Promoting culture

Wang Jiangtao (Baotou Evening News): Most of the news items on the Shaolin Temple highlight the incongruity between people's outdated conceptions of "ancient temples hidden deep in the forest" and the secular ones now encountered in real life. This time around, confirmation that a four-star hotel and a golf course are to be built alongside a Shaolin branch led to criticisms being once again leveled at the organization, mostly to the effect that such actions run contrary to the Buddhist creed.

However, based on the past three decades of development, this temple branch is likely to be a successful attempt to promote Buddhism. The Shaolin Temple, a 1982 movie starring Jet Li, garnered international fame for both the temple and its attendant Buddhist culture. In recent years, kungfu monks from the Shaolin Temple have toured around the world to perform martial arts. Buddhist monks are required to keep inner peace, but the efforts to spread Buddhist culture will inevitably bring them to the secular world.

In ancient times, temples were indeed hidden in mountains. Nonetheless, they managed to keep in touch with their followers. Today, we have more convenient transportation networks and modern channels for spreading information. It's great that the Shaolin Temple is making itself better known through its involvement in various activities and use of new media like the Internet.

This is actually not the first time that the Chinese have engaged in such activities. Jianzhen (688-763), a renowned monk in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), traveled to Japan to promote Buddhism, and his experience has long been hailed as an example of international cultural communication.

Sun Haigang (blog.ifeng.com): It's hard to believe that such a momentous event, which promotes the spread of China's Buddhist culture and boosts employment and tourism in the location in question, has been so vehemently criticized in China. Those opposing the branch's foundation reason that Shaolin monks should concentrate on Buddhist studies and martial arts training rather than doing business.

So is it all right for the Shaolin Temple to open a branch in Australia? In my opinion, if the conditions are ripe, why not? If this program is successfully operated, it will help enhance China's cultural influence. Also understandable is the proposed opening of a four-star hotel next to the branch as not all secular disciples are adaptable to life in temples. In addition, if too many visitors were to stay in the temple, the monks might easily be distracted from their daily activities.

People have long harbored the misconception that Buddhists should always lean toward their religious practices such as meditation. However, this varies among schools. While Hinayana adherents may mostly mind their own business and keep to themselves, Mahayana followers are required to influence the rest of the world through their actions. According to their doctrine, they should help others and shoulder social responsibility. Therefore, setting up a Shaolin branch in Australia to popularize Buddhist culture is a noble act that will benefit the overall development of this religion. 

Copyedited by Eric Daly