On the morning of October 12 local time, the 2019 China-US-Canada Buddhist Forum was grandly held at UN headquarters in New York, the United States. Nearly 500 people, including the religious and spiritual leaders from the Buddhist communities in China, the US and Canada and representatives from all over the world gathered together to attend the forum. The Vice-President of the Buddhist Association of China Venerable Master Yanjue, the President of the American Buddhist Confederation Venerable Master Mingyu, the President of the Buddhist Association of Canada Venerable Master Dayi all delivered a speech at the opening ceremony.

The theme of this year’s forum was ＂Enlightenment in the Human Realm: The Spirit and Practice of Chan Buddhism＂. A series of activities, including academic conferences, cultural events and musical performances, were organized to promote friendly exchanges between the Buddhist communities in these three countries and to advocate Buddhist beliefs in benevolence, equality, the middle-way and harmony. The representatives of the forum all called for world peace and discussed efforts to resolve conflicts, purify minds and build a community of a shared future for mankind.

Since the first China-US-Canada Buddhist Forum was successfully held in Canada in 2017, this forum was another landmark of great significance in the history of communication between the Buddhist communities in China, the US and Canada.

After the opening ceremony, the representatives discussed such issues as ＂The Mission and Responsibility of Buddhism in Building a Community of Shared Future＂, ＂Enlightenment in the Human Realm: The Spirit and Practice of Chan Buddhism＂ and ＂The Promotion, Transmission and Development of Buddhism＂. At the end of the forum, the Buddhist representatives adopted the second China-US-Canada Buddhist Forum Declaration.