The Trajectory of Revival: Wenshu Monastery 1978–2006

Abstract

This study traces the trajectory of the Wenshu Monastery’s revival during the reform era of China. In this special but duplicable case, we generalize three key strategies employed by the Wenshu Monastery to enhance its reputation and status—the binomial system, centralized organizational structure, and officialization—in an attempt to rethink the patterns of development of local religious institutions in modern China.

Keywords

• Wenshu Monastery
• revival
• binomial system
• centralized organizational structure
• officialization