East-West Question丨Yang Xiaorong- How can Buddhist cultural exchanges promote the construction of a China-ASEAN community with a shared future-

Title: How Can Buddhist Cultural Exchange Facilitate the Construction of the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future?
—An Interview with Yang Xiaorong, Researcher at the Chongqing Academy of Social Sciences
By Zhang Xu and Liu Xianglin

**Chongqing, October 20, 2024 (Xinhua)** – The year 2024 marks the “China-ASEAN Year of Cultural Exchange.” With geographical proximity and shared cultural connections, Buddhist culture serves as a vital link between China and ASEAN countries. How does Buddhist culture influence the ASEAN region and, specifically, Chongqing? What role does it play in promoting the construction of the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future? Yang Xiaorong, a researcher at the Chongqing Academy of Social Sciences, shared her insights in a recent interview with Xinhua’s “East-West Dialogue.”

**Xinhua Reporter:** What is the status of Buddhist culture in ASEAN countries?

**Yang Xiaorong:** The significance and impact of Buddhism in the social, political, economic, and cultural landscapes of the ten ASEAN countries cannot be underestimated. For instance, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos all regard Buddhism as their national religion, with the headquarters of the World Buddhist Sangha Council located in Bangkok, Thailand. In Vietnam and Singapore, Buddhism is the largest religion. Master Yan Pei, who emerged from the Chongqing Han-Tibetan Institute, has promoted Humanistic Buddhism in Singapore based on the teachings of Master Taixu.

Buddhism also has a notable influence in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei, where students of Master Taixu have spread Humanistic Buddhism. Historically, Indonesia is home to the Borobudur Temple, recognized as the largest Buddhist temple in the world.

China has also been deeply influenced by Buddhist culture. According to a white paper released in April 2018 titled “China’s Policies and Practices to Protect Religious Freedom,” there are approximately 33,500 Buddhist temples and 222,000 religious personnel in the country, along with a vast number of Buddhist followers.

Buddhism was introduced to Chongqing during the Eastern Han period. Notably, the Dazu Rock Carvings are a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the Shuanggui Hall in Liangping is known as a significant center for Zen Buddhism in Southwest China. Additionally, there are several national key cultural heritage sites related to Buddhism in Chongqing, such as the Jinyun Temple and the rock carvings at the Dazu Dafu Temple.

**Xinhua Reporter:** What is the history and current state of Buddhist cultural exchanges between Chongqing and ASEAN countries?

**Yang Xiaorong:** Buddhist culture has always emphasized grassroots exchanges, and international friendly interactions constitute one of the three traditional practices advocated by contemporary Humanistic Buddhism in China. The Buddhist communities in Chongqing and the ASEAN region have maintained close ties, which have influenced exchanges in other sectors.

During the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, Master Poshanshan established the Shuanggui Zen Sect at Shuanggui Hall in Chongqing, profoundly impacting the practice of Zen in Southwest China, which eventually earned Shuanggui Hall the title of the ancestral home of Zen in the region.

During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, Master Taixu primarily resided in the Jinyun Mountain area, where he systematically taught Humanistic Buddhism to students at the Han Tibetan Institute. His teachings culminated in the publication of “Humanistic Buddhism” in 1945, marking a critical evolution in his thought.

At the beginning of the war, Japanese intelligence trained Nichiren Buddhist monks to disguise themselves as South Asian Buddhist monks to conduct espionage activities in Southeast Asia. The Chinese Buddhist community actively countered this. Between 1939 and 1940, Master Taixu organized the “Chinese Buddhist Delegation” from Chongqing to clarify misconceptions and solicit international support for China’s resistance, achieving significant results.

In the 1990s, the Sichuan Provincial Religious Affairs Bureau organized multiple Buddhist delegations to Thailand and Singapore to broaden horizons, build invaluable connections, and strengthen friendships. Prominent monks from Chongqing, such as Weixian and Zhuxia, were part of these delegations, enhancing ties with ASEAN countries.

