Speaker: Venerable Master Chin Kung AM
Time: 11 June 2017
Venue: London
Respectable Vice-Chancellor Professor Hughes, Leaders of Overseas Chinese, Ladies and Gentlemen, good morning!
Thanks to the joint efforts of the UK Chinese Business Association, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, the UK Huadzan Amitabha College Ltd, the Corporate Body of Hwa Dzan Pure Land Teachings Propagation Foundation and the Hong Kong Buddhist Education Foundation Ltd, the second Ancestral Remembrance Ceremony can be held here today. This is such an incredibly remarkable occasion! Last year, the first Ancestral Remembrance Ceremony was held here in June.
In August 2015, Vice-Chancellor Professor Medwin Hughes visited Hong Kong with two of his colleagues, at the time of the Summer Lantern Festival Ancestral Remembrance Ceremony. We invited Professor Hughes to join the ceremony, and he was deeply moved by it. He asked me if we could hold similar ancestral ceremonies in the UK. I told him I would be delighted to, this is how the ancestral ceremony started in London and Wales. Since everybody was so happy after last year’s ceremony, we were determined to continue to hold the ceremony this year. And hopefully, because it is such a meaningful activity, this can be repeated every year.
The real meaning of the ancestral ceremony is to remember our roots and be grateful to our ancestors. Trees must have roots to grow luxuriantly, to blossom and to yield fruit. Similarly, a stream must have an origin so that it can flow continuously to dampen and nourish the earth. For human beings, without our ancestors’ hardship and endurance to explore and open frontiers, future generations will not enjoy a prosperous life. It is a basic instinct for human beings to remember and reminisce the kindness and contributions made by our ancestors. The best way to repay our ancestors is to inherit their distinctive traditions, to carry them forward for the benefit of contemporary generations and to pass them on to future generations.
The Long-standing Ancestral History
Our ancestors and posterity have a very close relationship, which is indivisible and inseparable. Searching for our roots and recognizing our ancestral origin is very meaningful. In the world, different traditions and cultures, regardless of their races, put great emphasis on the relationship between their ancestors and future generations. For example, in western society, people care a lot about their ancestry or family tree, where every family member is recorded. This illustrates the indivisibly close relationship of the whole family.
Similar to different races in the world, the Chinese people are a people who strictly observe the concept of filial piety. According to The Classic of Filial Piety, “to show respect to our parents, the first thing to do is to take care of our physical self, which is given to us by our parents. The ultimate goal for us to repay our parents is to establish oneself and to practise The Way, so that we can bring honour to our parents and set good examples to future generations.” The Chinese people not only pay respect to their parents but also reminisce about parents of past generations. Since the ancient times, the Chinese people have put great emphasis on ancestral remembrance. There is an ancestral memorial hall for every family where the genealogy is kept and worshipped. The family history is recorded in this book. This is a good custom which is passed on from generation to generation.
Take my family as an example. My original family name was Xu. The history of the Xu clan can be traced back 4500 years to the time of the Yellow Emperor (Huangdi). The Yellow Emperor had 25 sons. The Xu clan was descended from the second son of the Yellow Emperor who was called Chang Yi. I belong to the 136th generation of the Yellow Emperor’s bloodline. The geographical location of the ancient state of Xu is situated in the same area of the Xuzhou. The state belonged to the son of Emperor Dayu, who was called Qi. While he was king, he appointed Ruomu, the ancestor of our clan, to be leader of the state. Being one of the vassal states of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, the ancient state of Xu had lasted 1,500 years. At the time of King Mu of the Western Zhou period, the leader of the state of Xu who was called Xu Yan, implemented benevolent policies to unite the nation and gained the support of the people. There were 32 neighbouring states which all sent delegates to pay tribute to him. Consequently, King Mu was worried that he would become too powerful and would take over his throne, so he had to eliminate Xu Yan. Our ancestor did not put up a fight. He hid himself in the mountains. King Mu granted the title “Xuzi” to Xu Yan’s descendants and let them continue to rule the state of Xu. However, the rank of the state was lowered to the rank of Viscount. The hierarchy system in ancient China was as follows: Emperor, Prince, Duke, Marquess, Count, Viscount Baron When it was downgraded to Zi, it meant it was demoted quite a number of ranks lower. This viscount state continued to survive for a few hundred years until 512BC, when it was eliminated by the State of Wu. After its decline, the royals and ordinary people of Xu inherited the state name as their last name. All these historical events and the merits and contributions of our ancestors were recorded in the genealogy book.
Take another example of the “clan of integrity” —the Chen family in the Jiangzhou prefecture. The clan of Chen are the descendants of Emperor Shun who ruled his empire with the virtue of filial piety. As a result, they could enjoy profound prosperity. The 34th generation grandson of Emperor Shun was called Duke Chen Hu Man, who had helped King Wu of the Zhou dynasty to conquer King Zhou of the Shang dynasty. Consequently, King Wu let his daughter marry Duke Chen and also gave part of the kingdom to him. That’s how he inherited the last name Chen and became the originator of the clan of Chen. The clan of Chen advocated filial piety and nurtured many generations of virtuous talents. The whole clan which consisted of more than 3000 people lived together for many generations. Even the dogs, the number of which was more than 100, were so disciplined that no dog would start eating until all the dogs had gathered. This is truly amazing!! In fact, throughout the history of China, big family clans like this one are countless.
