Major exhibition honors Master Hsing Yun's life and work

"Star and Cloud – Calligraphy Exhibition by Venerable Master Hsing Yun" is at China Art Museum in Shanghai through March 2.

Master Hsing Yun (1927-2023), founder of Fo Guang Shan, dedicated his life to education, culture and public welfare, establishing numerous educational and cultural institutions worldwide.

China Art Museum and the Fo Guang Shan Foundation for Buddhist Culture and Education have organized this public exhibition to honor his commitment to national interests and his efforts in spreading Chinese culture.

The exhibition features 228 exhibits of Master Hsing Yun's calligraphy, manuscripts, letters, video and photographs, reflecting his philosophical thinking and hope for the peaceful development of both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Some of the calligraphy works are shown for the first time on the Chinese mainland, such as "The Twenty Foremosts in Life" and "The Heart Sutra," as well as the traditional writing tools he used, his mantle, rosary beads and other precious artifacts.

Through a multidimensional and multi-perspective presentation at the exhibition, visitors will find a kind and gentle teacher, a wise and profound master who had great compassion and great aspirations.

"In my eyes, it is more than a calligraphy show, or be exact, has nothing to do with the writing technique," said Qian Wenzhong, a history professor at Fu Dan University who was also a close friend. "It is about his profound life insights, refined wisdom of Eastern traditions, the pursuit of truth, goodness and beauty that he wanted to share with us."

For example, "The Twenty Foremosts in Life" where Master Hsing Yun summarizes the philosophy of life, such as "The foremost enemy in life is self," "The foremost sadness in life is ignorance," and "The foremost asset in life is dignity."

Or when facing difficulties or bottlenecks in life, Master Hsing Yun suggested that one should be like water that bends around mountains, channels around rocks, veers around embankments. Thus he wrote "Flowing Water" to inspire viewers to flow along the path that aligns with their ideals.

Nearly 50 years ago, Master Hsing Yun suffered from diabetes due to extreme hunger, which led to complications, causing his retina to become fully calcified and his vision to gradually deteriorate.

Between teaching his disciples and dictating articles, he practiced calligraphy. Unable to see, he could only focus on the spacing between characters. Every time he dipped his brush in ink, he would aim to complete the stroke in one motion, just because if he did not finish within a stroke, he would not know where to start the next.

He relied on an inner sense of measure and, regardless of how many characters the sentence contained, he would finish it in one continuous stroke without interruption. This practice was then named "One-Stroke Calligraphy," creating works in a single, fluid motion without hesitation or revision.

"The heart forgets the hand, and the hand forgets the brush; the brush falls onto the paper, not by my command," he once said, "Please look beyond my writings and see my heart, for I feel that, at least, I have a modicum of compassion that I can show you."

If you go

Date: Through March 2, 10am-6pm (closed on Mondays)

Address: 205 Shangnan Rd 上南路205号

Admission: Free