History of Chinese Buddhism in the United States
Highlights
Early History / Nineteenth Century:
The first major wave of Chinese immigrants to the United States started in the late 1840s and 1850s with the Gold Rush and “coolie” labor for railroad building. Due to discrimination, the Chinese community remained largely segregated and formed its own religious temples and community organizations. Christian proselytizers attempted to convert Chinese-Americans without much initial success. Most of the early Chinese temples are not considered orthodox Buddhist, but a combination of “folk-religions”, Chinese traditions, and praying to various deities, with blends of Taoism, Confucianism, Ma-Zu worship, and various syncretic religions. (Even the New York Times amalgamates these all together as Buddhist in an article.) These Taoist and Chinese religious centers included Tin How Temple (Thien Hau Temple) which opened in 1852 in Chinatown San Francisco, and is still functioning today at 125 Waverly Street. Another, Kong Chow Temple opened in 1857 and is still functioning today at 855 Stockton Street. Many other Chinese temples opened in the mid to late 19th century, and most have already disappeared without much records. Many were not officially registered. However, some are still open or now museums and listed on the US National Register of Historic Places and/or as California Historical Landmarks. These include the Oroville Chinese Temple (built 1863), Bok Kai Temple in Marysville CA (built 1854), Weaverville Joss House (built 1849), and the Temple of Kwan Tai Mendocino Joss House (built around 1854). Some sources claim Norras Temple at 109 Waverly Place in SF Chinatown as the oldest Chinese Buddhist temple in the country, though we are unclear of its date of establishment. We propose that Kwan Yin Temple in Hawaii is the oldest Chinese Buddhist (as opposed to Taoist or other syncretic Chinese religion) monastery in the US, and it is still open today!
Twentieth Century:
One of the first major Dharma Masters (esteemed Venerable) to teach in the United States was the late DM Hsuan Hua, who arrived in San Francisco in 1959, although it wasn’t until the late 1960s that he started teaching extensively to disciples and gathered both an American and a Chinese following. The first Sangha, or ordination of monks and nuns, in the United States was with him in 1968 (at least in the Chinese Buddhist tradition). Today, his teachings are still practiced across branches of the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association, headquartered at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in Northern California.
Outside of small temples in California and Hawaii, Chinese Buddhism didn’t get formally established until the 1960s in New York City. The first temples were very small and oftentimes just in apartments or storefronts. Most still faced significant hurdles (whether discrimination or linguistic barriers) in establishment. Significant milestones in Buddhist temples include the opening of the Mahayana Temple (the first major temple building in New York City), Chuang Yen Monastery (home of the largest indoor Buddha statues in the US and still an active place for practice and retreats in rural New York), and the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in northern California. In 1988, Hsi Lai Temple opens near LA, and is the largest Buddhist temple building in the US today.
Outside of the West Coast and New York, there remained practically no Chinese Buddhist organizations across the US until 1990s, when the number of groups really started to develop. The Texas Buddhist Association (Jade Buddha Temple) in Houston was the first not in the West Coast / New York, and other major independent centers now include the US Zen Institute in Washington DC and the Mid America Buddhist Association near St Louis.
The revival of Chinese Buddhism began in the latter half of the 20th century in Taiwan, which remains the primary source for educated Chinese Buddhist monastics. Great Dharma Masters include Ven. Hsing Yun and Fo Guang Shan (Buddha’s Light / International Buddhist Progress Society), Ven. Sheng Yen and Dharma Drum Mountain, Ven. Cheng Yen and Tzu Chi Foundation, Ven. Ching Kuo of the Amitabha Pure Land Association, and Ven. Wei Chueh of Chung Tai Chan Monastery. While each in a different manner, collectively, they embark on a reform and reverse the long-standing decline of Chinese Buddhism. All of these organizations now have chapters across the United States. Chan (Zen) Meditation, Vinaya and Precepts, Sutra Study, Mindful Chanting (Pure Land Practice), Esoteric (Secret) and Tantric School, Dana (charity), and other traditions are brought to the West.