The “clan of integrity”— the Chen family was famed for being “the first family under the heaven”. It was a microcsm of “the World of Great Harmony” advocated by the saints and sages, as well as the Utopia yearned for by the western thinkers. The clan of Chen not only helped to promote unity and peace in the society but also set a good example for the future generations. The former president of Indonesia, Abdurrahman Wahid, was a benevolent and wise person, who had made great contributions to racial harmony and world peace. His ancestors, who immigrated to Indonesia from Jinjiang, Quanzhou of the Fujian province, China, were from the clan of Chen. They have been there for six generations.
The truth is the clan of Xu and the clan of Chen is not unique. Among the numerous clans of the Chinese people, as well as the different clans in the world, their ancestral histories are also full of colourful and moving stories, which deserve our deep reminiscence and respect. Lao Tze had said, “Heaven is never biased; the kind ones are always blessed.” Only if the ancestors have done kind deeds and accumulated merits can the future generations enjoy lasting and true blessings.
To Perpetuate Traditional Culture in Order to Repay Ancestors
The virtues and kindness of our ancestors are significant and profound. The way for us to repay them is to inherit the distinctive traditional culture from them and pass it on to future generations. The ancestors of the Chinese people not only practised benevolence and accumulated merits to protect and benefit their descendants but also left behind an extraordinary amount of wisdom for their descendants to learn and practise. The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature, in particular, is a treasure not only for China but to be shared by all mankind because it has put together the wisdom, ideas and experiences which have been passed down from our ancestors throughout the last 5000 years of history, so that we can learn how to cultivate oneself, unite the family, govern the country and realize world peace.
In the past, what scholars worried about most was that war might break out and destroy The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature. That would be a tragic loss for mankind! Fortunately, The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature and the Selections from the Four Branches of Literature could be reprinted. I have bought 112 sets of The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature and 330 sets of Selections from the Four Branches of Literature. They are given away to different university libraries as well as national public libraries. So, even if there are disasters, the chances are these books will not all be destroyed. Since they are distributed in different places, at least some of them can be saved. This way, the problem that these treasures may be lost is solved.
Although The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature are kept intact and would not be lost, they will still be a pile of waste paper if no one can read them. They would be valueless and it would make therefore no difference if they were all lost. Consequently, I have been very eager to set up an Academy of Sinology in order to educate some young people in reading, lecturing, and translating The Complete Library of the Four Branches of Literature, and to be able to put into practice the distinctive ideas and culture of our ancestors.
Two years ago, after I took part in the World Peace Conference held by The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (“UNESCO”) at its head quarters in Paris, France, I came to the UK. I wanted to observe how the students here who had learnt Chinese since primary school had turned out, and to remind friends and colleagues that the real treasure of the Chinese language lies in its ancient books, so in the classical Chinese, rather than in the modern Chinese form. At that time, Professor Hughes came to see me. He chatted with me for more than three hours. I confided my worries to him — that traditional Chinese culture was facing the threat of decay and decline. The moral teachings and traditions which have survived thousands of years could vanish, unless we pass them on to future generations. This is a serious problem and the worst and most disrespectful breach of filial piety! Actually, there are only a few teachers left, who are capable of teaching philology, phonology and the translation of these great works. Worse still, most of them are elderly now in their seventies or eighties. If we cannot find successors to succeed them, then within ten years, when they pass away, there will be no one to carry on these teachings. The Vice-Chancellor fully understood the seriousness of the problem. He suggested that we could jointly run an academy of Sinology. He was even more enthusiastic than I. I was deeply moved. I knew if I did not work devotedly, I might let him down. Consequently, we signed a formal contract within fifteen months. And now, the Academy of Sinology in the UK has been officially opened! It was out of perseverance that the Academy of Sinology for the UK was established in such a short time. As I always say, the honour of the Academy goes to His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales; the credits of the Academy go to Professor Hughes and to Professor Clayton Chou, the provost in charge of teaching.
Speaking of the provost, I would like to mention that his father, Mr. Bang Dao Chou was the principal of the Third National Secondary School where I studied during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Principal Chou was from Jiangxi province. He achieved the highest award in the National Senior Official Examination during the Republic. and was once the Education Director of the Jiangxi Province. During the war period, I was a student in exile. Principal Chou and his wife took care of us students in a way that was even better than our parents’. The support we received were first distributed to the students. His children came second. This is truly selfless! All the students regarded him as a saint. I will never forget the kindness and virtues of our principal. Later, Principal Chou worked as the vice minister of the Ministry of Examination. He was given a car and a telephone for his home. He reminded his children that the car and the phone were public properties which should only be used for public matters. They should not be used for private matters. When he and his family went out for personal business, they would use public transport. While making personal calls, they would go to the public phone booths. He had demonstrated the utmost model of a saint by being so honourable and clean! Now that his son is appointed as the provost of the Academy of Sinology in UK, it is a good example to show how the good deeds and virtues of the ancestors can bring long lasting protection and blessings to the future generations.
