The second World Buddhism Forum (WBF) kicked off in Wuxi City, in east China's Jiangsu Province, on March 28. More than 1,700 Buddhist monks and scholars from 50 countries and regions participated in the forum, including the 11th Panchen Lama, Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, Master Yicheng, President of the Buddhist Association of China, Master Hsing Yun, founder of the Taiwan-based Fo Guang Shan Monastery, and Master Kok Kwong, President of Hong Kong Federation of Buddhists.

THE BIG EVENT: The opening ceremony of the second World Buddhism Forum held in Wuxi City, in Jiangsu Province, on March 28 (HAN YUQING)

The two cities, Wuxi and Taipei, hosted the five-day event, which was organized under the banner of "a harmonious world, a synergy of condition." On March 30, the participants took four charter flights to Taipei for the second part of the forum. The forum marks the first time the mainland and Taiwan co-organized a large international religious forum.

Hsing Yun, the master monk who was tonsured in Jiangsu 70 years ago and who advocated creating the WBF, said opening the forum in Wuxi and closing it in Taiwan was especially meaningful because it would serve to enhance cross-straits exchanges and help the unification of the two sides.

KING OF STUDIES: The 11th Panchen Lama, Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, takes part in the opening ceremony of the second World Buddhism Forum(WU XIAOLING)

Organizers used the themes of "a harmonious world, a synergy of condition" to signal the combining of Buddhist wisdom with other Asian philosophies.

"Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism all share a common idea in Chinese culture-harmony," said Lou Yulie, head of Peking University's Institute for Religion Studies and a renowned Buddhism expert. "What we want to work on now is the creation and strengthening of a harmonious world."

WALKING THE PATH: Participants of the second World Buddhism Forum walk into the hall to attend the opening ceremonies (HAN YUQING)

Buddhism teaches that everything in the world, and all human actions are created and controlled by the heart. "The heart can be compared to the factory of life. Good factories can produce good products-in this case, happiness. So we should manage the factory properly," said Tsing Yun.