You might think, upon first arrival, that the Mt. Hsiang Buddhist Practice Community is no different from any other urban neighborhood. The buildings are utterly normal, old-fashioned five-story apartment buildings, built along unremarkable tarmac roads. The lanes and alleyways are not especially wide, nor are the cars parked especially neatly. There is, however, a different feeling of freshness that comes from the fact that this place is the trailhead to climb Mt. Hsiang, part of Taipei's Sishoushan Forest Park.

If you pay close attention, you will discover green vines that have been planted in a seemingly symbolic manner outside many of the metal window grilles. Many of the first-floor dwellings display "Feel Free to Park Here" signs, rare in a city where jostling for a parking space is the norm. Furthermore, calligraphic works bearing ancient script adorns stairwells and walls, giving off a Zen-like air. One of the four-story apartment buildings in the community has even been adorned with a giant hanging image of the Buddha. As you pass by this building, you begin to hear the strains of Buddhist scriptures being chanted from within someone's home...

It dawns on you that there is something very different about this neighborhood after all.

"A great recluse can take refuge in the midst of the city, and one can become a Buddha within society." Pictured is a large portrait of a Buddha, hanging outside the temple.

In the beginning

Of the more than 400 families living in this community, over 100 are Buddhist. Not only that, they all belong to a religious group known as the Amitabha Pure Land Buddhist Association. These believers came together to establish and make their home in the Mt. Hsiang Buddhist Practice Community for one reason-the guiding presence of their past teacher, Li Yuan-sung.

It all began almost two decades ago. In 1989, Li Yuan-sung founded the Modern Zen Society, the predecessor of the Amitabha Pure Land Buddhist Association. He advocated spiritual cultivation amidst daily life and, without denying the presence of human passions and desires, stressed the everyday cultivation of morality. Li sought a religious faith that was compatible with science, democracy, and humanitarianism. Despite differences between the Modern Zen Society's goals and the inner and outer peace that traditional forms of Buddhism espouse, and despite being criticized by other Buddhist groups, the society's organization resembled that of many other religious communities. Believers would meet at a designated temple to undertake spiritual practice together after the working day was done, or on their days off.

In August 1994, Li made a decisive move, closing up the temple and its associated magazine to focus instead on cultivating more Zen teachers and encouraging believers to still their minds and deepen their spiritual cultivation. Without a physical focal point, many disciples began visiting Li's house in the Mt. Hsiang Buddhist Practice Community, where they would walk and converse with the master. As time went own, many of the believers living further away decided to just move into the area with their families, renting in Mt. Hsiang to be closer to their teacher. Others began to follow suit, with some even quitting their jobs or retiring early so that they could move into the neighborhood. With this increase in numbers, the Mt. Hsiang Buddhist Practice Community was officially inaugurated in July 1996.

The community center includes a karaoke machine, a bit of fun and relaxation that seems to co-exist comfortably with the community's strict regimen of spiritual practice.

Formation

Though the community had begun without much forethought, the actual running of it took a great deal of effort.

"Anyone wishing to enter the community would have to first submit an application to the board for approval. Otherwise, even if a person bought a place and moved here, they would not be recognized by the community," according to Wen Chin-ke, a believer who once studied philosophy and now works at Radio Taiwan International in Tachih. He and his family have been in the community for seven years now. He had failed in two previous applications, the master having rebuffed him because of "insufficient resolve in following the Dharma." Says Wen, smiling: "When most others start a temple, they hope to draw as many people as possible, but here's it's the other way around. Only those who have cultivated themselves to a certain level, who truly prize the Dharma and who will not negatively influence the other community members have been allowed to join."

Wen goes on, "After we were admitted, however, the community took care of all of our needs. For example, they helped us locate our new home and even assisted in the remodeling, decorating, and moving. Fellow members split up into teams to help us out. I didn't have to worry about a thing. I just brought my family and moved right in."

Community care did not just stop there. Residents were divided into groups based on their areas of expertise, lawyers being assigned to mediate conflicts large and small as part of the crisis resolution team; physicians making friendly house calls as part of the healthcare team; community boosters arranging new year's and holiday trips and competitions as part of the activities team; and those gifted at working with their hands taking charge of renovations, water and electric work, and computer maintenance as part of the public works team. All this interaction drew the members within a familial atmosphere.

"There are so many benefits to communal living!" says Wen. "We have become close through sharing our beliefs at communal services, developing into lifelong friends who trust each other utterly. Because of this we can count on each other for help in all areas of life. We hike together, help each other take care of our children and our seniors, and work together to resolve marital disputes. If one of us were to get into a traffic accident, a single phone call would bring together the others to help out. Where else can you find a community like this?"

Even amidst the glitter of Taipei's Hsinyi District it is possible to encounter a place that is religiously and culturally unique. Pictured is a family hike in Sishoushan Forest Park organized by the Mt. Hsiang Buddhist Practice Community.

