This week, news about a well-known Chinese monk going off the Buddhist path has triggered many discussions on Chinese social media.

The story revolves around Shi Yongxin (释永信), the head monk at China’s famous Shaolin Temple (少林寺) in Dengfeng, Henan. Shi is suspected of embezzlement of temple funds and illicit relationships, and is currently under investigation.

In recent days, wild rumors have been circulating online claiming that Shi fled to the United States after being exposed. On July 26, a supposed “police bulletin” began circulating, alleging that Shi Yongxin had attempted to leave the country with seven lovers, 21 children, and six temple staff. It also claimed he was stopped by authorities before exiting China, that he had secretly obtained U.S. citizenship a decade ago, and that he had misused donations and assumed fake identities.

Although that specific report has since been refuted by Chinese official media, it quickly became clear that there was real fire behind all that smoke.

The report that circulated online and was later confirmed to be fake

Because despite all the sensationalized gossip (some posts even claimed Shi had 174 illegitimate children!), what’s certain is that Shi Yongxin seriously crossed the line. On July 27, 2025, the Shaolin Temple Management Office (少林寺管理处) issued an official statement through its verified channels, including its WeChat account. The statement read:

The report that circulated online and was later confirmed to be fake.

China’s Buddhist Association (中国佛教协会) also released a statement on July 28, in which it stated that, in coordination with the Henan Provincial Buddhist Association (河南省佛教协会), Shi Yongxin has been officially stripped of his monastic status.

Various Chinese media sources report that Shi Yongxin was taken away by police on Friday, July 25. Chinese media outlet Caixin suggests that it must not have come as a complete surprise, since Shi had allegedly already been restricted from leaving the country since around the Spring Festival period (late January 2025) (#释永信春节前后已被限制出境#).

 
About Shi Yongxin
 

Shi Yongxin is not just any abbot. He’s the abbot of the Shaolin Monastery (少林寺), which is one of the most famous Buddhist temples in the world and is known as the birthplace of Shaolin Kung Fu. The temple was founded in 495 CE. Besides being a Buddhist monastery, it also operates as a popular tourist attraction, a kung fu school, and a cultural brand.

Shi has been running the monastery for 38 years, a fact that also went trending on Weibo these days (#释永信已全面主持少林寺38年#, 140 million views by Monday).

Shi Yongxin is the monastic name of Liu Yingcheng (刘应成), born in Yinshang county in Fuyang, Anhui, in 1965. He came to Shaolin Temple in 1981 and became a disciple of abbot Shi Xingzheng (释行正), who passed away in 1987. Shi Yongxin then followed in his footsteps and managed the temple affairs. He formally became head monk in 1999.

Moreover, Shi Yongxin reportedly served as President of the Henan Provincial Buddhist Association since 1998 and as Vice President of the Buddhist Association of China since 2002.

Shi Yongxin, photos via Weibo.

Shi Yongxin was thus an incredibly powerful figure—not only because of the decades he spent overseeing temple affairs, but also due to his influence within public, institutional, and religious spheres.

Holding such a visible role, Shi Yongxin (释永信) also had (or has—though it’s unlikely he’ll ever post again) a Weibo account with over 882,000 followers (@释永信师父). His last post, made on July 24, was a Buddhist text about the ‘Pure Land’ (净土)—a realm said to make the path toward enlightenment easier.

That post has since attracted hundreds of replies. While some devoted followers express disbelief over the scandal, many others respond with cynicism, questioning whether anything about Buddhism remains truly ‘pure.’

One widely shared post shows an artist sitting in front of a painting of Shi Yongxin, writing, “Worked on this painting for six months, just finished late last night—feels like the sky’s collapsed.” The second picture, posted by someone else, says, “Just change it a bit.”

One aspect of the scandal fueling online discussions is the fact that Shi Yongxin had led the monastery for so long. Rumors about his “chaotic private life” and unethical behavior surfaced years ago, going back to at least 2015 (#释永信10年前就曾被举报私生活混乱#; #释永信曾被举报向弟子索要供养钱#). One of the questions now echoing across social media is: why wasn’t he held accountable sooner? “Who was protecting him?”

