One Gift. Generations of Impact
Sir Mody and HKU
Every year on 12 October, a small yet solemn ceremony takes place in the Main Building — the University’s first building and one of Hong Kong’s most recognisable heritage landmarks. Members of HKU and Hong Kong’s Zoroastrian community gather together, to pay tribute to Sir Hormusjee N. Mody on his birth date, the man whose gift helped bring the University into being. For many who pass through the building, the ceremony is a quiet tradition. For the University, it is an annual reminder of the philanthropic vision upon which HKU was founded.
More than a century ago, plans to establish Hong Kong's first university faced a formidable challenge: funding. In 1908, Sir Mody, a prominent Parsi businessman and philanthropist, pledged HK$150,000 towards the construction of the University's first building (later rose to HK$365,000) now known as the Main Building. His unprecedented gift provided the momentum needed to turn an ambitious idea into reality. At the Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony on 16 March 1910, Sir Mody explained the spirit behind his gift:
"Life is incomplete when man lives for his own self.
Life is best lived when it is lived for others."
Those words continue to resonate today. They are reflected in the annual commemoration, during which a Zoroastrian priest places a floral garland around Sir Mody's bust and recites prayers inspired by the central Zoroastrian principle of Humata, Hukhta, Huvarshta - "Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds". These teachings lie at the heart of Zoroastrianism and embody the values of service, generosity and responsibility that shaped Sir Mody's life.
The bronze bust itself was presented to the University in 2002 by the Incorporated Trustees of the Zoroastrian Charity Funds of Hong Kong, Canton and Macao to commemorate HKU's 90th anniversary. Standing prominently in the Main Building, it serves as a lasting reminder of the benefactor whose support proved pivotal to the University's founding.
More than a century after the University's foundation stone was laid, HKU continues to grow through the support of philanthropists who share Sir Mody's belief in education as a force for public good. His legacy lives on not only in the University's oldest building, but also in the countless lives transformed by the opportunities that his generosity helped create.
