29 temples in Hunan waive admission fees  

湖南29家寺院取消门票免费开放

自5月10日起，包括长沙麓山寺、衡阳雁峰寺等在内的湖南29家寺院开始取消门票，免费向游客开放，以此抵制商业化。

(ECNS) -- Twenty-nine temples in Hunan province, including Lushan Temple in Changsha and Yanfeng Temple in Hengyang, started waiving admission fees for visitors on May 10, to stop and resist the "commercialization" of temples.

A Buddhist monk working at Lushan Temple, who did not want to be identified, said the number of visitors to the temple started going up after the free-entry policy began.

Admission to the temple was 5 yuan. The money was mainly used for living expenses for the monks and maintenance of the temple.

Sheng Hui, vice chairman of the Buddhist Association of China and chairman of the Hunan Buddhist Association, and also an abbot at Lushan Temple, initiated the free-entry policy, which was warmly received by abbots at other temples in Hunan.

Lushan Temple, built during the Jin Dynasty (265AD-420AD), has a history of more than 1,700 years. Originally named Huiguangming Temple, it was changed to Lushan Temple during the early Tang Dynasty. As the first Buddhist temple in Hunan province, Lushan Temple is a provincial key cultural relics protection unit and site of the Hunan Buddhist Association.

Other temples that canceled admission fees include Yuquan Temple, Tielu Temple, Songbai Temple in Changsha, Xixin Temple in Wangchen, Shishuang Temple in Liuyang, and Wangfu Temple in Hengyang.