Business Management of Shaolin Temples - Research Paper Example

June 9, Commercialized Buddhism in Modern China: Business Management of Shaolin Temples Through the assimilation of local cults in the past to the commercialization of Shaolin Temple and other similar temples in present times, Buddhism shows its success through continued evolution that enabled its lasting relevance to past and modern believers and audiences. As mentioned, to increase followers during Buddhism’s earlier years, its general process of development in India and Tibet was through acculturation that included two-way assimilation between Buddhism and local Indian and Tibetan cults (Rambelli 43). Acculturation continues up to modern times, as Buddhism assimilates capitalistic values and models for its sustained development. Shaolin temples are ideal examples of commercialized Buddhism in modern China because of how they apply business values and models to their management philosophy and various monastery and outside activities. Shaolin Temple, in Songshan Mountain, Henan Province, is the oldest and most important of all Buddhist temples, though there are now 10 Shaolin temples in China. In this paper, “Shaolin Temple” refers to the oldest temple, while Shaolin temples refer to all temples. It analyzes how the commercialization of Buddhism in China affects Buddhism’s image, principles, and practices. Buddhism’s modern acculturation process, primarily through the commercial management of Shaolin temples in Chinas, paradoxically extends and damages its identity because of the growing importance of capitalism in its mindset and the increasing centrality of profits and political interests as its ends, although the same capitalistic mindset does allow for it to exploit modern devices for its goal of educating the public about Buddhism and Shaolin cultures. Shaolin temples are the houses of worship for Buddhists that have become thriving business communities too. The management of Shaolin temples still occurs through abbots. Abbots nowadays work with commercial interests in mind. Ming Xu describes how abbots earn profits through absorbing the capitalism model in the running of their temples. For instance, temples charge for admission to pay for monastery expanses and for supporting its various activities that spread Shaolin and Buddhism cultures all over the world (Xu). This is part of the many money-making efforts of temples, which abbots justify as necessary to the spreading of Buddhism because Buddhism cannot be taught without having food and resources for its teachers and students. Furthermore, Shaolin Temple also actively organizes Shaolin festivals to promote Buddhism. It is now similar to governments and localities that create festivals to boost tourism, which, in turn, will increase revenues. Shaolin Temple and the World Shaolin Association organized the 2012 European Shaolin Culture Festival, which was condicted Germany and Austria on September 7 (Xu). It is the first event to happen in Europe (Xu) where it seems that Buddhist abbots conceive the capitalistic world as an exciting model for continued growth. Buddhism continues to manifest widespread commercialization, as it pursues further assimilation of modern world economic thinking and practices. Shaolin Temple has developed various companies in China and abroad that ensure the sustenance and promotion of its monasteries, services, and products (Xu). Shaolin Temple has a magazine, film corporation and office for Wushu promotion (Xu). It is an organization that clearly sees the role of media in gaining power and influence in modern society. Shaolin tradition is also promoted through performances, films, TV series and Buddhist activities (Xu). Shaolin martial performances happen regularly in China and abroad. These activities support the cultural programming aspect of Buddhism, as it spreads its culture through visual imagery in live and recorded performances. Moreover, Buddhism is also not shying away from technology. Shaolin Temple promotes the use of technology and traditional and new media for the dissemination of information and to attract visitors (Goossaert and Palmer 279). In 1996, Shaolin Temple became the first temple in China to use the Internet (Xu). Shi Yongxin, the Shaolin Temple abbot, also created the Henan Shaolinsi Television Co. in 1997, and then Shaolin Temple Industrial Development Company in 1998 (Xu). Buddhism uses technology to further collect revenues for its global operations, a strong characteristic of multinational corporations. Furthermore, Buddhist theme parks now abound in different parts of China. These theme parks show how the tourism industry is an essential means for the full commercialization of Buddhism through turning Buddhism into a tourist experience that can be bought and consumed (Goossaert and Palmer 279). The New Disneyland no longer shows the faces of Mickey Mouse and Disney princesses, but the images of Buddha and Buddhist monks, symbols, and rituals. Buddhism is swiftly learning how to be modern religion with its media conglomerate, moving on to become Buddhism 2.0. The new form of Buddhism is a commercialized Buddhism, which has its positive effects on it, especially considering its long history of acculturation success. First, by being commercial, Buddhism reduces its religious identity, which makes it more attractive for the Communist state of China. Local governments in China support Buddhism’s growth and practices because they can directly earn tangible benefits. The state only supports and sponsors Buddhist activities because Buddhism is a financial asset, which decreases the tension between Buddhism and the state (Shahar 196). Local governments have supported the establishment of temples and Buddhist icons, for example, to boost tourist development, including in sites that have no historical significance to Buddhism (Palmer 312). Second, Buddhism helps the economy, which improves its image further even to non-Buddhists. Zhang Mu and co-authors describe religious tourism in China and highlights that it is both a cultural and economic resource for communities. They identify numerous religious sites that are crucial to the economic, cultural, and religious growth of local Chinese communities (Mu et al. 105). What is good for commercialized Buddhism is good for the community’s economic well-being, which, in turn, improves the image of Buddhism to the public in general. Finally, the commercialization of Buddhism allows for its acculturation of worldly means that are important to spreading awareness about Buddhism and Shaolin culture, especially when it is a long-time practice of Buddhism for survival and growth. What commercialized Buddhism is doing now is not far