education in its affiliated schools, with local adaptations made in the light of societal expectations and the attributes of students. As such, we can see how Buddhist ideas and practices have been utilised and transformed within the context of modern discourses, as well as how Buddhism’s infusion into these discourses has created novel forms of Buddhism with traditional attributes (McMahan 2008). The Hong Kong Buddhist community has demonstrated a remarkable adaptability by blending old and new elements to extend the scope of Buddhicised education and connect secular society with a modern outlook shaped by modernity. The reform involves the reinterpretation and image-making of a traditional Asian religion. Hence, the common contrast between ‘out of the secular world and in the secular world’, ‘tradition and modernity’ or ‘local and Western’ should not be viewed as strictly binary opposition and a relationship of replacement. Instead, they can co-exist in a complementary and dynamic way. On the one hand, certain elements of Buddhist traditions such as the doctrine of dependent origination, three vehicles and ‘three kinds of knowing’ have been selected and foregrounded in the new curriculum. On the other hand, Western scholarship and ideas such as mindfulness and well-being and Antonovsky’s (1987) sense of coherence have also been borrowed to strengthen Buddhicised education.

The doctrine of dependent origination explains changes in terms of social conditions, and the recent development of the HKBA’s Buddhicised education has arisen due to a number of factors. First, as Sik (2015) argued, modernity’s weaknesses were claimed to justify Buddhicised education and an opportunity to demonstrate the values, relevance and benefits of Buddhism for contemporary society. Second, the promotion of Buddhicised education in schools benefits from the overall development of Buddhism in Hong Kong. With the acceptance of Buddhism and mindfulness in the West, the status and image of Buddhism in Hong Kong has been enhanced. The establishment of centres for Buddhist Studies in local higher education institutions is credited with raising the status of Buddhism in Hong Kong. Third, generational change in the HKBA has also brought in new blood and new ideas. Some Buddhist modernisers received a Western higher education and had wider cross-cultural exposure. As such, they can help in seeking external resources and support for school curriculum development, teacher professional development and research activities.

Nevertheless, as we have discussed earlier, there are still challenges for Buddhicised education, including the difficulty in understanding Buddha’s teachings from the ancient scriptures; a minority of Buddhist principals, teachers and students in Buddhist schools; and a shortage of well-trained teachers and insufficient continuous professional development. RE is also a marginalised subject compared to the major academic subjects in the school curriculum and timetable, and there is a very limited amount of lesson time, especially for senior secondary students. Furthermore, with a low birth rate as a result of the pandemic and a new wave of migration, the current threat to every school in Hong Kong is the shrinking number of school children, which has resulted in increasing number of school closures (Yiu 2022).

In 2017, the HKBA introduced the first Buddhist education online platform called Bodhi360, an interactive learning database for teachers and students (Leung and Hung 2018; Pao 2017). The website enables teachers from different schools to share resources and experiences of school-based and inter-school activities in ‘Buddhicised moral and values education’.¹⁰ Multimedia animation and comics about mental health and resilience education are also provided. At the same time, joint-school efforts in Buddhicised education and other initiatives have increased synergy and facilitated interchange and dissemination of experiences and resources between schools and teachers. It is thus important to observe how the HKBA and its associated schools can sustain their Buddhicised education programmes in the future, with measures conducive to building a community of RE educators in Buddhist schools.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

We would like to express our gratitude for the financial support for research received from General Research Fund, Research Grants Council of Hong Kong [GRF 2020/2021 CUHK No. 14619920].

Notes on contributors

Ngar-Sze Lau

Ngar-sze Lau is a trained school teacher and academic in religious studies. She is currently a Senior Lecturer at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and affiliated Assistant Professor (part-time) of Department of Buddhist Studies, Fo Guang University. Her research interests include contemplative education, lay Buddhist meditation, and transnational meditation movement in contemporary Chinese societies. She has published academic papers in Religions, Asian Medicine and Routledge International Handbook of Religion in Global Society, etc.

Thomas Kwan Choi Tse

Thomas Kwan Choi Tse is a sociologist of education by training. He is currently an associate professor of the Department of Educational Administration and Policy, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He teaches and publishes in the fields of values education and sociology of education. His works on religious education appeared in Hong Kong Journal of Catholic Studies, Hong Kong Teachers’ Centre Journal, Journal of Beliefs and Values, and British Journal of Religious Education. He is undertaking a comparative project of RE curriculums and textbooks across different religious bodies in Hong Kong.

Notes

1. Based on the interview with Ms. Lee on the 25^th August 2021 and Ms. Wan on the 10^th September 2021.

2. Ms. Liu was interviewed on the 7^th March 2018.

3. The first author, who had served as a panel head of Buddhist studies at a HKBA secondary school, was appointed by Education Bureau to be a member of the Curriculum Development Council-Hong Kong Examination and Assessment Authority Committee on Ethics and Religious Studies (Senior Secondary) from 2004 to 2008.

4. See the biography provided by Wisdom publication, a well-established Buddhist publication in the United States https://wisdomexperience.org/content-author/venerable-yin-shun/

5. See illustration of students practising mindful walking on the webpage https://www.bodhi360.hk/

6. Based on the interview with Ms. Lee on the 25^th August 2021 and Ms. Wan on the 10^th September 2021.

7. From the interview with Mr. Poon and Ms. Law on the 22^nd August 2018.

8. Ms. Yip was interviewed on the 16^th December 2022.

9. Green Monday https://greenmonday.org/en/; Ven Chang Lin has initiated the Pause and Breathe movement https://www.facebook.com/PauseBreatheHK/

10. Ms. Gao was interviewed on the 29^th December 2022.