Developing New Worlds ECW 2841

Research Assignment Template

Student name: Hai-Mo Hu

My Story Premise:
Growing up in a Buddhist boarding school in Amoy, May Lee has always set her goal
of becoming a monk. It's the righteous path, and it's the path that she has always
known would make her mom proud of her. Not everyone has the courage and
determination to set that goal. May is both proud and at peace with it. However,
when everything is right on track, Judie Chen comes into May's life. The new
transfer student startles something in May's heart. May finds herself no longer
devoting her full attention to Buddhism. As the shaving ceremony gets closer, May
discovers a new journey laid ahead that she needs to go on in order to find out what
she truly wants and who she is.

My SIX Research Categories: List your six here.

1) Social Aspect of Amoy
2) Buddhism in Amoy
3) (Chinese) Buddhist Bibles/ Scriptures
4) (Chinese) Buddhist Ceremonies and Rituals
5) (Chinese) Buddhist Arts
6) Buddhist, Amoy Architecture

*The section of partial translation to the sources that are in Mandarin is at the
bottom of the document. (Sincere apologies for some Mandarin words don’t look
like they’re in the same font. I can’t seem to find a way to align them. They are
either in the same font but still look different or look alike but in different fonts.)

Category One: Social Aspect of Amoy

Keywords: Society, religion, Buddhism, ritual, custom, past, causes, war, import, export,
dynasty, government, colonize, classes, folklore, stories, legend, generations, preach,
revolution, living condition, norms, belief, occupation

1) Internet Source #1 –
暖風與她. (2021, October 13). 廈門疍民習俗. bendi5.com.
https://www.bendi5.com/techan/17785.html

(暖風與她: the screen name, meaning warm breeze and her) (廈門疍民習俗: The
customs of 疍民 in Xiamen/ Amoy. 疍民 means fishermen who live on their boats.)
 Two sentence (min) explanation – In this source, not only the blog I cited, but the
website also had many different blogs introducing unique customs in Amoy. These
customs could help me build the world with Amoy’s cultural influences other than
Buddhism.
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2) Internet Source #2 –
許, 舒昕. (2022, February 05). 廈門市圖書館舉辦文史沙龍推出閩南傳統年俗專題講
座. 廈門日報. http://xm.fjsen.com/2022-02/05/content_30953667.htm

(廈門市圖書館舉辦文史沙龍推出閩南傳統年俗專題講座: Literature and history salon

that Xiamen city library hosted launched a forum with the subject of Minnan’s traditional
new year customs. 廈門日報: Xiamen Daily News)
 Two sentence (min) explanation – As a Taiwanese and building a world based on
a Chinese city, I want to make sure the story accurately shows the distinctive
culture from the city and not being a mixing of two similar cultures (Taiwanese
and Chinese). These details on Minnan’s traditional new year customs in China
help me learn how two countries celebrate lunar new year differently and the
uniqueness of Minnan traditions.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Yu, C. (2008). The Making of a Bund in China: The British Concession in Xiamen
(1852–1930). Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 7:1, 31-38.
https://doi.org/10.3130/jaabe.7.31

 Two sentence (min) explanation – Xiamen is one of the major harbor cities in
China, and thus greatly influenced by western countries compared to other cities.
Learning its relationship with foreign countries and western influence on it would
be very helpful for my world-building on the aspects of social structure and
people’s lifestyle.

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Keong, O. S. (2022). The Business of Migration: Xiamen in Motion and Transformation.
China Review, 22(1), 281–306. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48653987

 Two sentence (min) explanation – When I saw this journal, I was intrigued by the
idea that migration could a business and even the reason for a city’s prosperity.
After reading a bit into it, I believed this journal could be a great resource for my
story because it introduced a less known social, economic even, aspect of Xiamen.
The understanding of migration element in their society could bring more depth
and authenticity to the story.

5) Image Source –
Squashimono. (2010, May 01). Tulou and the life surrounding it [Photograph].
https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/5ed02238-e04d-411e-ade4-db3f4f1688c7
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – The round building in the photo is a traditional
architecture in Xiamen. This could be one of the locale options for my
protagonist’s home (when she’s not in school, she might go home. Her family
could be a traditional family). This photo not only shows the traditional
architecture, but it also shows people’s living condition, their customs, their
habits etc. (For example, how they have round tables and gather together.)

