Fo Guang Shan Geneva

SWITZERLAND, Geneva

The full name of this temple is Fo Guang Shan Geneva Conference Center of Buddhism. It is located near the United Nations headquarters. The canton of Geneva had designated a special zone for the development of an international Buddhist college. The building was designed to blend in with its surroundings by Geneva architects Daniel Rinaldi and Pascal Anderegg. The rights for the use of the land, construction and management of the proposed center were transferred to Fo Guang Shan in 2003. The construction was completed in 2006 and Fo Guang Shan’s founder, Master Hsing Yun, presided over the opening ceremony.
The center occupies an area of 2,450 sq m, with a rectangular building in the front and a circular one in the back. The main hall is circular and perfectly symmetrical, representing modern Buddhism in its comprehensiveness and all-embracing values. A statue of Sakyamuni Buddha is enshrined within the hall. Eight radial beams support the roof and divide the circular ceiling into eight parts symbolizing the Noble Eightfold Path. In addition to the main hall, there is a library, as well as a multi-purpose conference room, which also functions as a gallery or performance space. The basement level is occupied by classrooms and a dining hall. There is Chan-style landscaping in the courtyard.
Apart from holding large-scale international conferences, which promote exchanges between different world Buddhist organizations, the center also runs regular cultural and religious events. The Geneva Conference Center of Buddhism is likened to a seed of the Dharma that is rooted in Switzerland.