shaolin temple

Luxury Robe Causes Controversy For Shaolin Temple's CEO Monk

Here's an unlikely place for a luxury controversy, China's famed Shaolin Temple. The abbot of the temple, Shi Yongxin, has ruffled feathers by accepting a luxury cassock with traditional Buddhist patterns woven in gold thread. The cassock was a gift from a private brocade company. Xinhua reports that Zhang Hongbao, the cassock's designer, said the gold thread alone cost over $7,000.Shi has said that he never asked for the cassock and that it would be housed in the temple museum which is to be built.

The monastery has also faced criticism for installing restrooms worth $430,000 for tourists and accepting a four-wheel-drive vehicle from the local government. Many disprove of the gift of the brocaded robe and Shi has been called the "CEO monk" for running Shaolin like a business, making money from kungfu shows, film production and online sales. Shi has managed the temple's affairs since 1987 and officially took over as abbot in 1999. Some find his approach toward growing the temple and its multimillion dollar businesses un-monklike while others praise him for keeping the name of Shaolin temple out in the world.

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Tags: china, luxury, monks, shaolin temple, ShaolinTemple

Luxury Car for Shaolin Monk

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

The Dengfeng City government in China has given the gift of a luxury sport sedan worth 1 million Yuan (about $125,500) to Shi Yongxin, the abbot of Shaolin Temple, for helping to promote local tourism. The temple is considered to be the birthplace of king fu and attracts millions of tourists to an otherwise poor area. Even with the fame of the temple, many feel that the car was an inappropriate gift for a monk, since they are supposed to be "renowned for their austerity." Others thought that it should not matter that Yongxin is a monk, since by running the temple he does so much for the region. The abbot seemed pleased with his prize and said "I dream of getting a bigger prize next year."

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Tags: abbot, car, china, gift, Kung Fu, luxury car, monk, shaolin, shaolin showdown, shaolin temple, temple