Dozens of monks left the monastery Shaolin after the tightening of the regime (5 photos)

The new abbot of the Shaolin Buddhist monastery, Shi Yinle, has carried out reforms, in particular, monks can now use smartphones for no more than half an hour a day. Against this background, dozens of novices have left the monastery in a week.





Shi Yinle, known for his modesty but ideological conviction, immediately after his appointment as abbot on July 29, carried out "five decisive reforms." Commercial performances have been stopped, expensive initiation rituals have been banned, shops on the monastery grounds have been closed, monks are ordered to provide for their own living by farming whenever possible, and the income distribution system has been changed.



Those Shaolin monks, they have cool sneakers

In addition, the new mentor suspended international tourist programs with martial arts demonstrations. Monks are required to participate in morning prayers, starting at 04:30, after which they must do farming, and then practice martial arts. All this time, their smartphones must be kept in a special storage, they can be used for a maximum of 30 minutes a day. In addition, all forms of entertainment are prohibited, the newspaper clarifies.





Kung Fu Fans Come Here From All Over the World

According to the publication, more than 30 people left the monastery during the first week with the new leadership, but it remains unknown whether they left for other monasteries or decided to return to secular life completely. In particular, some monks complain about restrictions on the use of smartphones. They are often used to read sacred texts, and losing access to a smartphone is akin to "losing one hand," one of the monks explained.



And the novices have black sneakers. I can't live in a country without color differentiation of sneakers!

The change in leadership occurred at the end of July, when the monastery announced that the former temple teacher Shi Yongxin was suspected of "committing a criminal offense, embezzling and misappropriating funds allocated for projects," as well as "serious violations of Buddhist precepts, long-term illicit relationships with many women, and having illegitimate children." The Buddhist Association of China defrocked him. The new teacher Shi Yinle criticized the monastery's practices, reproaching the monks for the fact that some of them "simultaneously do not study and do not work to the proper extent." In particular, he expressed dissatisfaction that some monks ordered food to meditation places, listened to pop music while chanting mantras.



This is the previous abbot, you can see that he is a plump fellow