More people in Hong Kong have become interested in Buddhism. Life in the city has become so frantic that many have turned to Buddhism for inner peace and awakening. Buddhism
is a religion which does not try to convert or teach a doctrine. It
encourages people to seek their own path to enlightenment at their own
pace. Mr Ko, owner of the Buddhist Philosophy Bookshop in Pokfulam said
that Buddha's teachings help people solve their problems encountered in
their daily life, see through their confusion and put aside their
prejudices and egos.
Although
the majority of Hong Kong Chinese believe in Buddhism or some folkloric
forms of the religion, better-educated professionals have become
Buddhists and activities organized by Buddhist organizations have
increased, thanks to a greater access to the religion over the past 10
years. (See related article )
The
Hong Kong Government has given favorable support to Buddhism and
Buddhist organizations'activities. For example, Buddha's Birthday is an
official holiday and the activities organized to celebrate it have been
attended by millions of people.
Hong
Kong has become a platform for the exchanges of ideas among the
Buddhist organizations in Greater China. The academic studies of
Buddhism unite and facilitate exchange among organizations based in
Taiwan, China and Hong Kong. Professor Y. Karunadasa said: "It is a
uniting force. Rather than being bound by political ideology, [the
three places] find the spiritualistic ideology as the common ground and
put aside their political differences." He is the visiting professor of
the Centre of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong.
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