 
“The Tip of the Iceberg”
 

The Shi Yongxin scandal does not just hurt the reputation and cultural brand of the Shaolin Monastery; it also damages a certain image of Buddhist monks as a collective of people with true faith and integrity.

According to well-known knowledge blogger Pingyuan Gongzi Zhao Sheng (@平原公子赵胜), many people’s understanding of abbots or Buddhist masters (“方丈大师们”) is flawed, since it’s generally believed they attained their high positions within the monasteries due to their moral virtue or deep understanding of Buddhism. In reality, Zhao Sheng argues, these individuals often rise to power because they are skilled at earning money and gaining influence.

“To put it bluntly,” Zhao Sheng writes, “temples have been places of deception, corruption, opportunism, and exploitation since ancient times.”

The blogger argues that much of the influence and power of Buddhist masters was stripped away under Mao Zedong, but that some new famous monks rose in the 1980s, using their skills and connections to rebuild temples and turn them into thriving enterprises.

“If you want to find a few people in temples who truly have faith, who truly have personal integrity, and who are truly dedicated to saving all living things, it’s not that they don’t exist—but it’s rather difficult, like finding a needle in a haystack,” Zhao Sheng wrote.

Some commenters suggest that Shi Yongxin is just the tip of the iceberg (“冰山一角”). They believe that if someone as influential as him can be involved in such misconduct—despite whistleblowers having tried to expose him for over a decade—there must be many more cases of power abuse and corruption within China’s monasteries.

“I previously donated money to the temple,” one commenter on Xiaohongshu wrote: “Although it wasn’t much, it does make me a bit uncomfortable now.”

Another person posted that the Shi Yongxin scandal gave them a sense of despair.

Some older posts about the extravagant lifestyles of head monks — including their luxury cars — have also resurfaced online and are once again making the rounds, suggesting that netizens are actively revisiting other potential instances of misconduct within the monastic world.

Abbot Guangquan Fashi (光泉法师) with a Ferrari California T, Kaihao Fashi (开豪法师) with a Porsche Panamera, Shi Yongxin (释永信) linked to an Audi Q7, and Huiqing (慧庆) and a BMW 7 Series.

One image that resurfaced online shows Shi Yongxin—allegedly driving an Audi Q7—alongside other abbots, such as Guangquan Fashi (光泉法师), the head monk of Lingyin Temple (灵隐寺), who is associated with a Ferrari.

More images like these are now circulating, as people delve into the ‘secret lives of monks’ beyond the spiritual, shifting focus to their material lives instead.

Monks from major temples, including Qin Shangshi (钦尚师) of Famen Temple, E’erdeni (鄂尔德尼) of Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Yin Le (印乐) of Baima Temple, and Huiqing (慧庆) of Baishou Temple, are rumored to be associated with high-end cars like BMWs, a Porsche Cayenne, and a Range Rover.

While the results of the investigation into Shi Yongxin are still pending, many netizens are already looking beyond him. One person writes: “Are you realizing now? It’s not just Shaolin Temple that has money, other temples aren’t exactly short on money either.”

Another person wonders: “Are the monks in today’s temples actually still truly devoted to spiritual practice at all?”

By Manya Koetse

(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

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On July 16, locals in Yuhang (余杭), a district of Hangzhou, noticed something fishy about their running water. It had turned brown and smelled unpleasant.

From residential compounds in Liangzhu to Renhe Street (良渚街道–仁和街道), some residents complained that their water smelled like “dead rats,” while others thought it resembled the odor of sewage, and later started smelling like disinfectant or other chemicals.

Soon, rumors began to spread that there was poop in the water, sparking panic among residents from Yuhang and beyond, especially because no official bulletin had been released explaining what was wrong with their tap water, despite its strange color and scent.

Worried about what was in the water, many people refrained from bathing, cooking, or cleaning, and rushed to supermarkets to stock up on bottled water.

The incident became known among netizens as the “Hangzhou Stinky Water Incident” (杭州臭水事件).

