Why do young people love to visit temples?

On social platforms, the popularity of content related to temple tours continues to rise. From a niche tourist check-in spot to a popular attraction that has become popular all over the Internet, why are temples becoming so popular among young people? What is the path to their popularity? Let's take a look!

Temple tours are really popular. "Between going to work and making progress, choose to burn incense", "Between asking others for help and asking yourself for help, choose to ask Buddha for help". These two sentences can be said to be a true portrayal of contemporary young people.

Ctrip data shows that the number of ticket orders for temple-related scenic spots has increased by 310% year-on-year since the beginning of this year. Since February, people born in the 1990s and 2000s account for nearly 50% of the people who have booked tickets for temple scenic spots. Unlike retired people who have more flexible time periods, weekends and holidays have become popular times for young people to visit temples.

On social platforms, the popularity of content related to temple tours continues to rise. When searching for "temple" on Xiaohongshu, there are more than 1.1 million related notes. On Weibo, hot search topics such as "Why do young people love to visit temples" and "Why are temples in Zhejiang more spiritual" are common. On Douyin, searches such as "temple BGM" and "burning incense and worshiping Buddha in temples" are relatively common.

From a niche tourist destination to a popular tourist attraction that has become popular all over the Internet, why are temples becoming so popular among young people? What is the path to their popularity?

1. A wave of temple tours swept the Internet

Among many content platforms, Xiaohongshu has the strongest atmosphere for temple tours. The official has also launched a "Temple Tour Guide", which collects popular notes and travel guides on the platform from different time periods, and is divided into six parts according to the characteristics of the temples, including "Come for a 'cyberpunk' worship of Buddha", "The sea of ​​suffering is boundless, turn back and make a wish", "Temple architecture is also 'involuted'", "The spring scenery in the garden cannot be contained, you can worship Buddha and enjoy the flowers at the same time", etc. It provides users with travel guidance and points out that this generation of young people has fallen in love with temple travel, and gradually changed from "Buddhist youth" to "Buddha's youth".

In the category of "Have a 'cyberpunk' worship of Buddha", @桃金娘's note "A gaze across time and space | The ruins of Nanjing Da Baoen Temple" received 19,000 likes. The exquisite picture, coupled with the highly infectious text description "Xuanzang sat quietly and looked at the Buddha, and time and space seemed to be silent at this moment", made people feel as if they were in the scene, which also aroused the desire of many netizens to check in.

Image source: Xiaohongshu screenshot

The content about temples on Xiaohongshu is consistent with the tone of the platform. Notes such as "Temple Copywriting", "Temple Outfits", and "Temple Photography" are very popular and provide users with many travel suggestions.

Image source: Xiaohongshu screenshot

For example, when searching for "temple copywriting", @是静仔呀~'s notes received thousands of likes, including "Yellow walls and gray tiles, red silk for praying, all are empty mountains and the heart is quiet", "I raise high incense to worship the gods, but my heart is unsettled", "A piece of pure land, three pillars of incense", and "Whatever you think is what you wish for, what you ask for is what you get" which provide inspiration to users.

On Douyin, content related to temples is closely related to hot topics. "Finding yourself through a temple trip" is on the hot list, and highly-rated videos appear under topics such as "Why young people are keen on going to temples" and "The current situation of contemporary young people worshiping temples".

Under the hot topic of "Finding Myself from a Temple Trip", @年年幼鱼 recorded her journey from Chongqing to Nona Pagoda, No. 43, Xiaotianchi Road, Lushan, Jiangxi Province for meditation. After climbing four hundred steps, @年年幼鱼 officially began her meditation journey. After getting up at 5 o'clock every morning, she would go through a series of processes including breakfast, working in the fields, chanting scriptures, lunch, lunch break, Buddhist lectures, medicine, cleansing heart bell, and tea night talks. Her time seemed to have stopped for five days. After the meditation, she also realized that "we only need to live in every moment."

In the comment area, we can see that her experience touched many netizens, "During the time in the pagoda courtyard, the smile never disappeared from my face, it was really healing", "I feel that more and more people now need to experience a slower life", "It is really super comfortable in the temple, the healing of the soul is simply the bliss of life", "I miss the days when I went to the temple with my great-grandmother to live and eat vegetarian meals when I was a child"...

The content about temples on Bilibili is more inclined towards knowledge popularization and historical stories, such as "Shisi Temple | Strolling in an empty temple on a rainy day | The most well-preserved Southern Song Dynasty building in China" by UP @两个人﹣漫步. Although the video has no text commentary, the beautiful shots and soothing music allow people to feel the tranquility of the ancient temple through the screen.

