A group of young lamas from the Puning (Universal Peace) Temple in Chengde, the largest active Buddhist community in north China, are seen practicing oral English every morning, with New Concept English as the text.

Why do they learn English? Lama Thexi said, "Chengde is a famous tourist destination." The wonderful scenes and uniquely mysterious Buddhist culture appeal to many tourists from China and abroad. The Puning Temple receives 50,000 tourists a year.

A lot of foreigners are very eager to talk to the lamas and understand their lives and the temple's history, but language is still a great obstacle. On one occasion two foreigners pointed to a fresco in the Sakyamuni Hall and asked something, but none of the lamas could understand them. Luckily, there was a traveler there who understood English and translated the question for them. The foreigners just asked what the meaning of the fresco was. A simple question became so complicated just because of the language barrier. From that point on, the Puning lamas began to study English, and the course has really taken off.

Qingbatu, a young lama said, "Besides self-study, learning from each other and practicing oral English with foreign travelers, we enjoy the summer resort primary school's English classes." Some lamas, Hu Yuan, Tie Zhuang, Qingjorigtu and Gangbolod, have already begun simple communications with foreigners. Tie Zhuang said, "Entering a new century and facing new challenges, it is the responsibility of not only the people of Chengde, but also Chengde lamas to better present the images of the Puning Temple and Chengde City."

(China.org.cn by Chen Lin, December 2, 2002)