It was in the 1920s that Venerable Taixu introduced his notions on Humanistic Buddhism and called for a reform movement in Chinese Buddhism. The present paper traces briefly the historical background for his eloquent call for such a transformation. The first section touches on how Chinese Buddhists were involved in social well-being in the past. The second section traces how and why Buddhism declined in the last six hundred years due to the restraint imposed on Buddhism by emperors. The third section deals with views of Venerables Taixu, Cihang, and Yinshun on the restoration of Buddhist tradition to make contributions to social well-being. The last section examines the trend that Chinese Buddhists follow in regard to social well-being, with an in-depth analysis of the role and impact of Venerable Grand Master Hsing Yun.
