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As a spiritual leader, the allegations were disturbing. Mistresses, offspring born out of wedlock, embezzlement. But in 2015, the chief monk of Shaolin monastery, the birthplace of Zen Buddhism and kung-fu in China, was untouchable. Shi Yongxin, labeled the “CEO monk” who transformed the 1,500-year-old monastery into a commercial empire worth hundreds of millions of Chinese currency, stayed in control. Soon, he was exonerated of all charges.

A Decade Later

However a decade after, the 60-year-old cleric faced less fortune. In July, shortly after Shi came back from a visit to the Holy See to see the deceased Pope Francis, the monastery released a announcement saying that he was under scrutiny for reportedly misappropriating funds and for fathering illegitimate children with multiple partners. Less than a two weeks after, he was dismissed and lost his monkhood. He has not been heard from after that.

Shi’s demise, for accusations resembling those made—and survived—in the year 2015, was the most high profile in a string of incidents that have shaken the nation's Buddhist temples in recent months.

Controversies and Government Scrutiny

The controversies reveal the more precarious position of powerful religious leaders in the country, as government backing for the monetization of religious sites gives way to an focus on frugality and political obedience.

In the same month, a well-known monk known as the monk Daolu—real name {Wu Bing|Wu—was lost his title by the national Buddhist organization after authorities in Zhejiang announced that he was being investigated for alleged deception. Wu is alleged to have collecting public donations under the pretext of raising funds for single expectant mothers and underprivileged youth, which was actually used on personal extravagances. It is not clear if Wu, who has vanished after the news broke, denies the allegation.

In August, a recording of clerics from the city of Hangzhou's Lingyin Temple sitting around a table handling large sums of money spread quickly online, thrusting the 4th century temple into a social media storm.

“People who practice Buddhism struggle financially, and monks gain wealth,” wrote one social media user.

Prosperity and Spirituality

There is nothing built-in in Chinese Buddhism that prohibits the amassing of wealth, notes an expert, an associate professor of East and South Asian religions. In medieval times, religious centers stood in for financial institutions, lending cash to traders while imposing high interest rates.

But while collecting donations for spiritual causes is seen as permissible, becoming wealthy can put a mark on one’s back.

Criticism stems from the public who see riches as being spiritually corrosive, and, increasingly, from the government, which under the guidance of the country's leader has cracked down on opulence and dishonesty.

Restructuring the Temple's Business

China’s religious sites have swung between government support in recent decades. In the ruling party's agricultural restructuring in the 1950s, temples were lost their assets. Countless religious sites were damaged or harmed in the political movement of the 1960s-70s. But as China entered a era of economic reform and global engagement in the 1980s, monasteries were once again popular, with many embracing visitor attractions to support themselves, often with clear state backing.

Of the prominent monastic leaders who appeared to benefit personally in this time, the abbot was the most successful. Born Liu Yingcheng, he entered the monastery in Henan province as a 16-year-old in 1981. Back then, the temple was in ruins. But as Shi advanced to head abbot, he worked with authorities to re-open religious spaces and charge entry to visitors. Quickly, millions were flocking in, with the local government taking a seventy percent share. Stores selling Shaolin-branded merchandise also appeared, and Shaolin Inc was created.

Shi’s reputation grew in the process. In 2006, the local administration gave him a luxury sports car valued at a million yuan to recognize his contributions to the area's visitor economy. He shrugged off complaints, stating “Monks also need to eat.”

As wealth increased came political power. Between 1998 and 2018 he served as a representative to China’s National People’s Congress. Over the years, he met international figures, Henry Kissinger and royalty, and took a troupe of kung-fu practitioners to Moscow for a special performance at the invitation of the Russian leader. It led one local near the temple to remark that the political heft of local CCP officials seemed paltry in contrast to Shi.

The Boom and Issues of the Temple Economy

The Shaolin temple’s fame rose as the so-called “religious commerce” in the country expanded—its market size is predicted to hit 100bn yuan by the close of the year.

While China faces slow economic growth, temples in principle are a gift to both authorities and the public. The officials benefit from rising local consumption as people flock to religious destinations, while people struggling to secure employment or purpose in Chinese society are increasingly seeking spirituality for support.

But monasteries also must tread an ever-tighter path between public appeal and political obedience. “Authorities is very attentive to how much influence is being amassed by religion,” the expert says.

Analysts think that Shi’s ouster could have been due to a withdrawal of political support rather than any particular wrongdoing.

“Typically that there is something else [going on] that has to do with support networks,” comments a writer, the author of a book on religion, a book about religion in China.

The leader has shown a keen focus in traditional Chinese religions. In his earlier years he assisted in re-open significant monasteries and turn them into tourist attractions, a blueprint for how the secular government could cooperate with faith.

But in recent times, the leader has attempted to dial back the excesses of religious commercialisation. In 2017, Beijing revised its rules on religious affairs, noting that temples risked damaging the “respectable reputation” of the nation's traditional beliefs. The updated rules required that Buddhist and Taoist sites must be non-profit operations and prohibited the over-marketing of paid-for religious practices such as lighting offerings and drawing lots for predictions.

Changes Ahead

Now it appears that the Shaolin monastery, set in the jagged Song Mountains, is being brought to heel. Upon being appointed in the summer, Shi Yongxin’s successor, an monk called Shi Yinle with a reputation for frugality, declared an overhaul of Shaolin Inc. He halted paid shows, prohibited expensive consecration rituals, said he would close {temple shops|on