Saiba Varma
December 4, 2023

On a crisp December evening in downtown San Diego, a diverse audience gathered to learn about a recent donation made by Fo Guang Shan to the San Diego Central Library.

The encyclopedia, a 20-volume collection, is the first, comprehensive collection of Buddhist art in the world. We were fortunate that Venerable Man Kuang, one of the editors of the encyclopedia, traveled from Dallas to San Diego to make the presentation, which was full of erudite details about the books’ contents.

In her presentation, Venerable Man Kuang described how the encyclopedia, which has been printed in both English and Chinese-language editions, took more than a decade to complete. The encyclopedia spans eight different categories of art, including architecture, caves and rock carvings, sculpture, painting, calligraphy, seal engravings, and artifacts, originating from East, Central, South, and Southeast Asia. The encyclopedia includes high resolution photographs and images of both famous and lesser known Buddhist works, some built by royal patronage, while others by ordinary citizens. Volume 20 of the encyclopedia also includes an index to aid researchers, artists, and students who wish to use it.

The library supervisor explained that Hsi Fang Temple San Diego Buddhist Association donated the "Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts" to the San Diego Central Library in April of this year. photo／The Life News Agency

Guests perusing the "Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts." photo／The Life News Agency

As Venerable Man Kuang said, the goal of the encyclopedia is to promote education, so that “society can have proper understanding of the Buddha’s teaching. Today, the focus is on art and culture,” she said. Ven. Man Kuang described how different styles of Buddhist art developed in conjunction with different political and economic developments, including the Silk Road, which brought Iranian, Persian, and Greek artistic and architectural influences to China.

Venerable Man Kuang introduced Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s One-Stroke Calligraphy. photo／The Life News Agency

Despite putting together this comprehensive collection, and the many years of sourcing these precious artworks, Ven. Man Kuang humbly reminded the audience that the collection is only a small representation of the rich Buddhist art that exists in the world. However, each piece in this collection was deserving of our attention and appreciation because, “we can see the whole world in a single grain of sand,” she said. At the same time, “we are not finished yet, because the world is bigger than we think,” she concluded.

Guests perusing the "Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts." photo／The Life News Agency

The "Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts" was showcased on-site. photo／The Life News Agency