Twenty-first Century:
Branches of Chung Tai Chan Monastery now opened in the US in seven cities (San Francisco Bay area, LA area, Seattle, Houston, Atlanta, Oklahoma, Denver/Boulder) and revolutionize Zen teaching for Americans with their English-language structured meditation course. Buddhists also start many charitable efforts with major charities including Tzu Chi USA, Buddhist Global Relief, and Dharma Relief. President Obama becomes the first American president to honor Vesak (Buddha Day) with an official proclamation in 2016, followed by the first Vesak ceremony at the White House in 2021 under Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. The coronavirus pandemic hits Buddhist temples in the US hard, as most do not apply for government bail-outs (whereas 75% of Catholic churches and around 40% of Protestant churches in the US do apply for the stimulus funding). The future, well, as Buddhism says, is impermanent!
Timeline
1800 - 1900
1850s
First major wave of Chinese immigrants arrive in the west coast of the United States, joining the California Gold Rush, and many end up as laborers for the Transcontinental Railroad. Most are Cantonese speaking and face immense discrimination from Americans. The first temples also double as community centers for the new Chinese-American communities, as they are effectively excluded and segregated from the rest of society.
We do not have good records, but many Chinese temples opened in California. Most may not be fully Buddhist, but a syncretic mixture of Taoist, Confucian, Mat-Su, and other traditional Chinese religions. Presumably several are Buddhist, but accounts are sparse.
Most of Buddhist temples opening in the United States in the 19th century are by Japanese-Americans, the first to bring Zen to the West.
1875
Page Act bans Chinese women from immigrating to the United States as Republicans warned of the “dangers” of Chinese labor and “immoral” Chinese women, and leads to a high gender imbalance among Chinese-Americans
1880
Kwan Yin Temple in the Chinatown of Honolulu Hawaii is inaugurated, among the first orthodox Buddhist temples in the United States and possibly the oldest one still in existence today
1881
Chinese Exclusion Act bans all Chinese from immigrating to the United States, the first law to prevent a specific national or ethnic group. It is not repealed until World War II, when the Republic of China and the United States were allies. Due to outright discrimination by people and governments, most Chinese live together and form Chinatowns.
1900 - 1970
1942
The forced internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II decimates many Japanese Buddhist temples across the West Coast and Hawaii. Many never recover and are closed permanently.
1959
Venerable Master Hsuan Hua founds the Sino-America Buddhist Association, later renamed to Dharma Realm Buddhist Association, in Chinatown San Francisco. The current location known as Gold Mountain Monastery was inaugurated in 1986.
1962
Eastern States Buddhist Temple, while just a small apartment, is founded in Manhattan Chinatown of New York City and perhaps the oldest Chinese Buddhist group outside of the West Coast and Hawaii.
1965
Immigration reform leads to a large increase in immigrants from Hong Kong and Taiwan. With the Civil Rights era, many immigrants start to live in suburbs and integrate into American society, leading to the gradual decline of many Chinatowns.
1966
Tzu Chi Buddhist Foundation is started by nun Venerable Cheng Yen in Taiwan. By 1984 it is registered as a nonprofit charity in the United States.
1968
Venerable Master Hsuan Hua led a 96 day session lecturing the Shurangama Sutra at the Buddhist Lecture Hall in San Francisco (later renamed Gold Mountain Monastery), during which many students from the University of Washington attended. Five participants took the novice monastic vows with him later that year, marking the first American sangha in the history of Mahayana Buddhism.
1969
Venerable Master Hsuan Hua astonishes the Chinese community when the five American monks and nuns went to Keelung, Taiwan and received full ordination at Haihui Monastery, marking the first American fully ordained monastics in the Chinese Buddhist tradition.