Category Two: Buddhism in Amoy

Keywords: Society, religion, Buddhism, ritual, custom, past, causes, war, import, export,
dynasty, government, colonize, classes, folklore, stories, legend, generations, preach,
revolution, living condition, norms, belief, occupation

1) Internet Source #1 –
Lim, L. (2010, July 22). Beijing Finds Common Cause With Chinese Buddhists. npr.

https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128691021

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This article was about Chinese government’s
attitude toward Buddhism. This was crucial information because governments’
attitudes tend to affect the development of things in a society greatly. This source
could help me in my world-building from a political angle and see how Buddhism
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in Amoy is like. Topic such as “Temple, Local Economies Interconnected” could

shape the social structure completely different.

2) Internet Source #2 –
The 17th China Xiamen International Buddhist Items & Crafts Fair. (2022, October 20-
24). Xiamenbuddhafair. http://autumn.buddhafair.com/en/

 Two sentence (min) explanation – Having an international crafts fair is certainly

an indication of how Buddhism is to Amoy people and society. This could also be
a good source to look at Buddhist Arts.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Pham, T.H., & Nikolaeva, E. (2021). The soft power of India Buddhism for the
sustainable development in north East Asia. E3S Web of Conferences, EDP
Sciences, 258. http://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202125805003

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This journal discusses how Buddhism influence
a country, a culture as a soft power, and its connection with its origin, India. This
resource helps me learn about “Buddhism in Amoy” through discussing how this
religion affects the city and its culture, and its relation to the neighboring
country.

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Chia, J.M.T. (2020 February 20). Diaspora’s Dharma: Buddhist Connections across the
South China Sea,1900–1949. Contemporary Buddhism, 21(1-2), 33-50.
https://doi.org/10.1080/14639947.2020.1723285

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This journal discusses the Buddhist networks
across the South China Sea. For instances, how Buddhist knowledge transfer
across regions, and how Buddhist mobility might contribute to the circulation of
people and ideas there. This resource introduces me to the networks between
Xiamen and regions nearby and the Buddhist connections in there.

5) Image Source –
Kirch, A. (2004, April 12). Monk [Photograph].
https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/f3af43ca-7ee6-4dd4-8e0a-efe2c36d15ef
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – This photo shows an unique scene from
Buddhism that I don’t find familiar in Taiwanese, Buddhist culture. This is a
powerful image for “Buddhism in Amoy”. It could definitely be considered as one
of the visual references for my story.

Category Three: (Chinese) Buddhist Bibles/ Scriptures

Keywords: religion, rituals, ceremonies, bibles, scriptures, worship, arts, sculpture,

painting, calligraphy, hanged painting, gathering, service, celebration, practice, tradition,
formality, convention, prayers, words of God, manuscript

1) Internet Source #1 –
觀點與視角. (2018, October 25). 佛教十三經都說什麼？賴永海先生的總結很精
闢.  每日頭條 KKnews. https://kknews.cc/zh-tw/fo/4zqnq53.html

(觀點與視角(screen name): points of view and perspectives. 佛教十三經都說什麼？賴

永海先生的總結很精闢: What are the contents of the thirteen Buddhist scriptures? Mr.
Yong-Hai, Lai’s conclusion was incisive.)
 Two sentence (min) explanation – This article introduces and talks about the 13
basic Buddhist scriptures. This could help my story because my protagonist works
toward becoming an apprentice (and then eventually to a monk) but she has an
equivalent amount of knowledge, so these scriptures have a high chance
appearing in the story as a part of the protagonist’s life.

