“You really don’t know if you don’t check, but you will be shocked if you check!”

"Liu Gong, Wang Gong, look at it, it's really shocking."

Han Wen handed a memorial to Liu Jin. This was the latest memorial about the rectification of temples and Taoist temples. It detailed the situation of this rectification.

Liu Jin looked quickly.

According to the decree of the imperial court, various places in the Ming Dynasty have carried out rectification work on temples, Taoist temples and the like. After a month of rectification and sorting out, preliminary results have been achieved.

The situation is similar to that in the Beijing-Tianjin area. The main problem is that the number of temples has increased a lot compared to before, at least more than doubled.

Secondly, the number of monks in temples has increased several times compared to before. Many temples used to have only a few monks, but now there are dozens of monks in any temple. Large temples even have hundreds.

Thousands of people.

A large number of people have become monks. One or two temples are nothing, but if the entire Ming Dynasty is added up, the number is very huge. According to statistics, there are millions of monks and nuns in the entire Ming Dynasty.

This number is really surprising.

You must know that the labor force in the Ming Dynasty is still very scarce. According to the latest census, the population of the Ming Dynasty has just exceeded 200 million people. There are actually millions of monks and nuns.

Most of these monks are actually fake monks. They work as monks and nuns during the day and go home to eat meat and drink alcohol at night.

In addition to the significant increase in the number of temples and monks, the amount of property owned by temples has also increased dramatically.

First of all, the land area of ​​temples has increased a lot compared to before. Some temples even occupy tens of thousands of acres of fields. They do not cultivate it themselves, but rent it out to others for rent.

There are also a large number of shops, houses, etc. around the temple. A large number of shops and houses belong to the temple and have become important properties of the temple. They can earn a lot of rent by renting them out.

In addition, the property of most monks in temples is very huge. Not only do they own a large amount of cash, deposits, houses, and land, but many monks are also very smart and know how to manage and invest. They have purchased a large number of stocks and invested in commercial banks and factories.

There are also many plantations overseas.

Taking Wuchen, the abbot of Fahua Temple, as an example, the total number of properties under his personal name alone, after statistics, is worth more than 30 million taels of silver.

Of course, the reason why the value is so huge is also because he has invested well. The money he made from the temple is actually not that much. He has a large number of stocks, real estate, fields, overseas manors, factories, firms, etc. his assets are extremely huge.

huge.

In addition to these, after in-depth investigation, we also know that most of these temples will hold various Dharma ceremonies under clever names.

In the past, there were no activities in temples and other places throughout the year, and they were all very clean. This is how true Buddhism should be, staying away from the world and the world, retreating into Buddhism and practicing well.

However, nowadays, these temples hold many kinds of Dharma gatherings, celebrations, temple fairs and so on, and they are all dazzling. Some temples, like Fahua Temple, hold them every month, just for the purpose of making money.

Temples in many places engage in these activities, which is a waste of money and waste for the people. The people are already tired, and they have to come to participate in various temple activities, which costs money and troubles. In the end, the monks in these temples are benefited.

These are all issues that everyone is more or less aware of, but the really scary issue is that Buddhism has turned into a place where filth and evil gather together.

There are actually many murderers and wanted criminals hidden in temples in some places. This time, many such people were caught in the raid.

In addition, some temples take advantage of religious ignorance to believers. For example, some temples say that Guanyin is a gift for giving birth to children. Through this, they carry out obscene things in the temple and rape believers who come to ask for children. However, these believers often do not dare to

Speaking out makes them even more bold.

The monks in some temples are extremely arrogant, like hooligans, bullying men and women, and running amok. The government is not easy to control them. They say that Buddhist affairs are not under the government's control.

In short, many problems were found this time.

But compared to Buddhism, Taoism is much better.

On the one hand, the number of Taoist temples is growing very slowly. There are only a few thousand Taoist temples in the entire Ming Dynasty, while thousands of new temples are added every year, especially there are many new temples overseas.

Secondly, the number of Taoist priests in Taoist temples has also increased very little. This is related to the philosophy of Taoism. Taoism has always felt that Taoism is superior. Most people cannot enter Taoism, and they are not willing to recruit people casually.

There are also Taoist sects that advocate tranquility and inaction, focus on personal practice, hide in the mountains and forests, and will not take the initiative to develop their own followers and disciples.

Therefore, basically no problems were found in the Taoist temple this time, but some Taoist priests were found who were selling fake medicines and telling fortunes.

