Hwa Tsang Monastery is a Mahayana Buddhist temple and monastery located in Homebush, an Inner West suburb of Sydney. 

It was formed in 1981 by Venerable Tsang Hui (b. 1942), who arrived in Australia from Taiwan in 1977 and initially served as the Abbot of Prajna Temple. An interim committee was formed and a constitution drafted in 1984 to further systemise the organisation of the monastery. It was officially founded on 19 May 1985, with Venerable Tsang Hui appointed as its Founding Abbot.¹ 

The establishment of the monastery faced many challenges. Two Development Applications submitted in 1986 and 1988 were rejected by Strathfield Council, despite the second backed by a petition demonstrating community support. In 1989, the monastery successfully appealed its case in the Land and Environment Court of NSW, allowing development to proceed. The decision may have set a precedent for Buddhist places of worship to be given equal consideration with other religious and educational facilities in residential areas. The new monastery building officially opened on 6 December 1992.² 

Hwa Tsang has developed a comprehensive educational outreach program spanning kindergarten to university. It is an authorised provider of Buddhist Special Religious Education (SRE) since 1997, with syllabuses that incorporate Buddhist textbooks from the Chinese Mahayana tradition adapted to the Australian context. Its after-school tuition program, originally started by Venerable Tsang Hui to assist refugee families, continues to provide classes and extracurricular activities for high school students.³ 

Venerable Tsang Hui also supported the founding of the University of New South Wales Buddhist Society (UNIBUDS) in 1981, the first Buddhist society at an Australian university. He has been a patron of UNIBUDS, UNIBODHI (University of Sydney) and MACBUDDHI (Macquarie University). Over the years, venerables from the Monastery continue to give teachings at the Buddhist societies. Venerable Neng Rong, the current Abbess, is a Buddhist Chaplain at the University of New South Wales, University of Sydney, and Macquarie University.⁴ 

The monastery’s Bodhi Class teaches children the Dharma, life skills and etiquette. In addition to regular Dharma services and meditation sessions, its devotees also participate in broader community activities such as bushcare, National Tree Day and Clean Up Australia.⁵ 

By: Sioh Yang Tan and Juewei Shi 

References: 

¹  “Our History 華藏寺歷史,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=38. 

² “Our Founder 創辦人,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=36; “Our History 華藏寺歷史.” 

³  “Our Founder 創辦人”; “Special Religious Education 宗教教育,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=143; “Tuition Program 課業輔導,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=155. 

⁴  “Our Founder 創辦人”; “University Buddhist Societies 大學佛教社團,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=1014. 

⁵  “Children’s Program 兒童節目,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?page_id=140; “Activities 活動,” Hwa Tsang Monastery, accessed September 5, 2026, https://www.hwatsangmonastery.org.au/?cat=4.