The Contemporary Transition Of Shaolin Temple In Social Function

In Chinese ancient society, the social function of Shaolin temple mainly assembled in the three factors of social maintained function, metal comfort and cultural conmmunication. Since the Shaolin temple always served the policy in their history, to adjust the conflict between the ruling class and the ruled class, the core function of Shaolin temple is the social maintained function. But nowadays, Shaolin temple became an independent religion substance under the condition of market economy rather than an affiliation of policy, and its social function also changed, to concentrate mainly in social economic function, cultural function and communicating function, and the most conspicuous function among the three above is social economic function.There were many causes which led to the change of social function of Shaolin temple. First, an important reason is the independent religionary policy. For this policy, our country not only managed religionary affairs by law and led the religion to adapt to the socialist society but also allow religionary groups communicating to foreign that base on equality and friendship. The policy supplied the law guarantee for the economic, cultural and communicating function of Shaolin temple. Second, the change of economic development model of Shaolin temple played an important role in the transition of social function, whereas the change of model of economic development of Shaolin temple derived mainly from the modern and unique administrating concept of the abbot, Shiyongxin, which managed Shaolin temple with the concept of modern enterprise management. Therefore, the main cause led to Shaolin temple's transition of social function is the abbot's concept. Second, the need of existence and development of the temple promoted partly the transition, and, indeed, the existence is the base of all problems. If the problem of existence couldn't be solved, it is no useful to talk about to inherit and propagandize the Shaolin culture. Besides, to adapt to the market economy and develop the religion culture has become two the important causes of the transition. Market economy supplied a great number of available social resources, for example: enterprise management, internet, movie, television, etc, which led Shaolin temple to the commercial way, and the economic function become increasingly prominent. Also because of this, Shaolin culture also won the diversified transmission way and methods of spread, its cultural function also increasingly significant. Obviously, although there are many causes of the social transition of Shaolin temple, the root of them is to adapt to the change of current society and the demand of time development.With the increasingly conspicuous function of economy, culture and communication of Shaolin temple, Shaolin temple has become gradually famous in the domestic and foreign people. First, the frequent performance abroad and inventing the famous people in the world to visit led to a lot of foreign to understand and expand the influence of Chinese traditional cultural. What's more, with the strengthening influence of Shaolin temple, there formed a"zen"craze in the worldwide. The present value of"zen"gained people acceptance and expanded the applied space of zen. At last, the more important results of the transition of Shaolin temple were to adapt to not only the demand of time development but also the taste of modern people, to narrow the distant between traditional culture and contemporary society and to strengthen the affinity between Shaolin culture and common people. At the same time, the Shaolin temple social function changes also makes the Shaolin temple secularization enhance, as well as the sanctity drops. As is known to all, sacred and secular is the inherent attributes religious and secular, the sanctity of the tension between the impulsion of religious rapid development, consequently, how to grasp both the equilibrium relationship between the development prospects of religion. Sanctity is religious essential attribute, the Shaolin temple social function changes brought about by the sacredness weaken certainly meant the Shaolin temple, the lack of religious connotation. In the long run, necessary for the future development of the Shaolin temple has a very adverse effects. Obviously, there were existent both positive and negative effect in the transition of social function of Shaolin temple. Only to promote the positive effect continuously and to adopt various measures to weaken the negative effect, could the Shaolin temple prosperity and serve to the construction of harmonious society.