Tang Dynasty (618-907) monk Xuanzang made overland trips to India along the ancient Silk Road in the 7th century to collect Buddhist sutras.

He later translated hundreds of the scriptures from Sanskrit to Chinese, contributing to the popularity of Buddhism in China and its proliferation in East Asia.

Containing around 260 characters, the Heart Sutra is a summary of the key doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism, one of the main existing branches of Buddhism. In Sanskrit, the title literally means the center of the "perfection of wisdom".

Xuanzang's version of this sutra is revered by Buddhist scholars and common people.

On Thursday, some 240 Buddhist monks and scholars from 30 countries and regions gathered in Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu province, for the first Cultural Forum of the Heart Sutra. It was also held for countries that are looking with interest at China's Belt and Road Initiative.

The participants shared their views on the sutra and its implication on cultural exchanges.

Buddhism has deep roots and a long tradition in countries along the Silk Road, Xincheng, vice-president of the Buddhist Association of China, told the forum.

"We shall follow in the footsteps of master Xuanzang, using the wisdom of the Heart Sutra to resolve modern-day problems, and contribute to a world of peace and harmony," Xincheng said.

"Buddhism teaches humans the highest morality - to love people, have compassion, show kindness and tolerance," Prakrit Ranjan Barua, vice-president of the Bangladesh Bouddha Kristi Prachar Sangha, a Buddhist platform in Dhaka, said at the forum. "It's a religion, a spiritual science and a way of life."

After the opening ceremony, 30 monks and scholars together wrote the Heart Sutra on a long scroll, each writing one verse in his or her own language.

A point the sutra strongly makes is about the connects that exist among different things in the world.

"Through the overland and marine Silk Road, Buddhism connected Asia with Europe in the past," says Hsing Yun, 89, founder of the Fo Guang Shan Monastery in Taiwan.

This will help the ongoing revival of Chinese culture, he adds.

"I think the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping will make a great contribution to world stability and people's unity."

Naresh Man Bajracharya, vice chancellor of Lumbini Buddhist University in Nepal, recounted the many connections between Nepal and China, including a Nepali artist being invited by China to build the White Pagoda in Beijing during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). It still stands today.

Maha Vihara, the chief high priest of Malaysia, talked about teaching Buddhism to the younger generations who are consumed by technology.

"We must create some new programs to reach out to young people without changing the basic teachings of the Buddha," he says.

The forum's attendees also visited the Niushoushan Temple in Nanjing, where a rare relic of the skull of the Buddha Sakyamuni has been enshrined since last year.

xingyi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 11/02/2016 page10)