@两个人﹣漫步 gave an in-depth interpretation of Shisi Temple in the comment area. He borrowed a description of Shisi Temple from the Internet: "The temple, ancestral hall and courtyard are located on the same site, the three dynasties of Song, Ming and Qing dynasties are under the same roof, and the three religions of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism merged." He added "the intersection of northern and southern cultures." One netizen even wrote a poem based on the scene in the video, "The wild path is covered by clouds, hidden in the wild trees of the mountains. Occasionally, I hear the Buddhist bells and mysterious drums. I follow the sound on the stone slabs and mossy roads. The ridges and eaves are deep in the forest..."

In the video "Too much pressure and a worrying future, young people are starting to go to temples", @动动枪DongDongGun introduced several popular temples, including the Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou for seeking marriage, the Wenshu Temple in Chengdu for seeking academic success, and the Lama Temple in Beijing for seeking wealth and career.

In the video, @动动枪DongDongGun explained the reason why it is more effective to pray for wealth and career in Lama Temple based on rumors, "This place was the residence of Emperor Yongzheng before he ascended the throne, and Yinzhen was a workaholic, and he also successfully won the battle for the throne among the nine princes."

It can be seen that on various platforms, temple content has moved from hidden corners to the forefront.

2. From a niche to becoming extremely popular, how did temple content come to the fore?

The popularity of temple tours is a two-way rush between temples and young people. Under the heavy pressure of work and study, young people are looking for a "paradise" to give their minds a brief reprieve from the mundane world. Temples are also actively catering to the needs of young people, adding fresh elements such as coffee and cultural and creative industries to create a better fit between the two.

In addition to clocking in at the temples, there is even a group of young people who choose to meditate at the temples. They stay in the temples for a few days as volunteers, follow the temple masters’ daily routines, chant scriptures, cook, clean Buddha statues, and comprehend life, satisfying their needs for a full-body immersive experience and experiencing the unique temple culture and quiet life. After this experience was shared on social platforms such as Xiaohongshu and Douban, it attracted more young people with inner energy to enter the temples.

For example, if you search for "temple volunteer registration" on Xiaohongshu, you can see notes such as "Fangshan Lefo Temple Volunteer Guide", "Shichahai Fire God Temple Volunteer Guide", and "Temple Volunteer | Reconcile with Yourself and Get Back Lost Sleep".

Image source: Xiaohongshu screenshot

As young people flock to temples, temple scenic spots are also innovating to suit young people's concepts and needs.

The first to become popular were various peripheral products from temple scenic spots, including the incense ash bracelets from the Lama Temple in Beijing, the refrigerator magnets from the White Pagoda Temple, the amulets from the Faxi Temple in Hangzhou, the "Palace Rabbit" from the Deshou Palace, and the "Persimmon Ruyi" sachets from the Jiming Temple in Nanjing...

Among them, the Lama Temple bracelets have been very popular on social platforms due to their high appearance and metaphysical blessing. There are more than 40,000 notes on Xiaohongshu alone. "Longhe Temple bracelet styles", "Longhe Temple bracelet wearing taboos", "Longhe Temple bracelet price list" are all related entries. Because it is difficult to get a bracelet, it has even spawned a business of praying for others.

Image source: Xiaohongshu screenshot

In addition, some temples are also introducing fresh elements such as coffee shops, such as the Cibei coffee launched by Yongfu Temple in Hangzhou, the Starbucks in Lingyin Temple, the coffee shop opened in Longhua Temple in Shanghai, and the Nanputuo Temple in Fujian has given coffee a Zen-like name, calling iced Americano "One Mind" and hot Americano "No Obstacles". The mutual integration of Chinese and Western cultures has set off a trend on social platforms.

Image source: Xiaohongshu screenshot

It is worth mentioning that some temples have begun to try to add technological elements. For example, the Nanjing Da Baoen Temple Ruins Scenic Area launched the "Full Reality Interconnected Metaverse Museum" experience project. Public information shows that the project connects high technology and real cultural and museum scenes through end-cloud collaboration, digital twins, AI multi-mode drive, and XR, VR and other technical means to provide users with a more diversified immersive experience.

In general, various beautiful, practical, and auspicious cultural and creative products, the experience of meditation in temples, and the exploration of new things have become social currency for young people and have formed a trend on social platforms. It is through the method of "sharing content - attracting users - then sharing content" that the popularity of temple content continues to rise.

3. After becoming extremely popular, where will temple tours go?

Red walls, yellow tiles, green trees and misty clouds, before "temple tours" became completely popular, temples have always been considered a very niche tourist check-in spot.

Nowadays, in order to cater to the needs of young people, many temples have innovated in infrastructure and cultural and creative products. On the basis of meeting the tourists' needs for taking photos, they have greatly increased the playability of the temples, which will continue to attract more young people to check in.

In addition, in the post-epidemic era, young people's travel needs have become stronger, and with the help of social platforms, temples have also become an option for young people to travel. It is foreseeable that temples will be popular attractions for a long time, and temple content will have a longer vitality.

Author: Aries; Editor: Ji Nan

Source: WeChat public account "TopKlout (ID: TopKlout)"