Bliss and Wisdom

Bliss and Wisdom (Chinese: 福智; pinyin: Fúzhì) is a Taiwanese Buddhist organization operating in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. The organization arrived in the province in 2008, and has come under scrutiny for its significant acquisitions of land. A citizens group estimates that Bliss and Wisdom has acquired over 17,000 acres of land in Prince Edward Island, contravening the province's land protection legislation. The provincial government of Prince Edward Island launched an investigation into Bliss and Wisdom's landholdings in February 2025.

Bliss and Wisdom

Established	1991
Founder	Jih-Chang (d. 2004)
Type	Buddhist organization
Headquarters	Taiwan
Region served	Canada, United States, several Asian countries
Leader	Master Zhen-Ru

The organization has extensive business holdings in the areas of jewellery, electronics, organic farming, translation, and exporting. They operate a natural foods retailer based in Taiwan, which opened its first overseas store in Charlottetown in 2016.

Background

Bliss and Wisdom is a Taiwanese Buddhist organization founded in 1991^[1] by Master Jih-Chang.^[2] After his death in 2004, Master Zhen-Ru^[a] became leader of the organization. She led Bliss and Wisdom's move into the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, arriving in 2008. The organization underwent significant expansion under Zhen-Ru's leadership; they claim that their number of students has increased from 20,000 to 100,000 since she assumed leadership, with over 800 monks and 600 nuns.^[3] Bliss and Wisdom is based in Taiwan, and has operations throughout Canada, the United States, and several Asian countries.^[4]

The Dalai Lama does not recognize Zhen-Ru as the spiritual leader of Bliss and Wisdom. Kelsang Gyaltsen, the official representative of the Dalai Lama in Taiwan, states that "Zhen-Ru is a layperson who has not undergone monastic ordination. Someone without formal ordination and precept training cannot be recognized as the leader of the monastic community." Gyaltsen noted that the Dalai Lama does recognize the monks and nuns of Bliss and Wisdom.^[4]

Operations in PEI

External audio
How a group of Buddhist monks bought up a chunk of PEI. – The Globe and Mail (20:32 min)

Bliss and Wisdom arrived in Kings County, Prince Edward Island in 2008,^[3] when they moved into an old Lobster Shanty in Montague.^[5] The organization operates five campuses in the province: the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society (GEBIS) and Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI) are attended by Taiwanese students, while three others are attended exclusively by Chinese students.^[3] Some residents questioned the organization's choice to establish itself in Prince Edward Island. In 2018, amid growing concerns regarding Bliss and Wisdom's land acquisitions, the provincial government rejected a proposed sale of 20 acres near Heatherdale from a local farmer to the organization. In September 2020, the municipal council of Three Rivers voted to deny a building permit to Bliss and Wisdom for the construction of a monastic campus and dormitory in Brudenell.^[6]

A citizens group known as Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Lands estimates that Bliss and Wisdom and its affiliates have purchased over 17,000 acres of land in the province, drawing significant community opposition.^[3] In contrast, The Guardian of Charlottetown reported that their investigation only counted 1,251 acres owned by the group.^[7] According to The Globe and Mail, much of the land purchased by Bliss and Wisdom is owned by individual members of the organization, making it difficult to track their land holdings. Spokespeople from Bliss and Wisdom claim that its members are purchasing land of their own accord to be near their campuses.^[3]

The land acquisitions of Bliss and Wisdom have raised concerns over compliance with the province's Lands Protection Act, which limits individuals to 1,000 acres and corporations to 3,000 acres of arable land, with non-residents restricted to five acres purchased after a 90-day public listing period.^[3] Critics allege that Bliss and Wisdom exploit loopholes in the province's land protection legislation by using a network of followers and affiliated companies to purchase properties, many of which are left vacant, inflating real estate prices in rural communities.^[8]

In February 2025, the provincial government of Prince Edward Island launched an investigation into the land acquisitions of Bliss and Wisdom.^[9] Stephen Myers, the Minister of Housing, Land and Communities, directed the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission to investigate the direct and indirect land holdings of the organization. In a statement, Myers said that residents have "valid concerns" regarding land ownership by the organization, adding that "it's important too that these discussions are based on evidence, not assumptions".^[10]

A book documenting the controversy, titled Canada Under Siege: How P.E.I. Became a Forward Operating Base for the Chinese Communist Party, was released in June 2025. The book was written by Michel Juneau-Katsuya, former CSIS investigator; Garry Clement, former RCMP investigator; and Dean Baxendale, the CEO of Optimum Publishing.^[11] 205 pages in length, Canada Under Siege chronicles prior scandals involving the provincial nominee program, focusing largely on Bliss and Wisdom's operations. At the launch of the book in Charlottetown, the former solicitor general Wayne Easter and the authors called for a public inquiry into Bliss and Wisdom's landholdings and foreign affiliations.^[11]

Business operations

Bliss and Wisdom has extensive business holdings in the areas of jewellery, electronics, organic farming, translation, and exporting. The group in Prince Edward Island has received hundreds of millions of dollars from foreign donations and their businesses in Taiwan and China.^[3] Bliss and Wisdom is the owner of Leezen, a chain of retail stores selling natural products. Leezen originates from the establishment of the Tse-Xin Organic Agriculture Foundation (Chinese: 慈心大地) in the late 1990s by close disciples of Jih-Chang, the founder of Bliss and Wisdom.^[4] Members of Bliss and Wisdom founded the exporting company Grain Essence Garden in 2011, which began exporting Prince Edward Island products to Taiwan for sale at Leezen.^[12] The chain opened their first store outside of Taiwan in 2016, located in Charlottetown.^[13] Members of Bliss and Wisdom also operate a vegetarian restaurant in Charlottetown called Splendid Essence.^[5]

Notes

1. Zhen-Ru's birth name has been reported as Meng Rong Jin,^[3] Mengrong Jin,^[4] or Jin Mengrong. She has also been referred to as Mary Jin.^[1]