'The coming together of Zuni and the Hong Kong Buddhist Association is a beautiful coincidence,' says Hin Hung, the founding fellow of the Centre of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong. He also wrote the script for the show. 'Zuni is regarded as a progressive organisation, whereas Buddhists are usually viewed as conservatives,' he says. 'Buddhists believe in pre-ordained fate.'

Hin Hung learnt of Woo's plan to stage a piece based on the Hua-yen Sutra and they arranged to meet. He had seen none of Zuni's works, but after watching several performances he says he realised that a collaboration was viable. The project took nine months to complete.

Hua-yen Sutra, regarded as the king of sutras, is said to be notes from the first teachings of the Gautama Buddha after his enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. Comprising more than half a million verses, it tells how to become a Buddha. It was translated into Chinese after being brought to China from India during the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420).

Also known by its full title, Buddhavatamsaka-mahavaipulya-sutra, it's the scriptural basis of the Hua-yen School, a sect of Chinese Buddhism established in Eastern Jin, which became prominent during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

From the outset, Hin Hung says he knew it would be tough to turn the sutra into a two-hour multimedia stage production and make it accessible to those who don't follow the Buddhist faith.

'This performance has a message from Buddhist teaching: Apart from wealth and material things, our spiritual well-being is vital to our happiness,' says Hin Hung. 'To present the sutra on stage in an understandable way is very difficult, especially as the whole thing is about knowing one's mind. If your mind is confused, then your world will be out of order. The world the Buddha lives in is beyond time and not limited by any form.'

Hin Hung says the production will be of interest to a diverse audience. 'There will be devoted Buddhists who want an in-depth interpretation of the sutra; people who go for an artistic performance; and those who are curious to know about Buddhism,' says the monk, who graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in computer and international trading. Now 54, he urned to Buddhism in 1990 to 'leave worldly matters behind' and says he has never looked back.

Hua-yen Sutra is divided into four sections: the first part is about the mind of the Buddha; the second and third about the world the Buddha lives in; and the last's about what's called the revelation.

To better understand the script, the cast - which includes Cedric Chan Ho-fung, David Yeung Wing-tak, Dick Wong Tai-fai and Puk Tak-suh - and movement designer Yuri Ng Yue-lit took part in a retreat headed by Thich Nhat Hanh last month. Yeung says the actors have no role to play. They're more like elements on the stage, along with sounds and lighting.

Although Yeung isn't a Buddhist, he has been reading sutras since the terrorist attacks on the US in September 2001. He says Buddhism offers him inner peace.

'One of my Buddhist friends came up with the idea of staging Hua-yen Sutra,' he says. 'After watching our East Wing West Wing series, he told me he was about to stage Hua-yen Sutra for a fundraising event and asked if Zuni could help. He showed the sutra to Woo and he found it interesting.'

Artistically, the Hua-yen Sutra is presented through chanting, music, coloured lighting and a mirror wall. 'According to the sutra,' says lighting director Billy Chan, 'the Buddha passes wisdom to his students by radiating rays of light from his hands'.

Tsang Chit has been brought in to teach the actors how to chant. Born in Hong Kong, the 35-year- old has been leading chanting in Buddhist ceremonies for more than 15 years. 'Although the actors have knowledge of music and grasp the chanting quickly, it's not something one can do well without practising for a long time,' he says.

Part of the performance will feature Tsang Chit with nine other monks chanting on stage. The rhythm of the chanting is traditional but music was created specially for the show by Yu Yat-yiu,with lyrics by Lin Xi.

'When I was studying Buddhism in Taiwan in 1996 and 1997, I learnt from a master well-known for his skills in chanting,' Tsang Chit says. 'Even when I was a child, I liked to listen to chanting because it was solemn but at the same time beautiful and friendly. At that time, there were some old masters who came to Hong Kong. They had very different styles.'

The difference between singing and chanting is that songs express emotions whereas chanting purifies the mind, the monk says.

Mixing art with religion isn't new - performances are staged during some Buddhist events to entertain the devotees. 'I like the idea of presenting messages on the stage and in an easy to understand and enjoyable way,' says Hin Hung. 'Some four years ago, I staged two chanting and dancing performances at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, but only for Buddhists. The audience liked them.'

Hua-yen Sutra, Jun 9-10, 15-17, 7.45pm (Jun 16, 3pm also), Hong Kong Cultural Centre Grand Theatre. HK$120-HK$380 and HK$1,000 (charity ticket). Proceeds to Zuni's school out-reach programmes. Inquiries: 2566 9696