1970 - 1990
1970
Vajra Bodhi Sea, magazine of orthodox Buddhism, is founded by Venerable Master Hsuan Hua and as of 2023, continues to publish monthly articles in a bilingual (Chinese & English) format
1973
Institute for the Translation of Buddhist Texts (later renamed Buddhist Text Translation Society) is founded
Instilling Goodness Elementary Schools is founded in San Francisco (it later moves to Ukiah CA). Instilling Goodness and Developing Virtue Schools in Ukiah and Sacramento (City of Dharma Realm IGES/DVSS) remain to date the only Buddhist K-12 private schools in the US from the Chinese Buddhist tradition (there are a handful of other ones in the Japanese lineages).
American left-home disciples Heng Ju and Heng Yo began a Three Steps One Bow pilgrimage from San Francisco to Gold Summit Monastery in Seattle to pray for world peace. This was the first Three Steps One Bow pilgrimage in the history of American Buddhism.
1974
The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas is founded in Ukiah California.
The Bodhidharma Center in Seattle is founded by Venerable Hsuan Hua, later renamed Gold Summit Monastery in 1984 and moved to its current location in 1994.
1975
The final fall of Saigon and the defeat of the South Vietnam and the United States in the Vietnam War. Thousands of refugees from Southeast Asia eventually arrive in the US, bringing Vietnamese Buddhism to the country.
Gold Wheel Monastery in Los Angeles is founded by Venerable Hsuan Hua, though it changes locations in 1983 and 1990.
1976
Dharma Realm Buddhist University is founded
1977
Venerables Heng Sure and Heng Chau began a Three Steps One Bow pilgrimage from Los Angeles to Northern California. Later, their spiritual journey would be published as Highway Dharma Letters as well as a volume of journals on their inner and outer journey.
1978
An American youth ordains at the Temple of Enlightenment (Buddhist Association of the United States) in New York, perhaps the first ordination of an American in the Chinese Buddhist tradition outside of California. It is still rare to see American-born Mahayana monastics.
1979
His Holiness the Dalai Lama embarks on his first visit to the United States and Canada.
1979
The Taiwan Relations Act is enacted and the United States establishes diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China, opening the door to immigrants from mainland China to arrive in the US, soon eclipsing people coming from Hong Kong or Taiwan. Cantonese, Fukien, Taiwanese, and other formerly predominant languages are gradually replaced by Mandarin in Chinatowns.
Chan Meditation Center in New York is the first Dharma Drum Mountain branch in the US, founded by Venerable Master Sheng Yen
Texas Buddhist Association, now at Jade Buddha Temple in Houston and American Bodhi Center in Hempstead TX, is the first Chinese Buddhist group outside of New York and the West Coast.
1981
Chuang Yen Monastery in New York opens and is home to the largest indoor Buddha statue in the United States.
1984
Gold Buddha Monastery in Vancouver Canada is founded by Venerable Hsuan Hua.
1986
The first summer camp is held at Chuang Yen Monastery, marking the first Chinese Buddhist summer camp in the US. For the West Coast, a children’s summer camp is first held in 1993 at Hu Kuo Temple in Anaheim with Venerable Ming Kuang, and gradually, more temples start hosting youth events like their American church counterparts.
1987
Likely the first Water, Land, and Air Ceremony in the US was held at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas with 100 monks and nuns from China attending.
The Massachusetts Buddhist Association, the first in the state, is founded as an independent Buddhist group. In 2016, it joins the Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association.
The Atlanta Buddhism Association, the first in the Southeast US, is founded by Professor Hsu.
1988
Hsi Lai Temple in Los Angeles opens as the largest Buddhist monastery in America. Three hundred monastics from 16 countries participate in the Triple Platform Ceremony. Hsi Lai Temple later becomes the first Buddhist temple visited by an American vice-president, Al Gore.
Venerable Master Hsing Yun leads the opening prayer at the California legislature, the first Buddhist opening service in a US state government.
