Hsi Lai Temple Documentary Screening Premiere – Understanding Buddhism through Architecture
Report by Ching Pan, The Life News Agency, USA
Architecture brings people together. We are all a lot more similar than we are different and the design and symbolism in our most sacred spaces reflect this. Sharing Sacred Spaces, a community-based organization that uses architecture and dialogue to foster interfaith understanding and trust, selected Hsi Lai Temple as the first sacred place of worship to host a documentary screening. On September 7, 2025, “The Architecture of Faith: Buddhism – A Hsi Lai Temple Documentary Screening” premiered at Hsi Lai Temple. 120 people attended the screening and Q&A panel to better understand the meaning and spirit of humanity and Humanistic Buddhism.
Special guests include the film’s director, Quinn Winchell; UC Berkeley Professor Emeritus Dr. Lewis R. Lancaster; Hsi Lai Temple Abbot Venerable Hui Dong; CSU Chico Chair of Comparative Religion and Humanities Department, Dr. Daniel Veidlinger; BLIA Los Angeles Chapter Chair Tsai Yue-Qing; Vice Chair, Avelyn Busch; and Secretary Guo Wen-Ling.
In his opening comments, Dr. Veidlinger applauded Sharing Sacred Space’s mission of fostering interfaith communication and friendship to overcome misunderstandings and thanked Hsi Lai Temple for its permission to film the temple and for its support of Sharing Sacred Space’s work. Dr. Veidlinger also recognized Dr. Lancaster for the depth of his study in Buddhism.
Venerable Hui Dong extended his gratitude to Sharing Sacred Spaces and Director Quinn Winchell for the opportunity to share Hsi Lai Temple’s mission and work. As the largest Buddhist temple in North America, Hsi Lai Temple’s work extends beyond the United States. Fo Guang Shan (FGS), the Buddhist order of which Hsi Lai Temple is a part, also has presence in other parts of North America. Venerable Hui Dong hopes that this documentary will help people better understand the different sects in Buddhism, especially Chinese Buddhism and Humanistic Buddhism, and that through understanding others and us, we can bring world peace.
The thirty-minute documentary opened with the sound of traditional Buddhist ceremonial instruments, the chirping of birds, and trickling water as viewers embarked on a tour of Hsi Lai Temple. Interspersed throughout the tour are interviews with Venerable Hui Dong; Director of the FGS Publication Department, Venerable Miao Xi; and Venerable Hui Ze from Hsi Lai Temple’s Social Education Department. Tour guides Chris Richards, Robert Wang, and Sacha Denijs shed light on the meaning of many important Buddhist motifs and concepts such as stupas, the origins of the Sangha, the Four Noble Truths and the Eight Noble Eightfold Path, lotus flower carvings, the Dharma Wheel, the field of merit that one needs to become enlightened, and the meaning of the Buddha and Bodhisattva. They also shared that the Bodhi leaf shaped outline of Hsi Lai Temple carry the meaning of wisdom and Enlightenment.
Central to Hsi Lai Temple’s Humanistic Buddhism are compassion, acceptance, and sharing, which are key values in Mahayana Buddhism. As such, the temple space is designed with people in mind. It is a space to accommodate people’s needs – not only as a place of worship but a sanctuary of peace, as well as a place of learning and sharing.
During Q&A, Hui Dong and Dr. Lancaster answered questions related to the meaning of Humanistic Buddhism and the Buddha, as well as the guidance and support that Humanistic Buddhism offers to people today.
The documentary left viewers wanting more. Members of the audience inquired about the documentary’s sequel and details of the TAG school (Three Acts of Goodness) that Dr. Lancaster spoke of. Hsi Lai Temple made a strong impression on first time visitor, Jan Kristofer Z. Romillo. Amidst the chaos and noise in daily life, the temple instilled in him a sense of peace. He was particularly awestruck by the significance of the temple’s physical resemblance to the Bodhi leaf.
Photo Credit (01-09 Angie)