Recently, disciples of Master Xinyue established organizations such as the Chongqing Huayan Cultural and Educational Foundation and the Cultural Exchange Center, collaborating with local institutions in Thailand to conduct several Buddhist cultural activities. In April 2024, the Chongqing Huayan Cultural Exchange Center featured a collection of Dunhuang silk paintings at the Udomsuk College in Bangkok, attracting local communities and promoting Sino-Thai cultural exchange. In July 2024, a display of paper-cut Buddha images opened at the Tampines Sport Complex in Singapore, which had previously toured Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand.

There has also been continuous exchange in Buddhist education. In July 2024, a monk from Chongqing’s Dazu Shengshou Temple pursued graduate studies in Buddhist studies at a Singaporean Buddhist academy. In recent years, students from Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, have studied Buddhist disciplines at Southwest University.

**Xinhua Reporter:** What is the current state of exchanges between Chongqing and ASEAN countries?

**Yang Xiaorong:** Geographically, China and ASEAN countries are closely linked. Their industries exhibit high complementarities, making them crucial partners. Chongqing enjoys a particularly strong cooperative relationship with ASEAN.

In the first half of 2024, the total import and export volume between Chongqing and ASEAN reached 54.51 billion yuan, a 6.3% increase year-on-year, making ASEAN Chongqing’s largest trading counterpart.

In non-economic areas, the Chinese Law Society established the China-ASEAN Legal Research Center at Southwest University of Political Science and Law in 2010, aiming to integrate legal resources from China and ASEAN, focusing on regional legal construction, high-end legal talent cultivation, and ASEAN legal databases to support the construction of a community with a shared future.

In December 2021, the Chongqing-ASEAN Cooperation Center was established to serve as a gateway for resource consolidation and cooperation across various domains, including trade, industry, culture, tourism, and exhibitions.

**Xinhua Reporter:** How can Buddhist culture contribute to the construction of the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future? What recommendations do you have on this front?

**Yang Xiaorong:** First, Buddhist culture can provide cultural support and guidance for economic development, facilitating a positive interaction and mutual growth between Buddhist culture and economic prosperity. The Southeast Asian region, home to ASEAN countries, has long been an important hub of the Maritime Silk Road and a center of Buddhist culture. In building the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future, Buddhist culture can help connect the new land-sea corridor in Western China with the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

Second, Buddhist culture can serve as a bridge for fostering friendship and mutual benefit between China and ASEAN nations. Cultural exchanges are vital to constructing the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future, with grassroots Buddhist interactions being key. We should fully utilize platforms like the South China Sea Buddhist Roundtable, the Boao Forum for Asia’s religious sub-forum, the World Buddhist Forum, and the World Buddhists Friendship Conference to promote cultural exchanges that strengthen mutual understanding.

Third, we should mobilize various sectors of society, especially the Buddhist community, encouraging temples or Buddhist associations in Chongqing and nearby provinces to engage in diverse Buddhist cultural exchange activities with ASEAN countries. This may include twinning cities and temples or cooperating in areas such as Buddhist philanthropy, temple management, and talent exchange programs.

Fourth, under the coordination of the China-ASEAN Center, we can collaborate with local institutions and platforms related to ASEAN to stimulate the role of Buddhist culture in trade, investment, education, culture, tourism, and media exchanges. Strengthening collaboration with religious administrations, Buddhist associations, educational institutions, and research organizations will allow us to conduct academic discussions on Buddhist studies and religion in ASEAN nations, furthering the development of the China-ASEAN Community of Shared Future.

**Interviewee Profile:**
**Yang Xiaorong** is a researcher in religious studies with a PhD in Philosophy. Since 1998, she has worked at the Chongqing Academy of Social Sciences (Chongqing Development Research Center). For nearly 20 years, she has focused on research related to the Han-Tibetan Institute and Buddhism in modern China. She has published numerous papers in academic journals like “World Religious Studies,” “World Religious Culture,” and “Religious Studies.” Yang has led several research projects, including national and local social science fund initiatives.