A delegation of more than 300 traveled on February 21 to Famen Temple in Shaanxi Province to escort the Buddha's finger to Taiwan. The delegation was led by Master Hsing Yun (founder of Fokuangshan Monastery), Master Wei Chueh (head of Chungtai Zen Temple), former justice minister Liao Cheng-hao, and former interior minister Wu Poh-hsiung. On February 23, the relic was flown to Taiwan.

The prestige of the relic has prompted parties typically at loggerheads to cooperate on this special occasion. One wag quipped that "the Buddha has traveled directly across the Taiwan Strait before a policy was in place." Another, joked that "people will do for the Buddha what they won't for a monk," a reference to the fact that while Taiwan's major Buddhist sects generally go their own way, they have all worked together on this occasion. The delegation to Xi'an included members from all major Buddhist sects in Taiwan.

The head of the delegation, Master Hsing Yun, said the relic was brought to Taiwan to cleanse society and help people grow more compassionate and less attached to worldly things. Master Wei Chueh, head of Chungtai Zen Temple, said that it was good to bring the relic to Taiwan at this juncture, as authorities in Taipei and Beijing engage in a delicate dance on direct cross-strait links: "If everyone could learn to be more like the Buddha, it would be a very good thing."

The relic is a hard, crystalline substance, believed to have been left behind after Shakyamuni was cremated. Regarded as the most sacred object in Buddhism, the mainland authorities consider it China's biggest national treasure, and UNESCO praised it as the ninth wonder of the world. Besides its religious significance, it is also important from a cultural and historical standpoint.

After Shakyamuni entered nirvana over 2,600 years ago and was cremated, followers searched through his ashes and found four teeth and some finger bones. Of the finger bones, only one is still in existence today. To ensure safe passage to Taiwan, a miniature pagoda (encrusted with pearls, agate, coral, amber, sapphire, emeralds, and colored glass) was built to house and protect it.

The relic was first brought to the imperial palace by Emperor Gongdi of the Western Wei dynasty (ruled 554-556 AD). Once every 30 years thereafter, offerings were made to the relic by a series of eight emperors of the Northern Wei, Sui, and Tang dynasties. The last emperor to make the offerings was Emperor Xizong (ruled 873-888), who subsequently had the relic buried in the treasure chamber beneath the stupa at Famen Temple and ordered the chamber sealed. When the Tang dynasty came to an end, Buddhism came under persecution, and China plunged into warfare. The relic was virtually forgotten. Then in 1981 the stupa collapsed following a heavy rainstorm, and archaeologists in 1987 discovered the underground treasure chamber, bringing the relic was into the light of day for the first time in 1,113 years.

The survival of the relic has involved some drama, for during the Cultural Revolution, rampaging Red Guards went to Famen Temple and started digging next to the stupa. They got down to a depth of three meters, but stopped after the head of the temple immolated himself in protest. When archeologists later excavated the site, they found that the Red Guards had come very close to reaching the roof of the chamber.

The relic has generated a lot of controversy over the years. In ancient times, people would cut off their own arms or fingers, or even kill themselves, as an act of adoration. But critics lambasted such excesses and called the veneration of a supposed Buddha finger a superstitious practice and a waste of the country's resources. 1,300 years ago, Tang-dynasty scholar and ardent opponent of Buddhism Han Yu wrote a vitriolic memorial to Emperor Xianzong urging him not to receive the relic in his palace. For his temerity, Han Yu was demoted to a minor frontier post.

Buddhist relics have made a big splash in Taiwan recently, as the Buddha finger comes here just three years after the visit of a Buddha tooth. After the finger arrived at the airport, it was put on a parade float and slowly ferried into Taipei. The route into town was lined with thousands of Buddhist faithful of all ages, some clutching incense and praying, some kneeling with heads bowed in reverence, some crying. Others, however, were critical: "Rather than prostrate ourselves before the Buddha's finger, we would do better to learn about the Buddha's thought and act in his spirit."

The relic's 37-day tour of Taiwan will include stops in Taipei City; Chinkuangming Temple in Sanhsia Township, Taipei County; Chungtai Zen Temple in Nantou County; and Fokuangshan Monastery in Kaohsiung County. It will thus visit the three big Buddhist centers in northern, central, and southern Taiwan. The relic will be taken back on March 31 to Xi'an via Hong Kong. With the escort services of 25 "warrior monks" from mainland China, 120 "Nryana guards" from Fokuangshan Monastery, and more than 30 hired security guards, hopefully the tour will go off without a hitch.

At the ceremony marking the beginning of the tour, Master Hsing Yun voiced a heartfelt prayer: "May the people of Taiwan and mainland China be full of brotherly love. May they live together in peace." More than anything else, we hope that his prayer will be answered.

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After a ceremony at National Taiwan University's domed sports complex to mark the beginning of the Buddha finger's Taiwan tour, the sports dome was opened to the public, and over 10,000 filed in to get a glimpse of the sacred relic and show their reverence. (photo by Jimmy Lin)