A group of young lamas from the Puning (Universal Peace) Temple in
Chengde, the largest active Buddhist community in north China, are
seen practicing oral English every morning, with
New Concept
English as the text.
Why do they learn English? Lama Thexi said, "Chengde is a famous
tourist destination." The wonderful scenes and uniquely mysterious
Buddhist culture appeal to many tourists from China and abroad. The
Puning Temple receives 50,000 tourists a year.
A
lot of foreigners are very eager to talk to the lamas and
understand their lives and the temple's history, but language is
still a great obstacle. On one occasion two foreigners pointed to a
fresco in the Sakyamuni Hall and asked something, but none of the
lamas could understand them. Luckily, there was a traveler there
who understood English and translated the question for them. The
foreigners just asked what the meaning of the fresco was. A simple
question became so complicated just because of the language
barrier. From that point on, the Puning lamas began to study
English, and the course has really taken off.
Qingbatu, a young lama said, "Besides self-study, learning from
each other and practicing oral English with foreign travelers, we
enjoy the summer resort primary school's English classes." Some
lamas, Hu Yuan, Tie Zhuang, Qingjorigtu and Gangbolod, have already
begun simple communications with foreigners. Tie Zhuang said,
"Entering a new century and facing new challenges, it is the
responsibility of not only the people of Chengde, but also Chengde
lamas to better present the images of the Puning Temple and Chengde
City."
(China.org.cn by Chen Lin, December 2, 2002)