Author: Javier C Hernández
Publication: Sunday Times
Date: September 11, 2016
URL:   http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31804&articlexml=Chinas-burned-out-turn-to-tech-savvy-monastery-11092016015039

For centuries, Buddhists seeking enlightenment made the journey to Longquan Monastery, a lonesome temple on a hilltop in northwest Beijing. Here, they meditated, chanted and read old texts.

Now a new generation has arrived. They wear hoodies, watch TV shows and use chat apps to trade mantras. Many, with jobs at some of China's hottest and most demanding companies, feel burned-out and spiritually adrift, and are looking for change. “Life in the outside world is stressful, “said Sun Shaoxuan, 39, the chief tech officer at an education start-up. “Here, I can be at peace.”

As a spiritual revival sweeps China, Longquan has become a haven for a distinct brand of Buddhism, one that preaches connectivity instead of seclusion and that emphasizes practical advice over deep philosophy. It is run by what may be some of the most highly educated monks: nuclear physicists, math prodigies and computer programmers who gave up lives steeped in precision to explore the ambiguities of the spiritual realm. To build a large following, the monks have put their digital prowess to work. They have pioneered a popular series of cartoons based on Buddhist ideas like suffering and reincarnation. This past spring, they introduced a robot named Xian'er to field questions from visitors, the temple's foray into artificial intelligence.

Traditionalists worry that Longquan's flashy high-tech tools may have muddled the teachings of the Buddha, the dharma. But the leader of the monastery, the Venerable Xuecheng, who dispenses bits of wisdom every day to millions of online followers, has defended his approach, saying that Buddhism can stay relevant only by embracing modern tools. The modernity of Longquan is inescapable; it is equipped with fingerprint scanners, webcams and iPads for studying Buddhist texts. Its proximity to several of Beijing's top universities and its main science and technology hubs has made it popular among young people.

Longquan is also renowned in start-up circles, in part because of a rumour involving Zhang Xiaolong, one of the inventors of WeChat, a messaging app. News articles have claimed that Zhang, having hit a stumbling block, attended a retreat at the temple, after which he gained inspiration for WeChat. (Zhang has denied the reports).