Visit to the Mountain Monastery of Tsz Shan (慈山寺) With Professor Puay-peng Ho

Tsz Shan Monastery (慈山寺), literally the Monastery of Mountain of Mercy, is a new Buddhist retreat designed to provide a tranquil environment for worship and meditation as well as for teaching and education. Set in the lush hillside at the foot of Pat Sin Leng in Tai Po, the design of the mountain retreat takes advantage of the setting and the view to the expansive Tolo Harbour providing many opportunities for meditation on the ground. The main group of buildings occupying the central position with a series of buildings and courtyard culminating at
the Great Buddha Hall evokes a quiet sense of majesty befitting the power of the Buddha. While the monastery emulates the ambience of a Tang dynasty building complex, with the buildings patterned after surviving buildings of the period in scale, proportion and outlook, the construction of these buildings utilizes modern technology. This is also the spirit behind the making of the colossal image of Guan Yin, rising 70 meters high from the base constructed with bronze pieces finished with a self-cleaning paint. We are delighted that Professor Puay-peng
Ho who is the chief consultant behind the architecture and sculpture of the monastery will guide us on the tour.

Resource Person
Professor Puay-peng Ho is Professor of the School of Architecture, and Director of Centre for Architectural Heritage Research at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He received his First Class Honours degree in Architecture from the University of Edinburgh and a Ph.D in Art History
from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Professor Ho is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects and the Society of Architectural Historians. Currently, he serves on the Town Planning Board, Antiquities Advisory Board and History Museum Advisory Panel, and is Chairman of the Council of Lord Wilson Heritage Trust. His research interests and publications are in the areas of Chinese art and architectural history, vernacular architecture, and architectural theory. He is also involved in many architecture conservation projects in Hong Kong.