Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...

, often practiced with Taoism

Taoism

Taoism refers to a philosophical or religious tradition in which the basic concept is to establish harmony with the Tao , which is the mechanism of everything that exists...

, is the majority religion of Hong Kong. 90% of the population of Hong Kong are thought to practice an eclectic mixture of the two, sometimes combined with other practices.). The numbers of Buddhists are approximately 700 thousand.

There are more than 600 temple

Temple

A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...

s in the HKSAR (Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region). The history of some of these temples can be traced back to more than 700 years ago, while some others have been built in recent years. Notable temples include the Wong Tai Sin Temple

Wong Tai Sin Temple

Wong Tai Sin Temple is one of the most famous shrines in Hong Kong. It is dedicated to Wong Tai Sin, or the Great Immortal Wong. The 18,000-m² Taoist temple is famed for the many prayers answered: "What you request is what you get" via a practice called kau cim...

 located in the Wong Tai Sin District

Wong Tai Sin District

Wong Tai Sin District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong, and is the only landlocked district of the city. It is located in Kowloon and has a population of 444,630...

 in Kowloon

Kowloon

Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...

. This popular temple is dedicated to the Taoist deity, Wong Tai Sin

Wong Tai Sin

Wong Tai Sin is a Chinese deity popular in Hong Kong with the power of healing. His name literally translates to the "Great Immortal Wong". Wong Tai Sin is the divine form of the individual "Wong Cho Ping".-Legend:...

. The Chi Lin Nunnery

Chi Lin Nunnery

Chi Lin Nunnery is a large Buddhist temple complex located in Diamond Hill, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Covering a space of more than 33,000 square meters, the temple complex includes a nunnery, temple halls, Chinese gardens, visitor's hostels and a vegetarian restaurant. The temple hall have statues of...

 in Diamond Hill

Diamond Hill

Diamond Hill is a hill in Kowloon, Hong Kong. The name also refers to the area on or adjacent to the hill. It is surrounded by Ngau Chi Wan, San Po Kong, Wong Tai Sin and Tsz Wan Shan. Its northeast is limited by the ridge. It is principally a residential district.-Etymology:Contrary to its name,...

 is a group of temple structures in Tang Dynasty

Tang Dynasty

The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...

's architectural style. It is now open to the public following the completion of its redevelopment in 2000.

The Po Lin Monastery

Po Lin Monastery

Po Lin Monastery is a Buddhist monastery, located on Ngong Ping Plateau, on Lantau Island, Hong Kong.The monastery was founded in 1906 by three monks visiting from Jiangsu and was initially known simply as "The Big Hut" . It was renamed to its present name in 1924...

 on Lantau Island

Lantau Island

Lantau Island , based on the old local name of Lantau Peak , is the largest island in Hong Kong, located at the mouth of the Pearl River. Administratively, most of Lantau Island is part of the Islands District of Hong Kong...

 is famous for the outdoor bronze statue, Tian Tan Buddha

Tian Tan Buddha

Tian Tan Buddha, also known as the Big Buddha, is a large bronze statue of a Buddha, completed in 1993, and located at Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, in Hong Kong. The statue is located near Po Lin Monastery and symbolises the harmonious relationship between man and nature, people and religion...

, which attracts a large number of visitors during the weekends and holidays. It is now linked to the city's latest tourist attraction Ngong Ping 360

Ngong Ping 360

The Ngong Ping 360 is a tourism project on Lantau Island in Hong Kong. The project was previously known as Tung Chung Cable Car Project before acquiring the Ngong Ping 360 brand in April 2005...

 . The cable car and park complex is built around a Buddhism theme, featuring sites of the Wisdom Path and the Po Lin Monastery

Po Lin Monastery

Po Lin Monastery is a Buddhist monastery, located on Ngong Ping Plateau, on Lantau Island, Hong Kong.The monastery was founded in 1906 by three monks visiting from Jiangsu and was initially known simply as "The Big Hut" . It was renamed to its present name in 1924...

.

Buddhists' organizations and temples in Hong Kong have long been involved in social welfare and education in the city. The Buddhist's Association of Hong Kong operates a dozen primary and secondary schools, hospices and elderly homes as well as centres for youth and children in Hong Kong

The leadership of mainstream buddhists organizations have aligned themselves with the establishment in Hong Kong. For example, high-ranking Buddhist Association's executives have openly endorsed the re-election of the city's Chief Executive Donald Tsang. Several of the association's members were on the drafting committee of the Basic Law of Hong Kong's mini constitution].

Under the leadership of the former Chief Executive

Chief Executive of Hong Kong

The Chief Executive of Hong Kong is the President of the Executive Council of Hong Kong and head of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The position was created to replace the Governor of Hong Kong, who was the head of the Hong Kong government during British rule...

 Tung Chee Hwa

Tung Chee Hwa

Tung Chee Hwa, GBM was the first Chief Executive and President of the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China....

, the SAR government formally recognized the influence of Buddhism in Hong Kong. In 1997 the SAR government designated one public holiday in May or June to mark Buddha’s birthday, which replaced the Queen’s birthday. This year Buddha’s birthday is on May 24. Tung himself is a Buddhist and participated in major, widely publicised Buddhist activities in Hong Kong and China.

Academic studies and research of Buddhism in Hong Kong have thrived over the past 10 years. The University of Hong Kong has a Centre of Buddhist Studies . The Chinese University of Hong Kong also has a Centre for the Study of Humanistic Buddhism .