Religious Commodities or Cultural Elements?

Abstract

This article is a case study of a lay Buddhist community that employs a business model called “living hall” (Shenghuo guan 生活馆) to facilitate the practice of Tibetan Buddhism among its members. The living hall model is explored in the context of the politics of religion in the People’s Republic of China (prc) and the dynamics of Tibetan Buddhism among Han Chinese in the past decades. The author investigates the model’s origin, its implementation in a contemporary Buddhist community, and its interaction with the discourse on Buddhism in the prc. The article joins a recent academic endeavor to illuminate the different modalities in which lay practitioners carry out Buddhist practice outside the sphere of institutionalized Buddhism. The article sheds light on the delicate dynamics between religion and state control in the prc and the role of entrepreneurs and materiality within lay Tibetan Buddhism.

The Spatiality of Buddhism in Shenzhen: Exploration Through Guattari’s Three Ecologies

“…This approach to Buddhism, particularly the permitted worship practices for lay people visiting the temple, aligns with recent, broader efforts to mold Buddhism into a specific societal role, focusing on it as a tradition rather than solely a religion. These efforts are consistent with the overall soft power initiatives aimed at shaping the image and influence of Buddhism within society (Ashiwa 2020;Shmushko 2022aShmushko , 2022b.…”

“…Scholars point out that some lay Buddhists strongly believe in merit-making and perform merit-making in various ways (Kieschnick 2003;M. M. Yang 2020;Shmushko 2021Shmushko , 2022a. | 99…”

“…Nevertheless, as I encountered in my fieldwork in Wutong, these regulations do not prevent multiple individuals and groups of devotees from finding creative ways in physical and cyber space to practice their religions and beliefs, and often in many visible, out-in-the-open ways. In fact, in the past decade, many Chinese people create worship and practice groups that are active in private spaces, offices, and shops outside the sphere of institutional Buddhism, that is, not connected officially to a temple or an otherwise registered religious organization (Fisher 2020;Shmushko 2022a).…”

Digital Footprints of Buddhism in Chinese-Speaking Cyberspace: Ethnography, Developments, and Challenges

“…Asiascape: Digital Asia 10 (2023) 53-73 But they use Weibo to sell their products online (as they are a religious community and a registered business). The use of Weibo, therefore, ultimately supports their Buddhist practices both structurally and economically (Shmushko 2022a(Shmushko , 2022b.…”