The US Zen Institute, first in the Washington DC / Mid-Atlantic Region, is founded in Maryland.
1989
Tzu Chi USA was established in Alhambra CA, the first official American chapter of Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation.
Dharma Master Hsuan Hua (also Xuan Hua) was invited by President George Bush to attend the presidential inauguration in Washington D.C., and later at the request of lay disciples, after a period of solitary cultivation in Potomac, founded Avatamsaka Vihara Buddhist Monastery. The temple’s current location was a former post office and opened in 2003.
1990 - 2000
1990
University of the West in Southern California is founded, initially as “Hsi Lai University”, with the name change in 2004.
The Amida Society, a Pure Land center in Los Angeles, is founded, and moves to its current temple location in 1997.
1991
The Amaravati Buddhist Centre in England sent senior monk Ajahn Amaro as a representative to make offerings of robes and almsbowls to the Sangha led by the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua at The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in California. This ritual symbolized an exchange between Mahayana and Theravada traditions, writing a new page in the history of Buddhism.
The Buddhist Association of Colorado is the first Chinese Buddhist organization in the Rocky Mountain region.
1992
Fo Guang Shan Central Florida Buddha’s Light International Association chapter is founded as the first in Florida, and later opens Guang Ming Temple Orlando in 2007.
Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association opens a branch in New Jersey.
1993
Venerable Master Wei Chueh makes his first tour in the United States and Canada, teaching Buddhist lectures and conducting Chan (Zen) meditation 7-day retreats, and paving the way for the future establishment of American branches of Chung Tai Chan Monastery.
The City of Dharma Realm was founded in Sacramento CA by Venerable Hsuan Hua in a renovated motel.
The US branch of Tzu Chi Medical Foundation is inaugurated with the first Buddhist-inspired healthcare clinic in the US. The free and sliding scale clinic in Southern California offers quality community health services to low income and underserved individuals of all backgrounds and religions.
Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association Chicago Chapter is founded, though without resident monastics.
1994
Mid America Buddhist Association in Augusta, Missouri is the first Chinese Buddhist temple in the Midwest.
International update: The first recorded ordination of someone of African descent occurs at Fo Guang Shan - Nan Hua Temple in South Africa.
The first American Tzu Chi Academy is established in Los Angeles, and has now grown to over 25 locations across the country. Tzu Chi Academy offers Chinese language and humanistic culture classes on weekends (Chinese school) to children, teenagers, and adult students, and in some locations, a weekday preschool program.
Berkeley Buddhist Monastery and the Institute of World Religions was founded by Venerable Hsuan Hua.
Blessings, Wealth, and Longevity Monastery was founded in Long Beach California by Venerable Hsuan Hua.
1995
Dharma Master Heng Sure, representing the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, accepted an invitation to attend the inaugural ceremonies of California Governor Pete Wilson. It was the first time in American history that a Buddhist monk had been asked to speak in the inaugural ceremonies for a state governor.
Abhayagiri Monastery in northern California is the first monastery in the United States to be established by followers of Ajahn Chah, a respected Theravāda Buddhist master of the ancient Thai Forest Tradition, now with mostly Western monks. The large tract of land is a gift from Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, who before passing this year, made clear instructions to donate 120 acres of land from the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas to help connect the northern (Mahayana) and southern (Theravada) traditions of Buddhism.
Gold Sage Monastery was founded in San Jose CA by Venerable Hsuan Hua.
1998
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama and Venerable Master Sheng Yen jointly lead a teaching in New York City which draws thousands, and includes a formal discussion and dialogue between Tibetan and Chinese Buddhism.
Chung Mei Temple in Houston is founded by Venerable Master Hsing Yun.
2000 - 2020
2000
Buddha Gate Monastery is founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh, the first branch of Chung Tai Chan Monastery outside of Taiwan.
