Bureau probing controversial Shaolin Temple abbot

Shi Yongxin

Chinese authorities are investigating allegations of misbehavior made online against the controversial abbot of China’s famed Shaolin Temple, the Associated Press reported yesterday.
Furthermore according to the Financial Times, the abbot, who turned the temple where kung fu was invented into a sprawling commercial empire, failed to turn up at a Buddhist meeting in Thailand this weekend fuelling speculation that he is under investigation after weeks of lurid allegations.
Shi Yongxin, the round-faced, yellow-robed “CEO monk” who heads the Shaolin Temple, has been accused by a former disciple of fathering several children out of wedlock and embezzling money, the FT reported.
The religious affairs bureau under the Denfeng city government says it was asked by the national body to look into the claims against Master Shi Yongxin.
“Our bureau takes this extremely seriously and will swiftly clarify … and ensure a correct understanding of the matter,” the bureau said in a one-sentence notice was issued late last week and viewed on the city government website yesterday.
The notice didn’t specify any of the claims, although media reports say the accusations include that Shi fathered children with at least two women and embezzled temple funds.
A statement posted on the temple website dismissed the claims as “untrue rumors” fabricated by people seeking to harm Zen Buddhism. It said the temple has already contacted legal authorities about bringing a libel case against those publishing the claims.
“We hope the broad masses will can respect the law, respect the reputation of others and uphold the fair and just legal social environment,” the statement said.
Shi has been criticized by some for seeking to turn the temple and its famed kung fu fighting monks into a commercial enterprise.
He made an international splash in February when he announced plans for Shaolin to build a USD297 million complex in Australia that would include a temple, a hotel, a kung fu academy and a golf course.
The temple, built in the late fifth century, has defended aggressive commercialization as the best way to defend its heritage and spread its Buddhist message.
Religious activity in China is managed by government bureaucracies, and the revenue-generating potential of popular temples that survived several decades of Communist upheaval is often combined with suspicion over their potential influence.
According to the FT, Abbot Shi enjoyed the blessing of the authorities and was a member of the National People’s Congress and vice-chairman of the state-backed Buddhist Association of China.