In addition to temples and Taoist temples, mosques and churches were also inspected, and many problems were found.

For example, churches, the Ming Dynasty restricted the spread of foreign religions, but with the expansion of the Ming Dynasty's territory, some places had these themselves, such as the Black Earth Province.

The locals in Black Earth Province originally believed in Christianity and there are a large number of churches.

These churches also have many problems, such as harboring those who rebelled against the Ming Dynasty, secretly collecting tithes, selling indulgences, etc., and some have close ties with the Holy See and betraying some things about the Ming Dynasty.

There are even some who ignore the orders of the imperial court and wantonly develop believers and spread these religions to the people of Ming Dynasty.

"Prince, you should also take a look."

Liu Jin read it quickly and handed the memorial to Wang Shouren.

Since the birth of religion, it has had many problems.

The East has always been fine, and its influence on the secular world is not very great. In Europe, the Middle East, Tianzhu and other places, religion has an unparalleled and huge influence on the secular world, and even secular power has to surrender.

This may also be the reason why the East is the only ancient civilization that can continue to exist. Because it is not affected by religion, it can always maintain its own culture and inheritance. It has a perseverance spirit and can always continue to persevere in the face of difficulties.

Rise, become strong, and revive again.

Now with the rapid rise and prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, these various religions have also developed rapidly. Temples, churches, etc. have increased greatly, and the number of monks and clergy has also increased. Along with this,

The wealth and land they own also increase greatly.

"What do you think of this?"

After Wang Shouren finished reading, Liu Jin thought about it and asked.

"On the one hand, we need to rectify the current temples, churches, etc., limit their number and number of people, strictly limit the number of monks, priests, etc., conduct assessments based on their circumstances, and punish those who have committed illegal crimes.

punish."

"For those fake monks, all of them should be dismissed and ordered to return to secular life. They should no longer bluff and cheat."

"On the other hand, they will be assessed. Only those who pass the assessment can be issued with documents, crowns, and allowed to become monks, priests, etc."

"For priests in overseas territories, they are required to master the language and writing of our Ming Dynasty, and they are required to translate all relevant scriptures into Chinese, and they are strictly prohibited from contacting overseas religious forces.

Everything must be subject to the control of our Ming government, and they must be strictly prohibited from preaching to our Ming people. They can only preach to the local people."

"Third, these temples, churches, and the like must be inspected regularly to check their number of people, documents, property, etc., and form customs. Heavy taxes must also be levied on them. All temple fairs, Dharma gatherings, etc. must pay

Tax."

Wang Shouren thought about it and said.

"Well, even what the prince said."

After listening to Han Wen, he thought about it and figured out what to do.

"Another point is that we need to carry out a lot of publicity in newspapers to get rid of superstitions and enlighten people's wisdom, not only about religious issues, but also other feudal superstitions."

"For example, witchcraft, quackery and the like must be publicized to let the common people know their deceptive tricks so that they will not believe them. At the same time, more people must know the essence of religion so that more people will not believe it.

Cheated."

Liu Jin thought for a while and added.

"Well, yes, it is indeed very important to get rid of superstition and enlighten people's wisdom."

"The reason why these monks are able to cheat is mainly because everyone believes in it, so they can enjoy the benefits."

When Han Wen heard this, he nodded in support.

"I would like to have the prince write a detailed memorial and submit it to the emperor. After asking the emperor to make a decision, he will then send it to all parts of the Ming Dynasty and ask the local officials to implement it."

"good."

Wang Shouren also happily agreed.

Soon, an inventory report on temples and Taoist temples in various parts of the Ming Dynasty was delivered to the hands of Emperor Hongzhi, along with the opinions of three cabinet ministers on how to handle the matter.

Emperor Hongzhi was shocked after reading it. He didn't expect that the problem was so serious. There were millions of monks and a huge number of temples, and they were amassing money, harboring evil and evil, etc.

Emperor Hongzhi was furious and ordered all parts of the Ming Dynasty to strictly implement the latest management system, requiring strict restrictions on temples and other places.

Suddenly, countless monks were in mourning all over the Ming Dynasty. A large number of them were dismissed and ordered to return to secular life. At the same time, a large number of temples and monks' properties were confiscated, and all kinds of activities were banned.

The life of the monks is difficult. Even if they no longer have their previous income, they will have to take regular assessments from now on. Studying cannot be neglected, otherwise they will have to return to secular life if they fail the assessment.
Chapter completed!