The Characteristics of the Academy of Sinology in UK
My aim to establish the Academy of Sinology in UK is simple. I hope we can cultivate 30-50 young teachers to pass on and perpetuate the traditional cultures. The academy we run is a classical Chinese language academy. Students mainly learn classics which are written in classical Chinese. Unlike the Faculties of Arts in other universities, which do not put much emphasis on classical Chinese learning, our objective is to pass on the wisdom of the classics to the generations to come. The mission of the Academy of Sinology for UK is: “For the past saints and sages, we vow to ceaselessly carry on their eternal teachings. For the countless generations to come, we vow to bring lasting peace and harmony. ”
Like the big families in ancient China, we hope the academy can create a “family culture”, in which the provost, staff and students can live harmoniously like a family, caring for each other. This way, the Academy of Sinology can flourish because as the Chinese saying goes, “If a family lives in harmony, all affairs will prosper.” The idea of “cultivate oneself, unite the family, govern the country and realize world peace” can actually be achieved in the Academy. After the staff and students have improved themselves in accordance with the teachings of sages, they can then set good examples and bring positive influence to the community.
Our teaching and learning methodology is based on the ancient Chinese way “Focus on a single subject and immerse ourselves in the study of it for a prolonged period.” We would not deploy the modern method of studying multiple subjects concurrently. If we do so, the students will have to learn The Four Classics in the first lesson; philology in the next lesson, etc. In this way, students will have to learn too many things in a day. They have not digested The Four Classics before they are asked to learn another subject. This will make the students feel very confused. In our Academy, we will implement the methodology of learning only a single subject intensively so that students can focus their mind and only think about one thing every day. After they have mastered a subject, they can start another subject. This can help the students to focus calmly on what they are learning and achieve good results. This is a characteristic of our Academy.
Another characteristic of the Academy is that students are required to present the lectures they have learnt. Every student will have a chance to go on stage to give lectures. How do we do this? The teacher will give the lecture once. After attending the lecture, the students have to repeat exactly what the teacher has taught. It doesn’t matter if they miss something but they should not add their own ideas in the lecture. This approach has been used in the Buddhist education for more than 3000 years. During the life of Buddha Shakyamuni, after his lecture, his students would repeat the lecture in this way. This is called discipline. People in ancient times could follow this discipline. That’s why they could achieve enlightenment.
What’s more, we will pay special attention to students’ behavior and conduct. We require students to put what they have learned into practice. I always encourage students that inwardly they must emulate Buddha Shakyamuni to let go of “greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, and doubt”; outwardly they have to emulate Confucius to be “gentle, kind, respectful, frugal and courteous”. This also conforms to the ideas of traditional Chinese teaching and learning.
Conclusion
Our ancestors and ourselves are one entity. However, nowadays, most people aspire to material civilization but neglect spiritual civilization; emphasis is on the development of scientific technology but to give up traditional culture. That is how the estrangement between our ancestors and ourselves is formed.
Now the whole world is facing grave problems in many aspects: natural disasters, wars and conflicts, environmental pollution, ailments and famines…. Human beings are unable to find solution for these problems. What should we do? Look for solutions from our ancestors. Make use of their wisdom and we can solve these problems. People in ancient China said, “If you don’t listen to the elderly, you are in for misfortunes.” This is an irrefutable truth! Our ancestors have profound experiences. They have been passing on their wisdom for generation after generation. All ancestors of different races and all the sages from different religions teach about benevolence, universal love and empathy to people. Only LOVE can solve all the problems. If we can inherit our ancestors’ compassion and wisdom, and can learn from their teachings, we can solve different problems effectively. We can avoid going astray. Thus, we can enjoy physical and mental well-being, wonderful family life, smooth careers, stable society, national prosperity as well as world peace. Especially nowadays, the virtues of our ancestors, namely, humility, tolerance and courtesy must be advocated. We have to give up competitions, conflicts and wars. If we choose competitions, conflicts and wars, mankind will have endless sufferings. If we give up competitions, conflicts and wars, mankind can enjoy endless good fortune and happiness.
It is especially meaningful for us to hold this ancestral remembrance ceremony! At a time when different traditional cultures are generally being disregarded and ignored, holding an ancestral remembrance ceremony to reminisce the virtues of our ancestors and to advocate filial piety, not only can help people to recall memories of our ancestors, but also to learn from their everlasting wisdoms and experiences. Then we can continue to inherit and carry our traditional culture forward. At the same time, this is a good opportunity to promote cultural exchange and mutual learning between the East and the West. Hopefully, more and more people will come to join these ancestral remembrance activities so that we can restore the bond with our ancestors. We have to embrace the wisdoms and traditions of our ancestors and to pass them on to enlighten and educate future generations so that we can create a brighter future for mankind!
Last but not least, I wish everyone the joy of wisdom, happiness, well-being and longevity! Thank you!