2) Internet Source #2 –
原始佛學. (2017, July 21). 佛教十部必讀經典佛經. 壹讀 read.
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https://read01.com/7DDm574.html#.Yoj1KppByrd

(原始佛學(screen name): original Buddhism. 佛教十部必讀經典佛經: Ten must-read,

classic Buddhist scriptures.)
 Two sentence (min) explanation – Although this source is a bit similar to the last
one, I still think it could be quite helpful. The article focuses on describing what
each scripture is about (and the last source include ideas on why and how
Buddhist scriptures have so many different ones and versions, and some basic
Buddhist spirits). In addition to that, several scripture collections in this article
differ from the ones in last source so it is also interesting to look at different
options.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

釋聖嚴. (1994). 中國佛教以《法華經》為基礎的修行方法. Chung-Hwa Buddhist
Journal, 07, 1-16. https://buddhism.lib.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-AN/an252150.pdf

(釋聖嚴: It’s the name of the author but it’s the Dharma name of monks so it doesn’t
have which part is the first name and which part is the last name. 中國佛教以《法華
經》為基礎的修行方法: The basic practices that Chinese Buddhism execute based on
“The Lotus Sutra”.)
 Two sentence (min) explanation – This journal not only teaches us about the
important scripture, but it also leads us to the basic practices that are based on
this specific scripture. This could greatly help me paint the protagonist’s
religious life in details.

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Braden, C.S. (1952). The Scriptures of Mankind: An Introduction. The MacMillan
Company. https://www.religion-online.org/book/the-scriptures-of-mankind-an-
introduction/

 Two sentence (min) explanation – In chapter 6 of this book, the author talks
about why and how Buddhist scriptures are not like the Bible from Christianity.
This detailed information could really be the help for building the cultural
essence of a Buddhist story world.

5) Image Source –
Li, M.S. (1963). Chanting The Buddhist Scriptures [Photograph].
https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/69299c67-bf7a-427d-ac12-f64fa5d62bfb
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – This will help me with my story because it
paints out the scene of Buddhists chanting the scriptures. This is the ritual that
my protagonist is used to and grew up with before she goes on a new journey of
finding herself.

Category Four: (Chinese) Buddhist Ceremonies and Rituals

Keywords: : religion, rituals, ceremonies, bibles, scriptures, worship, arts, sculpture,

painting, calligraphy, hanged painting, gathering, service, celebration, practice, tradition,
formality, convention, prayers, words of God, manuscript

1) Internet Source #1 –
Hsiao, C.A. (n.d.). Ten Most Commonly Seen Dharma Assemblies in Chinese
Buddhism. Dharma Drum Publishing Corporation.
https://www.dharmadrum.org/portal_d8_cnt_page.php?
folder_id=28&cnt_id=64&up_page=1
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – In the article, there are the most common
Chinese, Buddhist Assemblies. This information could help me plan and paint the
life events for the protagonist/ the story.

2) Internet Source #2 –
Practices in Buddhism. (2022). BBC Bitesize.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zkdbcj6/revision/2

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This source provides short and clear
introductions to all the nouns in Buddhism, including practices, different groups
of Buddhists, and so forth. This could really come in handy when I write this story
and need those nouns in English.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Yuan, Y. (2021). A Brief Survey of Water-land Dharma Service in Chinese
Buddhism. Atlantis Press SARL, 571. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

 Two sentence (min) explanation – The detailed discussion into the assembly is
very helpful. I get to study it and paint the assembly scene with depth and rich
details.

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Fang, L. (2020, September 30). Chinese Buddhism and Traditional Culture. Routledge.
https://www.routledge.com/Chinese-Buddhism-and-Traditional-Culture/Fang/p/
book/9780367663919

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This is the book that has everything about
Chinese Buddhism I need to build the world of this story. This could be
convenient because I get to look for different information within one source.

5) Image Source –
Bragg, J. (2008, September 28). Chinese Buddhist Monks Ceremony Hangzhou
[Photograph]. https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/f1ab8c2f-1a94-47e4-8394-
611b1911d5d8
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – In this photo, I get to observe what a Chinese
Buddhist ceremony/ assembly looks like. The place, the clothing, the standing
position etc.

Category Five: (Chinese) Buddhist Arts

Keywords: : religion, rituals, ceremonies, bibles, scriptures, worship, arts, sculpture,

painting, calligraphy, hanged painting, gathering, service, celebration, practice, tradition,
formality, convention, prayers, words of God, manuscript

1) Internet Source #1 –
Eno, R. (2021, November). Buddhist Art in China: Paintings, Sculptures, and Sutra
Masterpieces. Facts and Details. https://factsanddetails.com/china/cat3/sub11/entry-
5595.html#chapter-12

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This source includes so many different

Buddhist Arts and with detailed explanation or introduction. It’s so exciting to
see so much Buddhist Arts’ information! This could help me bring the details of
the locations to life, and introduce the beauty in Buddhist Arts in the story.

