On December 12, the 8th South China Sea Buddhist Roundtable took place in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka. More than 400 eminent monks, government officials, experts and scholars from 25 countries and regions including China, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Thailand, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Japan, the United States, and France attended the main forum event that day. This is also the first time that the roundtable has been held entirely in an overseas country. The number of participating countries and regions and the number of participants have reached a record high.
Master Yinshun, founder and general convener of the Nanhai Buddhist Roundtable, vice president of the Buddhist Association of China, and abbot of Shenzhen Hongfa Temple, said in his keynote speech that the purpose of this roundtable was to build a platform for Buddhist exchanges and cooperation and to unite efforts. Respond to the “Belt and Road” initiative and contribute wisdom and strength to the peaceful development of the South China Sea region.
The theme of this year’s roundtable is “Together with the Way of Harmony and Gather the Wisdom of the Silk Road”. Representatives of the participating countries and regions closely followed the theme, conducted in-depth exchanges and dialogues, and jointly signed the initiative for this roundtable meeting, expressing their willingness to work together to promote exchanges and mutual learning, promote people-to-people connectivity, and maintain peace in the South China Sea.
This roundtable lasted for three days. Representatives from all walks of life from different countries and regions also attended the education sub-forum and the youth sub-forum. They were invited to visit the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, Gangalama Temple, Kelaniya University, etc. in Colombo, and participated in World Peace Prayer Assembly.
12月12日，第八届南海佛教圆桌会在斯里兰卡首都科伦坡开幕。来自中国、斯里兰卡、柬埔寨、泰国、印度、尼泊尔、越南、日本、美国、法国等25个国家和地区的400多名高僧大德、政府官员、专家学者出席当天的主论坛活动。这也是圆桌会首次全程在海外国家举行，参会国家和地区数、参会人数均创历届之最。
南海佛教圆桌会发起人和总召集人、中国佛教协会副会长、深圳弘法寺方丈印顺法师在主旨发言中表示，本届圆桌会的召开，旨在构筑佛教交流合作平台，凝心聚力响应“一带一路”倡议，为南海地区和平发展贡献智慧和力量。
本届圆桌会主题是“同行和合之道，共聚丝路慧光”。与会国家和地区的代表紧扣主题，深入交流对话，并共同签署了本届圆桌会倡议书，表示愿携手共同推动交流互鉴，促进民心相通，维护南海和平。
本届圆桌会为期3天，来自不同国家和地区的各界代表还出席了教育分论坛和青年分论坛，应邀参访科伦坡佛牙寺、冈嘎拉马寺、凯拉尼亚大学等，并参加祈愿世界和平法会。
