鈥淲ho is he?鈥� my Nepalese guide asked me eagerly about the solemn statute of a monk at the front gate of the Chinese Temple of Nepal at Lumbini, the birthplace of Sakyamuni, founder of Buddhism.

鈥淗e is Master Xuanzang (602鈥�664 AD), a great Chinese monk in the Tang Dynasty (618鈥�907 AD), who traveled to India to study Buddhism,鈥� I replied.

鈥淎nd who is this?鈥� he pointed to another statute at the gate.

鈥淗e is Master Benhuan (1907鈥�2012), a Chinese Buddhist guru known for his compassion for the nation and the people,鈥� I said.

鈥淕reat!鈥� he exalted. 鈥淐ould you please take a picture for me with each of them?鈥� Gladly I did.

It was on a balmy July day, when I visited Lumbini for the first time in my life.

Our guide is a Brahmin, from a Hindu family, but he is now studying Buddhism for a master鈥檚 degree with a renowned Nepalese professor.

鈥淗induism and Buddhism are different in many ways, but there鈥檚 no conflict in my mind,鈥� he said merrily. It reminded me of many Confucian scholar-officials in ancient China, especially those in the Song Dynasty (960鈥�1279), who found no difficulty in absorbing Taoist and Buddhist ideas, as Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism shared beliefs in oneness between man and nature.

The peaceful co-existence of different schools of thoughts 鈥� for that matter, religions 鈥� remains a singular cultural phenomenon in today鈥檚 China.

As our guide ushered us into the Chinese temple of Nepal, I was amazed to see many Nepalese pilgrims praying piously in the main hall, while leaving their children 鈥� many were toddlers 鈥� playing in the courtyard. I looked around and saw a winding corridor, under which some Chinese monks either murmured mantras or discussed Buddhist teachings with local pilgrims and visitors from some other countries. One visitor, apparently aware of Buddhist respect for serenity, pressed a finger across his lips several times, in an earnest gesture to hush his friends who were unwittingly making a noise from a distance.

It was beyond my imagination that a Chinese temple in a foreign land could be so open and appealing to local people. I had been aided in my bias by some Chinese scholars on religion, who claimed that the Chinese Temple of Nepal was not very popular, as communication of Buddhism with locals was 鈥渄ifficult.鈥�

鈥淭he Chinese Temple of Nepal is a crystallization of Sino-Nepalese friendship, and a window onto Chinese culture,鈥� says Master Xuecheng, president of the Buddhist Association of China, in his book, 鈥淒ialogue Among Civilizations: Chinese Buddhism as a Cultural Nexus in One Belt One Road.鈥� The People鈥檚 Publishing House published it in 2015.

The Chinese Temple of Nepal was constructed in the 1990s, as part of a global effort to erect Buddhist temples of different styles at Lumbini in memory of Sakyamuni. It was the first such temple China has ever built overseas, and it belongs to the Buddhist Association of China. Many other countries, including Sri Lanka, Thailand, Germany, France and Singapore, have also built gorgeous temples on the site sacred to Buddhists worldwide. My experience shows that the Chinese Temple of Nepal has perhaps the busiest daily flow of praying pilgrims.

Cross-learning

鈥淲e should encourage Chinese Buddhism to go abroad and contribute to local wellbeing through poverty alleviation, charitable work, and cultural and educational services, and make Chinese culture, including Buddhism, better understood,鈥� writes Master Xuecheng.

As Chinese President Xi Jinping explained in his speech at the headquarters of UNESCO in 2014, Chinese Buddhism, or Buddhism with Chinese characteristics, was built upon a fusion of Buddhism that originated in ancient India with Chinese Taoist and Confucian cultures. Master Xuecheng also cited President Xi as saying that Xuanzang鈥檚 trip to India reflected 鈥渢he staunch spirit of Chinese people in learning foreign cultures.鈥�

And it was not just Buddhism that China learned. 鈥淚n more than 2,000 years, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity have all found their way into China, one after another,鈥� said President Xi in his UNESCO speech. 鈥淐hinese music, painting and literature have also absorbed the better part of foreign civilizations.鈥�

In the same vein, Master Xuecheng calls for dialogue among different civilizations. He writes: 鈥淐hinese Buddhism advocates communication and cross-learning among different faiths based on a rational spirit 鈥� through such non-violent means as interaction and dialogue鈥�

He further observes: 鈥淐entral Asian countries along One Belt are a crossroad in Eurasian communications and a meeting point of cultures from China, India, Europe and Arab, etc, hence historically a region where different religions and cultures co-existed鈥� It鈥檚 proper to positively promote dialogue with central Asian countries on religions and cultures, and to build a high-level 21st century civilizational communication platform. This will help eradicate the roots of extremism of all kinds.鈥�

鈥淏uilding China鈥檚 cultural soft power does not mean an assault on, an erosion of or a threat to the values of other civilizations,鈥� he points out. 鈥淚nstead, we appreciate and respect what is different from us, while demonstrating our own civilization.鈥�

On the character of Chinese civilization, he says 鈥渉armony鈥� and 鈥渂enevolence鈥� are deeply rooted thoughts that help foster a spirit of accommodation and openness.

鈥淐hina鈥檚 Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism have co-existed and co-developed in harmony,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he world will be in peace if Chinese traditional culture could contribute to peaceful co-existence of many more cultures.鈥�

American political scientist Samuel P. Huntington is known for having coined the concept of 鈥渃lash of civilizations.鈥� Master Xuecheng disagrees.

鈥淭he world needs to guard against the preaching of a clash of civilizations,鈥� he warns. 鈥淗umankind should cultivate a basic belief that civilizations connect鈥� They all teach us to be tolerant, loving, compassionate and ready to help鈥�.鈥�

He says it鈥檚 absurd and harmful to play up conflicts between civilizations while neglecting their connectivity, and to blame conflicts arising from an unfair distribution of power, wealth and income, as well as big countries鈥� lack of respect for smaller ones, on differences of civilizations or religions. He cautions the reader against a part of Western culture that, though conducive to great material prosperity, breeds human centralism and individualism with its focus on dualism.

鈥淗uman centralism and individualism permeate the human society, causing various global crises,鈥� he points out.

In contrast, he notes, oriental cultures 鈥� not just Chinese culture 鈥� rarely espouse dualism in examining the world and humankind.

鈥淎ll problems can be solved in human minds,鈥� he explains. 鈥淚n other words, tensions between man and nature, between an individual and a society, and even between one and oneself, can be eased with transformation and transcendence of one鈥檚 mind.鈥�

(See more in the related article today: 鈥淏roadcasting peace loving story overseas.鈥�)