Heng Sure (恆實法師,

Pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally writte ...

: ''Héng Shí'', birth name Christopher R. Clowery; born October 31, 1949) is an American Chan Buddhist monk. He is a senior disciple of

Hsuan Hua Hsuan Hua (; April 16, 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 lat ...

, and is currently the director of the

Berkeley Buddhist Monastery The Berkeley Buddhist Monastery is a Chan Buddhist monastery in Berkeley, California affiliated with the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas and led by Heng Sure. It is the site of the Institute for World Religions, founded by Hsuan Hua Hsuan Hua ( ...

, a branch monastery of the

Dharma Realm Buddhist Association The Dharma Realm Buddhist Association (shortened to DRBA, Chinese: 法界佛教總會, PY: ''Fajie Fojiao Zonghui'', formerly known as the Sino-American Buddhist Association) is an international, non-profit Buddhist organization founded by the ...

. He is probably best known for a pilgrimage he made for two years and six months from 1977–1979. Called a ''three steps, one bow'' pilgrimage, Heng Sure and his companion Heng Chau ( Martin Verhoeven), bowed from South Pasadena to Ukiah, California, a distance of 800 miles, seeking world peace. Born in

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

, he attended DeVilbiss High School, Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, and the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...

from 1971–1976. During his time at the university, Heng Sure was active in theatre. At an early age, Heng Sure learned Chinese from studying the language in high school and by means of his sister, who worked at the

U.S. Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to " public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bill ...

. After receiving his masters in Oriental languages, he met his teacher, Hsuan Hua, who would later ordain him in 1976 at the

City of Ten Thousand Buddhas The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas () is an international Buddhist community and monastery founded by Hsuan Hua, an important figure in Western Buddhism. It is one of the first Chan Buddhist temples in the United States, and one of the largest Bud ...

, as "Heng Sure" a Dharma name which means "Constantly Real." Heng Sure earned an MA degree in Oriental Languages from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1976 and a PhD in Religion from the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, in 2003. Heng Sure currently gives lectures in

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

to the public and through

webcasts A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand. Essentially, we ...

. Heng Sure also gives lectures in many parts of the world on various subjects, such as the sutras and

veganism Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet (nutrition), diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is kn ...

. He is also an accomplished musician and guitarist. In 2008, Heng Sure published his firs
music CD "Paramita: American Buddhist Folk Songs"
In October 2018, he participated in the Fifth World Buddhist Forum held in Putian, Fujian Province of China, and at the closing ceremony, read with the patriarchal Zongxing the Declaration of the Fifth World Buddhist Forum.

References

External links

Rev. Heng Sure's blog

Rev. Heng Sure on Facebook

Dharma Radio
��lectures and music.
Bowing Journals and Photos

With One Heart Bowing
��essay on the first time they publicly shared stories about their pilgrimage
American Pilgrimage - Three Steps, One Bow for Peace
Chan Buddhist monks American Zen Buddhists Dharma Realm Buddhist Association Oakland University alumni Musicians from Toledo, Ohio Performers of Buddhist music University of California, Berkeley alumni Converts to Buddhism 1949 births Living people Guitarists from Ohio American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians {{US-reli-bio-stub