Campaign brochures distributed by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate Sean Lien (連勝文) yesterday telling the story of the Shakyamuni Gautama Buddha received negative reviews from netizens, who called the leaflets a failed attempt by Lien to shed his “princeling” image.
Titled “Spreading the Seed of Hope,” the pink brochures listed Lien’s policies along with photographs and messages from the mayoral hopeful to Taipei residents.
It starts off with Lien asking the reader if they remember the song The Sky of Taipei (台北的天空), before he goes on to describe his two brushes with death — once when he was shot and the other when he was diagnosed with cancer — and thanks the residents of Taipei for giving him the courage to give something back and help create the Taipei of tomorrow.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
The brochure’s content continues with the story of Shakyamuni Gautama Buddha, who was a prince and later became a Buddha to help mankind, and then tells story of Jesus Christ, describing how he was a carpenter before he began preaching what later became the Christian religion. It ends with the quote: “A man’s worth is not in his background, but in his mannerisms and acceptance of responsibility.”
A comment from netizen “sdg235” on the Professional Technology Temple — the nation’s largest academic online bulletin board — said that Shakyamuni Gautama Buddha had spent many years meditating, but Lien was “seeking to be mayor after he is done chilling at home,” while another netizen using the handle DASHOCK said that the Buddha had not worn brand-name clothes or driven expensive cars.
Another netizen, Kondyu, said the Buddha “Did not live in [Taipei luxury residential complex] The Palace (帝寶) and ask for alms.”
Lien yesterday said he was a mortal man and could not hope to compare with any great deities, adding that the brochure aimed to tell Taipei residents that he sought to emulate the spirit of what these great men did. As for the criticism, Lien said he paid it no mind as it had been going on for 10 months.
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