Chapter 1186 The Returnee's Notes 260
Nowadays, many temples inevitably show some signs of commercialization.
Buddhist holy sites should be solemn and dignified places in the eyes of others, where people devoutly worship and seek solace for their souls. However, nowadays, temples have become more of a place filled with commercial transactions and the pursuit of profit.
For example, selling expensive incense, charging for lamps for prayer items, and releasing animals.
It gives you a feeling of buying peace of mind with money.
These behaviors have existed before, but they were not as obvious, leading people to question the purity of religious activities.
In particular, a large number of commercial shops have sprung up around it, selling all kinds of goods related to or unrelated to Buddhism. On one hand, it is noisy and bustling, with tourists shopping and spending money. On the other hand, it still maintains relative tranquility, with incense burning and people practicing and contemplating in front of the Buddha.
The noise on that side has caused the temple to lose some of its original sacredness and solemnity, and the trend of commercialization has also brought a certain impact to traditional Buddhist culture.
Xie Ning doesn't think commercialization is bad. After all, such a trend is inevitable, because only by following the trend of the times can we move forward.
Those who fall behind will only be swallowed up by the torrent of history.
After all, temples also need maintenance and repair, especially some of the older temple buildings, and it is obviously unrealistic to rely solely on government funding.
In this way, commercialization can bring more funding, allowing the temple to be preserved for a long time.
In addition, it also helps to increase the temple's visibility, which is of great help in promoting their Buddhist teachings and facilitating cultural exchange.
The government also supports this, because at a deeper level, religion is a means of stabilizing society, and its commercialization can also drive the development of the surrounding economy and create more job opportunities.
——
Ouyang Lin rubbed her hands together; it was indeed warmer inside.
"The difference lies in whether he primarily uses chanting scriptures to convert people or resorts to force."
Most monks primarily chant scriptures to guide and convert others, and monks or Buddhist or Taoist figures are rarely seen in many movies and TV series. Instead, there are more films about Taoist priests catching ghosts, perhaps because it looks more flashy.
Ouyang Lin didn't quite understand, because in her view, what was shown in the movie was similar to the effects they usually put on to increase people's credibility. It looked impressive, but in reality, many of them were just illusions, and it didn't actually need to be that complicated.
However, it wouldn't be entirely accurate to say they were Taoist priests; they could only be considered to be somewhat related.
Speaking of this, Ouyang Lin couldn't help but think of Huangshan Mountain. "You know Huangshan Mountain, right?"
“I know,” said Huang Lili’s father.
"He is a Buddhist practitioner, a lay disciple, so there are no restrictions on him getting married and having children. They have family traditions, but some of them practice Buddhism. The beads he uses are actually Buddhist beads."
Huang Lili said she originally wanted to come to Huangshan this time, but Yuan Ming refused, and she's probably feeling really nauseous right now.
At first, Ouyang Lin didn't understand why Yuan Ming refused, but when she saw Huifa, she understood.
Xie Ning then remembered that she still had the beaded string that Huang Lili had given her, which was indeed quite useful.
Ouyang Lin glanced at the room. There was definitely no air conditioning here. To make it warmer, they would have to heat the kang (a traditional heated brick bed). However, the kang had been heated long ago, which made her furrowed brows relax a bit.
She definitely wouldn't know how to heat the kang (a traditional heated bed), and Xie Ning, being from the south, certainly wouldn't either.
But why does Xie Ning look so relaxed?
They seem quite familiar with this environment.
It was so cold that Ouyang Lin felt like her brain was freezing. She took off her shoes and climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed). The bright red floral quilt was heavy but warm, and the kang was also heated up nicely.
Xie Ning wasn't that cold. Because of her years of meditation, her physical condition had improved a lot, and she was also much more resistant to heat and cold. "I'll go get some hot water."
As I pushed open the door, fluttering snowflakes landed on my coarse woolen coat, turning it into a blanket of snow in no time.
In autumn and winter in Jiangnan, the leaves turn yellow but don't fall completely. After a couple of days of cold wind, a clear morning arrives with fallen leaves filling the streets and white frost covering the courtyards. The moonlight is gentle and shimmering, making it feel more like spring than winter.
Winter in the north is different. After the winter's fierce winds, the persimmon tree in the courtyard has lost all its leaves, with only two or three red dots on the branches, which are the remaining persimmons. They are covered with snow, and one must be wary of the sparrows nearby.
The owner of the courtyard was an old man in his seventies. When Xie Ning came to get hot water, he brought her a small stove. "It's cold outside. Keep the water warm at night so you won't have to drink cold water when you're thirsty."
The people renting this courtyard are strange; they're all dressed in weird ways. Could this be some kind of illegal organization?
The old man immediately felt a sense of unease.
Xie Ning wasn't the only one who came to fetch water and a stove; Xuehu also came, his white hair dazzlingly bright.
The old man couldn't help but touch his head. Although this person was wearing a mask, he didn't look old at all. How come his hair was whiter than his own?
He knew, of course, that hair could be dyed, but this man's eyebrows were all white, which looked a bit scary.
Could it be leukemia? Oh dear, that's a terrible disease.
"Wait here, I'll take it to this girl and then come back for you."
Xie Ning glanced at the wind and snow outside and replied, "It's alright, sir, I can carry it myself. You don't need to come out; it's windy outside."
"Huh?"
Seeing that Xie Ning seemed to be walking without any difficulty, the old man stopped and clasped his hands together. "Alright, slow down, don't fall."
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