2) Internet Source #2 –
Boston University Libraries. (2021, September 30). Buddhist Arts. Boston University
Libraries. https://library.bu.edu/buddhistarts

 Two sentence (min) explanation – I wasn’t sure which APA format category to
put it in so I went with blog posts. This section of this source was amazing. It had
different sections for Buddhist Arts, museum collections, websites, books, and so
on. This could help me by guiding me to more research on Buddhist Arts.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

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Mertz, M., & Itoh, T. (2021, October 06). The Study of Buddhist Sculptures from Japan
and China Based on Wood Identification. HAL open
science. https://www.hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02994701

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This journal is about the specific category,
wood sculpture, in Buddhist Arts. This could help me dig deeper into Buddhist
Arts. For example, how does Chinese Buddhist wooden sculpture differ from
Japan’s?

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Lei, Z., Tantchave-Burdge, E. & Cheung, V. (2021, October 18). Investigation into the
colours of the DunHuang murals from the Tang Dynasty. International Colour
Association. https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/179339/7/AIC2021_Paper_145_r3.pdf

 Two sentence (min) explanation – Dunhuang murals is one of the major Buddhist
Arts in China. Learning about it could help me grasp a main direction on the
aspect of Buddhist Arts and learn about the uniqueness of Chinese Buddhist Arts.

5) Image Source –
Todd, G. (2017, March 24). Chinese Buddhist Art, 4th to 7th Century AD [Photograph].
https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/84b610f0-bfe0-4732-83bd-3c11b661b9de
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – The picture shows a delicate work of Buddhist
Art. The colors, the lines, the patterns, the silhouette, and so forth are the things I
need to observe from pictures like this in order to show my readers these details
in my story.

Category Six: Buddhist, Amoy Architecture

Keywords: custom, living condition, status, classes, buildings, architecture, streets,

temples, religion, taboo, phenomenon, structure

1) Internet Source #1 –
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A TOUR OF COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE IN GULANGYU, CHINA. (2017, February

02). Cathay Pacific. https://discovery.cathaypacific.com/colonial-architecture-
gulangyu-china/

 Two sentence (min) explanation – The locations and their pictures in this article
are a great start for me to look at Amoy architecture. The influence on
architecture from colonial time is essential to include in a society when depicting
it.

2) Internet Source #2 –
China Discovery. (n.d.). South Putuo Temple (Nanputuo Temple)- Must-visit Temple on
Xiamen Island. China Discovery.
https://www.chinadiscovery.com/fujian/xiamen/south-putuo-temple.html

 Two sentence (min) explanation – South Putuo Temple is the most well-known
Buddhist temple in Xiamen. This source provides a great chance to study the
famous Buddhist architectural work in Xiamen. Studying it would help me build
the location in my story better.

3) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Jianwei Zhang. (2015). A Study of the Three Buddhist Copper Hall Projects, 1602-
1607. Frontiers of History in China, 10(2), 289–322. https://doi-
org.oclc.fullsail.edu/10.3868/s020-004-015-0016-5

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This is a study of both Chinese and Buddhist
architecture. Learning another specific Buddhist architecture other than the
South Putuo Temple would benefit me greatly, giving me a wider vision and wider
range of options to build my story world.

4) Hard Copy Source (book or journal article) –

Zhou, X. (2020). Research on the Application of Architectural Pattern Elements in
Southern Fujian in the Age of Artificial Intelligence. IOP Publishing, 1693.
https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1693/1/012130

 Two sentence (min) explanation – This is a journal with an interesting topic. It

starts from a future angle with AI instead of a historical angle like most of the
similar journals and articles. Studying this journal could support me in learning
about the architectural patterns in Fujian (where Xiamen is at).

