A monk from Zishou teaches Shaolin kung fu to elementary school children, part of a plan to advertise the temple under Shaolin's name. Photo: CFP

A monk practices push-ups. Photo: CFP

 

A monk sits on top of a wall and reads Buddhist scripture. Photo: CFP

The monks at Zishou Temple practice kung fu with each other. Photo: CFP

Master Yanbang performs a tea ceremony at Zishou Temple. Photo: CFP

 

 

When living at Shaolin Temple in Henan Province, Master Yanbang had a nickname, "The fashionable monk."

He earned this because he knows calligraphy, photography, painting and how to perform a tea ceremony. He also lived abroad for 12 years.

In August 2014, 28-year-old Master Yanbang became a young abbot at Zishou Temple in Lingshi township, Shanxi Province. He attracted 22 monks who were born after 1990 to live in the temple.

Zishou Temple was taken over by Shaolin Temple in 2014. The takeover fits into Shaolin's commercial expansion scheme that started with it taking over four temples in Henan in 2008.

Before 2014, Zishou only had two monks. Only a few tourists came, and the government paid an annual maintenance fee to the temple of one million yuan ($160,000).

The government signed a contract with Shaolin allowing it to take over Zishou for 30 years. Shaolin agreed to send a crew to live there, and manage Zishou's cultural relics, religious services and cultural affairs.

Admission became free. Shaolin branded its name on the local temple for commercial purposes. The local government uses Zishou's connection to world-renowned Shaolin kung fu to attract tourists and boost the local economy.

Being a "fashionable monk" has helped Master Yanbang a lot. Under his management, the monks teach Shaolin kung fu at the local elementary school. Sometimes monks also serve as tour guides to explain wall paintings on the temple. A Lingshi Shaolin Cultural Park is being planned by the local government, where monks would teach kung fu and meditation.

But Master Yanbang does not see this as a commercial scheme. The deal between the government and Shaolin doesn't affect the monks' lifestyles, he says.

"I'm only in charge of managing the monks, as well as inheriting the Shaolin culture," Master Yanbang told media.

Global Times