Good morning Madam Chief Executive, Director Wang, Venerable Ming Sheng, Venerable Kuan Yun, Venerable Dr Thong Hong, Venerables, friends and honoured guests:
It is a great honour to welcome you to Tsz Shan Monastery.
Today we celebrate much more than the opening of Tsz Shan Monastery and its museum. We are here to celebrate the timeless human spirit that flourishes through art and is cherished deep in our hearts.
In Buddhism, wisdom is all about perceiving the true nature of reality. Enlightenment is the symbiotic nexus of inner resolve and externalised actions. Dharma teachings in the Diamond Sutra posit that all phenomena are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, a phantom – yet, the future, whatever it might be – is defined by our purposeful trajectory of wisdom, compassion and undertakings.
For me, these fundamental tenets informed my life in many ways and guided me through numerous apprehensions, fears and vicissitudes. Grasping the world beyond the immediate happenings of daily life is an art – there is no guiding algorithm to help us crack those deep practical questions that are central to our lives, “Who am I? What should I do with my life? How do I create The Good Future?” and the bold and hard question, “In what direction should we move forward and thrive together?”
We need to seek the answers by ourselves and I hope Tsz Shan Monastery can be a space for such quiet contemplation and orientations.
For the past 17 years, every day I offered a prayer of thanks to each and every one who supported me through this journey. All that I took upon here could not have come true without your dedication and support. I am mindful many of us have different values and beliefs and am humbled and grateful for the remarkable professionalism that transcended our differences. The professional ideals you all personify is paraphrased in the Eightfold Path – Right View, Right Intention, Right Action, Right Speech, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration. It reminds us that professionalism is the emblematic modus vivendi of Hong Kong and forever the sinew of our Hong Kong story.
No event in my professional life is more important than the decision to set up my foundation, to have the opportunity to serve the future and the betterment of the world side by side is a true blessing. The compassion in Buddhism embraces all of us. May we all live a life of infinite hope, boundless compassion and profound enlightenment. With deep appreciation, thank you once again.