Later that same day, the water utility company stated that the quality of the main pipeline water had been restored, recommending local communities and residents to flush out the pipes and let the faucets run for up to 30 minutes to get rid of residual water.

In some neighborhoods, however, the water remained brown for some time – perhaps due to water tanks that had not been thoroughly cleaned yet.

Even days after, on July 24 and also later, locals posted on social media about the water being yellowish or leaving brownish residue on white cloths inside the sink. Videos posted online showed that the run on bottled water continued after July 16.

“They say it’s ok for us to use,” one commenter said: “But how can ordinary people like us actually use it?!”

 
Algae in the Water, Officials Punished
 

On July 19, official media reported that preliminary findings linked the water issues to algae contamination. Yuhang authorities issued an apology, and the water company announced it would waive 5 tons of water fees per household—roughly 20 yuan ($2.8) (or about the price of a takeaway milk tea, which many suggested) (hashtag: #余杭水务承诺为臭水用户免5吨水费#).

Nearly a week after residents first started noticing a problem with their water, an official report on the issue was finally released on July 23, following an investigation launched by Hangzhou authorities.

The report confirmed that the extremely warm weather had indeed led to rapid algae growth in the water bodies near the intake point of the Renhe Water Plant (人和水厂) on the Dongtiaoxi (东苕溪) River, which supplies treated drinking water to Hangzhou and nearby areas.

After recent rainfall and runoff, algae and their breakdown products (which include foul-smelling sulfur compounds) accumulated near the intake and entered the plant in the early hours of July 16. After discovering the issue that morning, the water company quickly switched to a new water source.

Following the incident, the relevant water authorities conducted a city-wide inspection and found that all water plants met national standards, with no harmful bacteria such as E. coli detected.

Nevertheless, the Hangzhou municipal authorities concluded that the response to the water crisis was flawed on multiple levels. The water supply company, for instance, failed to promptly notify residents, while the district government was slow in coordinating the response and reporting it to city-level authorities.

In total, seven local officials were formally held accountable for their handling of the incident. Some received official warnings, while others faced more serious consequences, including the Deputy General Manager of the Yuhang Environmental Protection Science and Tech Company (under the Yuhang Water Group), who was removed from his position and expelled from the Party.

 
Awakening a Trust Crisis That Already Existed
 

On Chinese social media, the entire “stinky water incident” has been trending for days. The anger isn’t just about the algae itself, but more about how officials handled the situation: the delay in informing residents, the late investigation, and the media machine that echoes the official line.

It’s also because this is about running water — the lifeline of any city. It’s what you bathe in, cook with, and wash your child with. It crosses the boundary between public infrastructure and private life.

One post on Xiaohongshu called tap water safety “a barometer of a city’s level of civilization” (“自来水安全是城市文明的试纸”).

Multiple people felt that they weren’t — and still aren’t — getting the right information about what is wrong with their water. One Weibo commenter wrote:

Earlier this month, the Tianshui lead scandal also made headlines after more than 250 children in a kindergarten in Tianshui, Gansu Province, were poisoned after staff used industrial pigments to color food, some containing over 20% lead and far exceeding safety limits.

The Yuhang stinky water incident isn’t introducing new fears, but rather awakening a trust crisis that already existed. It’s sharpening public awareness around food and water safety, and fueling skepticism toward the official narratives and media reports that follow.

On July 23, residents in Rizhao’s Wulian County also reported murky tap water in their homes and posted videos about it.

According to some Chinese media reports, the problems with the muddy tap water in Rizhao – like in Hangzhou – also related to the hot weather. One spokesperson reportedly stated that water levels in the reservoirs wa dropping quickly. Combined with low water pressure, this led to water quality problems in the pipes and supply lines. Some neighborhoods reportedly have no water at all.

“How can unqualified water even enter the pipes?” some concerned netizens asked.

“Is this the beginning of a water crisis?” others wonder.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, some commenters joked: “They saw Hangzhou trending and felt competitive, and wanted to make the hot search lists too.”

By Manya Koetse

(follow on X, LinkedIn, or Instagram)

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

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