Panchen Lama delivers speech in HK

The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu delivers a keynote speech at the Third World Buddhist Forum in Hong Kong, April 26, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

HONG KONG - The 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, one of the two most senior living Buddhas in Tibetan Buddhism who is visiting Hong Kong in his first public appearance outside Chinese mainland, began delivering a keynote speech to over 1,000 monks and scholars at the Third World Buddhist Forum on Thursday morning.

"The virtuous Buddha compassionately and skillfully opened the door to the Dharma, pointing out for us the way to choose between wholesome and unwholesome acts. Aiming at both getting self enlightenment and enlightening others, Buddhism has prospered for thousand years, and is now an important component of the world religion," he said.

In religion, Dharma means law or natural law and is a concept of central importance. For many Buddhists, the Dharma most often means the body of teachings expounded by the Buddha. The word is also used in Buddhist phenomenology as a term roughly equivalent to phenomenon, a basic unit of existence or experience. Buddha was a spiritual teacher from India on whose teachings Buddhism was founded.

"Since the prosperity of Dharma in ancient India, many learnt Buddhists have established monasteries and institutes at various countries for different races, promoting Buddhism like rainbows appearing all over the world. Significant contributions to the development of human societies, ethics and cultural education have been made," the 22-year-old Panchen Lama said.

However, it is a contemporary trend to put "materialistic technology" ahead of the "science of the mind". "Increasing greediness in people's hearts has unbalanced the eco-systems, contaminated the environments, caused natural disasters, spread epidemics, induced wars and hence endangered all sentient beings now and in future," he said.

While people are searching for the remedy, "science of the mind" stands out as a path leading to harmony of the nature, peace in the world, concordance in societies and affection in families, he said.