from what it has done in the past to promote its religious beliefs and practices. In particular, when Buddhism entered ancient India, it did not try to oppress and replace local cults as other religions did during those times, but it integrated them by providing complementary icons and rituals. Buddhism knows that by combining different cultural values and beliefs from local cults, it can gain faster recognition as a valid religion in new lands. For illustration of Buddhism’s acculturation practices, early Indian Buddhism changed in order to be acceptable to Indian society. Buddhism adopted Indian local cult deities, such as the Brahmanical deities and local gods (i.e. yakshas and nagas) (Rambelli 41; Powers 433). Brahmanism was the official Aryan religious system, which sees the Vedic ritual as the core principle of political legitimacy and social order in the world (Rambelli 42). In connection to its Vedic ritual, Brahmanism produced a hierarchical social order called the caste system that divided people according to their social functions, where the poor and working class are treated as second-class citizens or slaves (Rambelli 42). Buddhism answered political and cultural spaces that Brahmanism could not, so it appealed to the poor. Buddhism also attracted the rich and educated because it approved of some of its basic beliefs and practices, such as doing charitable works and promoting moral propaganda (Gernet 303). Buddhism essentially interacted and worked with these local cults, and the product is the formation of a distinctive cultural space that appealed to the elites, the masses, the Aryans and non-Aryans, states, groups, and individuals (Rambelli 42). If this is compared to commercialized Buddhism, Buddhism is also learning how think and act like a corporation. It knows that it has a strong brand identity because of the familiarization of world audiences to Shaolin and Buddhist practices through successful Chinese and Hollywood movies. It only needs to expand its portfolio, so to speak, to further promote its religion to all. Shi Yongxin makes it clear when he tells the media that all that Buddhism is doing when it is trying to make money is to survive (Xu). He underlines that Buddhism cannot survive without sufficient economic resources, so it has to commercialize some of its operations and aspects. In addition, Buddhism recognizes that it must be active in promoting itself or someone else will. Shi Yongxin notes that Shaolin in known around the world (Xu). He is worried that its identity will be destroyed if other organizations control its spreading (Xu). He argues that commercializing Shaolin means that Buddhism provides a clear path for its solid identity to avoid capitalism from fully changing it to a business product (Xu). Shi’s sentiments suggest that he is aware of what capitalism can do to religions, so he knows how to balance Buddhism’s commercial and religious aspects. Despite these advantages, Buddhism’s commercialization in China may be becoming a one-way acculturation process, where capitalism consumes Buddhism and turns it into a full commercial enterprise. For instance, commercialized Buddhism presents a paradox between the worldly monks of today and the non-materialistic monks of the past. Some of the ways of earning revenues are already directly against Buddhism, such as selling the right for the first incense to be burned during New Year’s through bidding and rumors of monks having lovers and children, since they already have money at their disposal through the revenues of the temples (Weller and Yanfei 38; Yu 106). The commercialization of Buddhism may be acquiring negative publicity from the side of Chinese press (Fish) because the state wants to discredit it and to avoid for it to become a symbol of independence and wealth. Commercialization may be providing Buddhism too much popularity that threatens the monopoly of power of the state. The state also uses its support for Buddhism to show the public that it is not against religious freedom (Yu 104). Abbots reject the criticism that they are becoming worldly and insist that commercialization is only a means to spiritual and cultural Buddhist and Shaolin ends (Fish). Buddhism can be seen as adopting technological and cultural cults of modern times, including popular culture and tourism (Mu et al. 108). If Buddhism assimilated Bön and vice-versa, the same phenomenon may also be happening to the commercialization of Buddhism (Powers 234). Buddhism cannot remain isolated and needs to acculturate capitalism if it wants to survive. It can avoid being consumed by the worldliness of capitalism through not retaining profits in the hands of the monks and ensuring that all of the money goes to monastery maintenance and educational aspirations for Buddhism and Shaolin beliefs and practices. Commercialization is not evil per se, but becomes so depending on how it is used and for whom. The commercialization of Buddhism can be a means for its survival and development in the digital modern world as it adopts the technological and cultural cults of modern times. Works Cited Fish, Isaac Stone. “Mr. Buddhism Inc.: Shaolin Temple’s Shi Yongxin.” Newsweek, 29 July 2012. Web. 21 May 2014. Gernet, Jacques. Buddhism in Chinese Society. New York: Columbia U P, 1995. Print. Goossaert, Vincent, and David A. Palmer. The Religious Question in Modern China. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 2011. Print. Mu, Zhang, Li, Huang, Jiang-Hong,Wang, Ji, Liu, Yan-geng, Jie, and Lai Xiting. “Religious Tourism and Cultural Pilgrimage: A Chinese Perspective.” Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage Festivals Management: An International Perspective. Eds. Razaq Raj and Nigel D. Morpeth. Massachusetts: CABI, 2007. 98-112. Print. Palmer, David. “Religion.” Handbook of Contemporary China. Eds. William S. Tay and Alvin Y. So. London: World Scientific Publishing, 2012. 293-326. Print. Powers, John. “Bön: A Heterodox System.” Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism. Rambelli, Fabio. “Interactions between Buddhism and Local Cults: Considerations from the Perspective of Cultural Semiotics.” Shahar, Meir. The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts. Hawaii: U of Hawaii P, 2008. Print. Weller, Robert, and Sun Yanfei. “Religion: The Dynamics of Religion and Change.” China Today, China Tomorrow: Domestic Politics, Economy, and Society. Ed. Joseph Fewsmith. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 2010. 29-49. Print. Xu, Ming. “Shaolin Temples Identity Quandary.” Global Times, 17 Sept. 2012. Web. 21 May 2014. Yu, Dan Smyer. The Spread of Tibetan Buddhism in China: Charisma, Money, Enlightenment. Oxon: Routledge, 2012. Print. Read More