Jingan Musings
2015-07-23
In times of trouble or when i need some peace, i visit places of
worship. Back home(malaysia) it will be either a temple (chinese, hindu or sikh),
church or a mosque. You must wonder why.. I cant actually put my finger
to it.. or clearly define the reasons to why i do it, but its something about the places
of worship that just brings me calm.. Some places of worship are busy and some are peaceful and beautiful with fantastic work of arts lining the walls.I must admit that i am an atheist.. but i have been brought up as a Hindu from young as my parents and family are all Hindus. Whether i like it or not, there is definitely an influence of the religion on me. Buddhism is an offshoot of the Hindu religion.. and Taoism that is practiced here in China is very similar to what is practiced by Hindus. I have been raised to accept all religion and not judge nor reject any of it. After all, religion is totally individual as each experience it differently.
Recent events in my life has been no short of an adventure.. i wouldn't want to call it hard times as i believe that each events bring me experience making me the person i am. Its been a total roller coaster.. hence as usual i needed some time to stay away from it all and get some divine blessing.. (i know i am an atheist)
I have been to some places of worship in shanghai and it is great and most is well taken care of. The Pudong mosque, The Yuyuan garden Mosque, The temples scattered around Pudong and Puxi. Each unique to its own and magnificent.
The beautiful Jingan Temple (picture courtesy of Shanghai Ethnic And Religions Affairs Committee)
However something irked me when i was getting into Jingan temple. I had to pay RMB 50 to enter a place of worship (i understand that its free on the 1st and 15th of the lunar calendar).. which made me wonder if i am entering a carnival arena or a pay per the feature.. Places of worship always work from donations and i am sure places that are famous such as Jingan gets a lion share of the donations.. Hence with collecting an entry fee it defeats the purpose of it being a place of worship. Its not about the RMB 50.. which is a small, its more about being a temple rather being an amusement.. last i remember reading about Buddhism, there was no mention about money in their teachings or the way of life. To me this seems like it has been turned into a business. If i investigate further i am sure there will be more interesting findings but that's not the reason why i am here.
Leaving the irks behind.. i find a corner to settle down whilst resting my head on the pillar, .. pondering solutions to my worldly problems. Interesting how we complicate matters.. but that's going to be another blog.
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