[Auspicious Ode to the Jade Buddha]
MESSAGE BY GEORGE YEO, MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS, AT CHARITY SHOW "AUSPICIOUS ODE TO THE JADE BUDDHA" ON 23 NOVEMBER 2007 AT VICTORIA THEATRE

When the ancestors of Chinese Singaporeans came to Singapore, they brought Buddhism with them. Many Buddhist monks in Singapore were ordained in China. In recent years, with the re-opening up of China, the political, economic and cultural relations between China and Singapore have been revived. It is natural that our Buddhist connection should also enjoy a new flowering and bring fresh blessings to both sides.

The Singapore Buddhist Lodge and the Shanghai Jade Buddha Temple are jointly organizing a charity show titled “Auspicious Ode to the Jade Buddha”. The temple’s Buddhist Orchestra, the first to be owned and managed by a temple in Mainland China, will perform for the Lodge’s Chinese Physician Free Clinic on 23rd and 24th November.

The Singapore Buddhist Lodge enjoys good relations with Buddhist temples and organizations in Shanghai. Mutual exchanges and visits have become common. After China opened up in 1978, we received a visit by Venerable Zhen Chan, the Abbot of Jade Buddha Temple who was also the Vice-President of the China Buddhist Association. He re-established the links between Chinese and Southeast Asian Buddhists after the difficult years of the Cultural Revolution.

We welcome the visit of the current Abbot, Venerable Jue Xing, who is one of the most influential Buddhist leaders in his generation. He was the first to send Buddhist monks to learn computer science, foreign languages and business administration in Chinese universities. His ideas to make 21st century Buddhism human-centric are very important. The performances by the Jade Temple Buddhist Orchestra in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia will help create friendship and goodwill between the peoples of China and Southeast Asia.







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