The National Museum of China in Beijing held a ceremony on Monday in which the United Association of Humanistic Buddhism, Chunghua, donated 30 relics to the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA), highlighting the cultural ties between China and Taiwan. Some 250 officials and guests from both China and Taiwan attended the ceremony, underscoring the significance of the relics.
United Association of Humanistic Buddhism, Chunghua, co-president Wu Chih-yang acknowledged that the relics were collected by “warmhearted people” from overseas and then brought together by the association.
“There is always a long story behind each lost item, but destiny rediscovers them, and the key is thus to bring them home,” said Wu. “Donation of these items is not only an exchange of cultural heritage and Buddhist circles across the strait. It’s a higher-level communication concerning our deep emotion.” (ECNS)
The relics, consisting of colored sculptures dating from the Song dynasty (960–1279) to the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), were selected from a collection of valuable lost artifacts gathered from various overseas sources in recent years.
The head of the Taiwan work office Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Taiwan affairs office of the State Council, Song Tao, commended the efforts of Taiwanese citizens in safeguarding Chinese cultural relics and promoting Chinese culture.
Song emphasized the shared Chinese identity of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, underscoring the significance of Chinese culture as a common heritage, and linking the two peoples in what he called “our common foundation, pride, wealth, and soul.” (Global Times)
Taiwanese guests highlighted the importance of Buddhist culture as an integral aspect of traditional Chinese culture, viewing the collection and preservation of these artifacts as a means of showing pride in their cultural inheritance. They noted that the donation event reflected sentiments passed down from previous generations, citing the example of Ven. Master Hsing Yun (1927–2023), founder of Taiwan’s Fo Guang Shan Buddhist order, who donated a Buddha head statue from the Northern Qi dynasty (550–577) to the NCHA. That event took place in 2016, drawing attention from many in China, Taiwan, and beyond. At that ceremony, Ven. Hsing Yun promised to bring more relics.
“Hsing Yun established an outstanding example for people to safeguard Chinese cultural relics,” said China’s minister of culture and tourism, Sun Yeli, at the ceremony. “Again, we see his unfulfilled wish get realized.” (ECNS)
Sun added that the newly returned relics would undergo thorough study to better understand their provenance and condition. Exhibitions would follow, allowing people from China and Taiwan to benefit from the exchange.
“Cultural communication has always played a crucial role in enhancing people-to-people connectivity across the strait and strengthening our links,” Sun said. (ECNS)
The guests from Taiwan expressed hope that the return of these artifacts would foster peace, harmony, and unity between Chinese and Taiwanese citizens. They advocated for increased interactions, exchanges, and visits between people on both sides of the strait to build mutual trust and goodwill, contributing to the revitalization of Chinese culture.
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Taiwan donates precious cultural relics to China (TVBS)
Taiwan Buddhist association donates 30 artifacts to mainland (Global Times)
30 Buddhist relics returned from Taiwan (ECNS)
Taiwan Buddhist association donates 30 artifacts to Mainland (ECNS)
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