Buddhist and Taoist temples auction prayer beads and services for the upcoming Lunar New Year. (Photo : www.thepaper.com)
Buddhist and Taoist temples in China are auctioning services they would offer this upcoming Chinese New Year over Taobao.com, the biggest online selling center in the country.
According to Sina English, about six or more temples of Buddhism and Taoism are putting into a bid Chinese New Year items, such as Buddhist prayer beads and statues as well as services including the first stick of incense to be lit or the first sound from the temple's gong this Feb. 19.
Many believe that having such items as well as being named for the temple services mentioned above upon the entry of the Lunar New Year would bring them prosperity and good luck during the Year of the Ram.
The price ranges from 5,000 yuan ($799) to 8,000 yuan ($1,279), depending on which temples are organizing the auction.
Among the temples who are managing auctions include the Chun Yang Temple of Datong in the northern province of Shanxi as well as the Daciyan Hanging Temple located in Jiande in eastern China's Zhejiang Province.
According to reports, tangible objects with calligraphy of the character "Fu," or blessing and fortune, as well as Buddha beads and statues--some of which reached a price of as much as 3.1 million yuan in past auctions--gain higher demand among believers.
However, masters of the temples explained that the auctions were not meant for commercial gain and that all the proceeds would be used for building prayer rooms and worship halls for the public's use.
"We have refused an investment company before for fear that our temple might be too commercialized, so we have turned to the auction as a way of raising funds for construction and development," a master from the Huadu temple in Shaanxi Province stated.
