Yonghe Temple’s visitors in April 2023. Image credit: Soeren Stache/picture alliance/dpa/Getty Images
Chinese people are praying for economic help. China’s reopening after Covid-19 was expected to boost the global economy. The economy of the world’s second largest country is slowing down after an initial period of growth.
Young people are turning to Buddhist and Taoist temples to pray for help in finding jobs, getting into good schools, or becoming wealthy due to the worsening economic situation.
Chinese exports dropped by 7.5% in May compared to the same period last year due to a decrease in global demand. Manufacturing decreased and youth unemployment reached a new high.
Analysts and travel websites report that economic uncertainty has led to an increase in temple visits and tourism.
Young Chinese people are using the hashtag “No school-going, no hard-working, only incense-burning” to showcase a trend of visiting temples to pray for luck as a way to escape the high-pressure society.
According to a survey by Qunar.com and Xiaohongshu, “Incense-burning youth” is the top catchphrase in China’s tourism industry this year.
In April, the official statistics showed that the jobless rate for individuals aged 16 to 24 hit a record high of 20.4%.
11.6 million college students are estimated to enter the job market this summer, which could worsen the already tough job market for youth unemployment.
Temples attract different types of worshippers. The Yonghe Temple in Beijing is a popular site for those seeking career or financial success and caters to the Tibetan Buddhism faith.
Ryan Pyle/Corbis/Getty Images/File
Qunar reported that the temple had a 530% increase in visitors in March and early April compared to the same period last year, making it the temple with the largest increase in visitors in the country.
China is an atheist country that acknowledges five religions: Buddhism, Taoism, Protestantism, Catholicism, and Islam. Chinese culture has two main religions with numerous temples and monasteries throughout the country.
According to data from Qunar and Trip.com, temple visits have increased more than four times compared to last year. The sites report that approximately 50% of their visitors are in their 20s and 30s.
According to Yang Yan, an analyst with Chinese brokerage firm Nanjing Securities, young people are increasingly seeking relief from stress by turning to traditional culture, such as temple prayer and blessings, amidst pressure from school, jobs, marriage, and relationships.
According to the speaker, social media has contributed to the increase in temple tourism, as young people enjoy sharing their experiences on social networks.
Emei and Jiuhua are two of China’s “four sacred mountains of Buddhism” that house the largest Buddhist temples and cultural heritage sites in the country.
Emei Mountain in southwestern Sichuan province had 2.48 million visitors between January and May, a 53% increase from the same period in 2019.
Emei Shan Tourism had a successful first quarter, with a record net profit of $9.8 million, which is a 262% increase from the same period in 2019.
The stock of the company experienced a 44% surge in the past 10 trading sessions, making it one of the top performers on Chinese stock markets.
Anhui Jiuhuashan Tourism Development broke quarterly sales records by managing the Jiuhua Mountain scenic area in central Anhui province.
The company’s revenue in the first quarter of 2021 increased by 43% compared to the same period in 2019, and it was the highest since it went public in 2015. The shares have increased by 34% in the last 10 trading sessions.
The number of worshippers at Taoist sites has increased significantly.
Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi province, a birthplace of Taoism, had 4.73 million visitors during the first quarter, which is a 47% increase from the same period in 2019.
Visits to the famous Taoist site Wudang increased by 23% in the January-to-March period compared to 2019, as seen in the film “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.”