Portrait of Hsuan Hua

Birthday profile

Hsuan Hua

Hsuan Hua, Chinese-American monk and author (died 1995)

Born
April 16, 1918
Died
June 7, 1995
Zodiac sign
Aries
Birth year
1918

About Hsuan Hua

Hsuan Hua (Chinese: 宣化; pinyin: Xuānhuà; lit. 'proclaim and transform'; April 26, 1918 – June 7, 1995), also known as An Tzu, Tu Lun and Master Hua by his Western disciples, was a Chinese monk of Chan Buddhism and a contributing figure in bringing Chinese Buddhism to the United States in the late 20th century. Hsuan Hua founded several institutions in the US. The Dharma Realm Buddhist Association (DRBA) is a Buddhist organization with chapters in North America, Australia and Asia. The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas (CTTB) in Ukiah, California, is one of the first Chan Buddhist monasteries in America. Hsuan Hua founded Dharma Realm Buddhist University at CTTB. The Buddhist Text Translation Society works on the phonetics and translation of Buddhist scriptures from Chinese into English, Vietnamese, Spanish, and many other languages. == Early life == Hsuan Hua, born on the sixteenth day of the third lunar month in the year of Wuwu (Horse), April 26, 1918. Named Bai Yushu or Bai Yuxi simplified Chinese: 白玉书 (白玉禧); traditional Chinese: 白玉書 (白玉璽); pinyin: Báiyù shū (Báiyù xǐ); lit. 'White Jade Book (White Jade Jubilee)' in Shuangcheng County of Jilin (now Wuchang, Harbin, Heilongjiang). His mother was a vegetarian and maintained a habit of reciting Amitābha's name throughout her life. As a child, Hsuan Hua followed his mother’s example.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

The world when Hsuan Hua was born

Hsuan Hua was born in 1918. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1918

  • Best-selling book"The U.P. Trail" – Zane Grey

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentWorld Series played in September due to WWI
  • Top headlineWorld War I ends — Spanish Flu pandemic begins
  • Technology milestoneFirst regular airmail service
  • World population~1.78B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderWoodrow Wilson
  • U.S. population102.0M

1918 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Hsuan Hua's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19182026
Gas$0.25$3.45/gal
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population102.0M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.