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Luxury cassock cloaks luster of famed Shaolin Temple

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-06-09 15:38

Gold and jade accessories of the cassock, which was given to Shaolin Abbot Shi Yongxin as a gift by a silk company, are seen in Songshan, Henan province, June 7, 2009. [CFP]

Shi has managed the temple's affairs since 1987 and officially took over as abbot in 1999.

In 2006, Shi received a vehicle from Henan officials in recognition of his services to local tourism. Chinese Internet commentators accused him of greed after the 44-year-old monk suggested he hoped for a bigger present the next year.

Last year, Shaolin came into limelight again after it built "five-star restrooms" in its compounds for tourists. The most lavish of the toilets measures more than 150 square meters (1,614 square feet) and is equipped with a diaper changing station for infants, uniformed cleaners and a foyer with an LCD television.

An official resume of Shi said he was sent to Shaolin by his parents as a teenager because they found he was clever and committed to Buddhism.

But different versions of Shi's resume circulating on the Internet can easily be found. One of them suggests he was a vender of mouse poisons and questions the methods he employed to become abbot.

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