Tzu Chi Medical Foundation expands with its first mobile health trucks. The fleet provides dental, vision, acupuncture, and other healthcare needs to uninsured and low-income patients, and has since expanded to Los Angeles, Fresno and inland / central California, Las Vegas, San Jose, and New York City.
2001
Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association Seattle is established in Washington state.
2003
Dharma Drum Mountain San Francisco Bay Area Center starts in Millbrae, later in Sunnyvale, and finally in 2015 moving to its own temple location in Fremont, becoming a full Dharma Drum Mountain center with monastics in 2016.
2004
Chung Tai Zen Center of Sunnyvale is founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh in the South Bay area of Silicon Valley. It moves to its current location in 2007, with an expansion in 2017.
Chung Tai Zen Center of Houston, as well as Buddha Mind Monastery in Oklahoma City, are founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh
2006
University of the West is granted its initial accreditation by WASC/WSUSC.
2007
Buddhist Global Relief is founded as a pan-Buddhist American charity dedicated to helping people in need.
2009
Dharma Jewel Monastery in Atlanta is founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh.
2010
Venerable Master Wei Chueh transmits the Three Refuges and Five Precepts to hundreds of people on his visit to the US.
Middle Land Chan Monastery in Los Angeles is founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh
Texas Pagoda Chan Monastery , Chung Tai International Retreat Center, is founded by Venerable Master Wei Chueh
2012
Tzu Chi USA donates $10 million dollars in immediate relief aid to victims of Hurricane Sandy on the US East Coast, leading to recognition as National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster Member of the Year and a Champions of Change Award from the Obama White House.
Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association opens DDMBA Los Angeles, the first full Dharma Drum branch in the US after the Chan Meditation Center and Dharma Drum Retreat Center in New York, though LA is technically not the first on the West Coast if you count the earlier Dharma Drum Vancouver branch.
2013
Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi becomes the first American-born (and Caucasian) president of the Buddhist Association of the United States (although despite its name, is largely New York based).
2016
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama issue the first official recognition of Vesak (Buddha’s Birthday) by an American President.
2018
Dharma Realm Buddhist University is first granted full accreditation by WASC/WSUSC.
2020s - future
2020
Chung Tai Chan Monastery branch temples in the US preemptively close by the first week of February, perhaps being the first religious centers to shut their doors for coronavirus. The first US lockdown doesn’t begin until March 16 in the San Francisco Bay area or even April in some areas.
Dharma Relief is founded by Tallahassee Chan Center and Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association branches in the US and Canada as a pan-Buddhist effort to raise funds and ship surgical masks as donations to hospitals during the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, a coalition of New York City Chinese Buddhist temples raised tens of thousands of dollars to donate to local hospitals, and many other Buddhist groups, including Tzu Chi, Fo Guang Shan and Buddha’s Light International Association, and others, raise money to donate to healthcare workers.
The first online Vesak Services are held via YouTube and Zoom from Berkeley Buddhist Monastery, and several other temples, including Hsi Lai Temple in Los Angeles (Fo Guang Shan), Chan Meditation Center in New York (Dharma Drum), and others begin hosting regular services and special events virtually, with online prayers, chanting, and classes.
2021
For the first time ever, the White House held a Vesak Ceremony, attended by Buddhist representatives from all three major Dharma branches as well as Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff.
2022
Great Dharma Chan Monastery, a branch of Chung Tai Chan Monastery in Taiwan, opens in Boulder, Colorado. This 35 acre new-build environmentally-friendly Zen meditation center features a blend of rustic Colorado lumber with elegant Asian Buddhist iconography that come together for a spectacular temple.
2023
The Amatavihara Meditation Center, a brand new meditation retreat facility by the US Zen Institute, opens in rural Maryland.
The International Buddhist Friendship Association, the only Buddhist temple in Chicago’s South Chinatown, reopens a brand new building. Founded in the early 2000s, the temple’s original building was in poor condition and too old, and torn down in 2020 to be rebuilt.
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