The golden years

The community advocates pursuing one's spiritual cultivation as well as engaging in a secular occupation. Believers continue to work at jobs in a variety of industries. However, this does not mean that there is any room for slacking off. For it is after one is approved for entry into the community that the next stage of one's spiritual training truly begins.

Aside from family time, all other time-whether it is spent meeting in groups, hiking, or dining together-is dedicated to cultivating one's true nature and pursuing the Dharma. Moreover, all members are divided into small groups that meet weekly within their homes to cultivate together, study scriptures, and seek after an awakened mind.

In 2003, Li passed away suddenly at the age of 47 after an illness brought on by over-exertion. After his death, the community held morning, noon and evening services daily in the worship hall, the believers immersing themselves in their spiritual training.

Li Yuan-sung had always concerned himself with the minutest details of his believers' lives, due to his conviction that one is constantly on the Buddhist path even when engaging in everyday activities such as dressing or eating, Li would constantly dispense guidance as well as punishment to community members, and was especially strict with more advanced disciples. Hua Min-hui, the former secretary-general for the community, remembers being chided by the master for "changing the way I talked based upon the reactions I got from others," which he took as a sign of her being too self-absorbed. For that, she was asked to kneel and receive punitive lashes from a cane. "The way we see it, being struck and engaging in a public confession allows us to quickly dispel spiritual obstacles and purify our minds," she says.

Quite remarkable is how Mt. Hsiang "Buddhist family values" have resulted in a very different approach towards childrearing, one that follows the religious teachings of the community. Li Yuan-sung always encouraged children to develop their own reasoning and character. The children, for their part, grew up immersed in the community's teachings. Thus, in family disputes, both parents and children would utilize Buddhist teachings to try to win their arguments with each other. Some family members would even take their cases before the master. Given the circumstances, parents could not simply maintain more traditional forms of authority. "The master himself had two daughters whom he loved very much. He would even check into how much allowance we were giving our kids, pressing us to give them 'raises.' The children, of course, loved that idea!" laughs Hua.

A time of transition

Li Yuan-sung was the primary guiding force behind this community of faith. Not only do the adults still constantly speak of "the master," but the children continue to burn incense and pay homage to images of their departed master before heading off to school, and make offerings to him when times are tough. Reading through the memorial volume compiled after Li's death, one finds numerous testimonials of how he transformed the lives of his believers.

Li Yuan-sung was educated up to the grade school level. Originally a teacher within the I-Kuan Tao tradition, he began to pursue a Buddhist path after encountering Master Yin-Shun's Wondrous Clouds Collection. Almost everyone who has ever met him attests to his considerable personal magnetism. Buddhist historian Chiang Tsan-sheng, who met Li only once, remembers him as being keen, eloquent, and handsome. "He was the kind of person whom you would meet for the first time and feel like you had known forever. You could converse with him for hours. After you had parted from him, you would continue to be deeply impressed with his great charisma."

It was indeed the force of Li's personality and teachings that gave rise to the Mt. Hsiang community. So vital was his presence that it was inevitable that his death would bring about some changes. Lacking a single guide and teacher, one area that the community has begun experiencing internal divisions in is that of spiritual cultivation.

In his early days, Li promoted the rationalism and self-reliance of Zen. He avoided speculating about things that did not concretely exist, or about truth-claims that fell outside the realm of ordinary experience. He focused instead on cultivation in the midst of daily life, finding evidence for one's beliefs, and the need for each person to take the difficult path of self-realization. However, later in life Li began to turn from Zen to Pure Land Buddhism. He came to feel that he had placed too much emphasis on self-reliance, a sign of obstinate disbelief in the Buddha. Li then began to stress the insignificance of human beings and the unreliability of human reason, turning in the end to the saving power of Pure Land Buddhism, in which one could access the power of Amitabha through the recitation of his name, and be saved into the Pure Land of the West. Two months before his death, Li issued a "Public Confession and Penance to the Entire Buddhist Community," expressing remorse for the "impurity" of some of his past teachings. Not only that, he changed the name of the Modern Zen Society to the "Amitabha Community of Cultivation" (presently the Amitabha Pure Land Buddhist Association). He then invited Master Hui-ching, a Pure Land master, to succeed him as the teacher to the community. Li even remarked, on more than one occasion, that all of his previous works should be burnt.

During Li's lifetime, his transition from Zen to Pure Land Buddhism did not affect his disciples very much. However, after his passing, many of the differences between the two forms of Buddhism began to surface. The disciples have been diligently engaging in chanting under the guidance of Master Hui-ching. Meanwhile, some have been busy compiling the works of Li Yuan-sung in order to propagate his teachings of "joy, intelligence, and character." Others have turned to alternative teachings than those of either master. However, community members continue to remain close, even though decisions concerning how precisely to cultivate have been left up to each of the small groups. The community's overall structure still remains intact, but interaction among believers is not as intense, now that the community is without the person who was its daily guide and inspiration.

Given the current situation, it is difficult to predict the future of this religious community. What is certain, however, is that it is an inspiration for all who, in the midst of modern life, still seek after the joy of enlightmenment.