On August 3, 2006, The Guardian reported a stunning question posed by physicist Stephen Hawking. The eminent scientist, who has revealed the mystery of the universe through his research on the nature of time space and complexity of black holes, asked how humanity can sustain itself over the next 100 years in a world that is chaos politically, socially and environmentally. The question caused a stir immediately after it was posed. As an artist in my late sixties, I share the same concern as Stephen Hawking and have been haunted by the question all these years.   

The world today is experiencing profound and complex changes as economic integration and globalization speeds up. While scoring unprecedented achievements in science and technology and material wealth, human race has destroyed to a serious extent the natural and social environment that its survival depends on. More dauntingly, traditional beliefs and ethic values face severe challenges. While enjoying unprecedented material wealth, human race suffers spiritual emptiness. Moral depravity, ever-widening income gap, environmental pollution, unbalanced ecosystem, terrorism and threats of war, all these have led to the unrest of the world and the unease of the people. Faced with harsh realities, I have come to realize how urgent and important it is to re-develop religious systems, call for ethical conduct, and build a harmonious world. To that end, I decide to produce a 250-episode documentary on the subject of Buddhism entitled “Samsara Under the Bodhi”, in collaboration with persons and institutions from across the globe who are interested in this ambitious cause. The documentary, when completed, will be dedicated to the United Nations and all the people who expect a better tomorrow for the world.  

Of the world population of over 7 billion, nearly 6 billion are religious believers. The rest 1 billion non-believers are mostly Chinese. In the Information Age today, religion is booming again in China which sees ever-closer integration with the international community. Thanks to the 2000-year history of Buddhism in China and consistency of Buddhist doctrines with the building of “harmonious society” initiated by the Chinese Government, Buddhism sees vigorous growth in China and will embrace an era of glory and prosperity in near future. 

Buddhism is an important part of human civilization. It represents not only a form of ideology but also a strong political force. Buddhism has had remarkable impacts on political, intellectual, economic, military, cultural and art development and people’s life of the Oriental world. Today, 700 million Buddhists live around the world, tens of thousands of Buddhist temples and pagodas stand, enormous Buddhist classics are collected and read, and hundreds of Buddhist sites and monuments have been or are ready to be inscribed on the List of World Cultural Heritage. The profound implications of Buddhism and the doctrine of acting with compassion as represented by Buddhism play an active role in building the harmonious society and teaching the people to perform good deeds. 

“Samsara Under the Bodhi” will open a window for all Buddhists and people with compassion to learn about the past and present of Buddhism and its doctrines. All religious believers, whichever sect they practice or whatever status they hold, should join hands to contribute to the building of harmonious souls, families, societies and world. It is my earnest hope that this documentary will play an active role in enhancing the people’s awareness of Buddhism’s great contribution to the progress of human civilization and the building of world peace. 

“Samsara Under the Bodhi” intends to review the of Buddhism since its origination 2,500 years ago and its spread in over 30 countries and regions around the world, highlighting historical, academic, philosophical and artistic values. 30 minutes for each episode, the 130-hour-long documentary will be subtitled with 12 languages, including Chinese, English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Hindi, Thai, Burmese, Cambodian and Vietnamese. We hope that the documentary can be donated to or screened in, free of charge, via United Nations, Buddhist countries and regions and libraries, archives, universities and research institutes around the world. 

“Samsara Under the Bodhi” will be a great cultural project with both realistic and historical significance and a great cause of infinite merits for the preservation and continuation of human civilization. 

                                                                              Preparatory committee for 260-episode documentary “Samsara under the Bodhi”