5) Image Source –
Montrasio, J. (2008, September 08). Gulangyu’s Houses [Photograph].
https://wordpress.org/openverse/image/f11b606e-5417-4e51-b37f-b04912825096
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 Two sentence (min) explanation – This photo shows the houses that ordinary
people from Gulangyu (part of Xiamen) live in. These houses would become part
of my databases for building the ordinary world for my protagonist when she’s
out of school.

Partial Translation:

 暖風與她. (2021, October 13). 廈門疍民習俗. bendi5.com.

https://www.bendi5.com/techan/17785.html
廈門疍民習俗是一種十分盛行的一種民間風俗: This unique custom is one of the
major folk cultures in Xiamen/ Amoy.
如婚俗，海上結婚疍船相靠，女到男船，增添一艘夫妻船: The marital custom,
for instance, would be two boats from the tow families come together, the bride
go to the groom’s boat, and the couple building their own boat.

 許舒昕. (2022, February 05). 廈門市圖書館舉辦文史沙龍推出閩南傳統年俗

專題講座. 廈門日報. http://xm.fjsen.com/2022-02/05/content_30953667.htm
清囤時，先要做一把上面加有“春花”（用金紙、紅紙、綠紙做成的帶葉的紙花）、綠
枝、貼有紅紙圈的掃塵帚: During the big cleaning for new year, first, you have to make
a broom with a “spring flower” (paper flowers with leaves that are made of gold, red, and
green paper), green branch(s), and a red paper ring.
除夕當天，除了貼春聯，房門兩側還要擱置兩株圈貼紅紙的連根甘蔗，這叫“門蔗”:
On the new year’s eve, besides pasting the spring couplets/ scroll, two sides of the
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bedroom door would also require placing two sugar canes with roots and red papers. This
is called “門(men)蔗(jeu)”

 觀點與視角. (2018, October 25). 佛教十三經都說什麼？賴永海先生的總結很

精闢.  每日頭條 KKnews. https://kknews.cc/zh-tw/fo/4zqnq53.html
佛典有經律論、大小乘之分，每部佛經又有節譯、別譯等多種版本，因此，大藏經
中所收錄的典籍，也不是每一部佛典、每一種譯本都非讀不可: Buddhism has two
divisions, the Mahayana and the Theravada/ Hinayana. Buddhist bibles/ scriptures have
different categories such as Buddha’s words collection, norms set up by Buddhist
members, and elaboration toward important ideas. Every scripture could also have
different translations, versions. Therefore, among the collected scriptures, not every
single scripture or translation is must-read.
「對中國佛教影響最大、最能體現中國佛教基本精神」: The ones(scriptures) that
influence Chinese Buddhism the most and exemplify Chinese Buddhism’s basic spirits
the most.
《心經》The Heart Sutra、《金剛經》The Diamond (of perfect wisdom) Sutra、《無
量壽經》Infinite Life Sutra、《圓覺經》Yuanjue Sutra、《梵網經》The Brahma Net
Sutra、《壇經》The Altar-Sutra、《楞嚴經》Shurangama Sutra、《解深密經》The
Sutra of Explaining the Profound (The Sandhi-nirmocana Sutra)、《維摩詰
經》Vimalakirti Sutra、《楞伽經》Lankavatara Sutra、《金光明經》The Sutra of
Gold Light、《法華經》The Lotus Sutra、《四十二章經》The Sutra in 42 Sections
Spoken by the Buddha.

 原始佛學. (2017, July 21). 佛教十部必讀經典佛經. 壹讀 read.

https://read01.com/7DDm574.html#.Yoj1KppByrd
如果你要消災、免禍、求福、避免遭三惡道苦，那麼首選《地藏經》:If you’re
looking for discriminating disasters, avoiding troubles, praying for blessing/ wellness,
and avoiding the suffer from possible fall to three evil paths (animal, hungry ghosts, hell),
then your first choice would be the “The Sutra of the Past Original Vows of Earth
Treasury Bodhisattva”.
《心經》是般若經系列中一部言簡義豐、博大精深、提綱挈領、極為重要的經典，
為大乘佛教出家及在家佛教徒日常背誦的佛經: “The Heart Sutra” is the vital classic
from Prajnaparamita Sutra series that’s simple but rich, broad and profound, and
concentrating on the main points. It is the scripture that the Mahayana Buddhists chant on
a daily basis.
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