Bogus monks are rightly scorned and loathed by the Hong Kong community

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Hong Kong, China -- It is a familiar story to any resident in Hong Kong – the peculiar sight of a monk wandering around begging for alms, regardless of the time of day.

<< Bogus monks at Lam Kwai Fong

The only problem is that these monks probably changed into their so-called robes a few hours before the arrived in the city; they are mainland beggars and charlatans crossing the border to cheat potential donors of their money. They infest the high streets and harbors of Hong Kong, from Central to Tsim Sha Tsui. Their eyes fake friendliness, but cannot pretend to be filled with love and knowledge of the Dharma.
The cruel irony in the transaction between a victim and a bogus monk is that every rule of Buddhist dana (generosity) is turned on its head: the donor receives no karmic merit because the donor is not actually giving money to an ordained monastic. The entire traditional impetus for generosity is therefore nullified and violated.

Likewise, because the beggar does not belong to a real sangha, was not ordained by any qualified master, and indeed has lied about his loyalty to this 2550 year-old vocation, he will not only squander his donor's cash for non-Buddhist reasons, but suffer post-mortem retribution for such lies. Such natural law, declared the Buddha himself, is the price for deceiving not only laypeople, but the true Buddhist sangha.

Until that day of remorselessly inevitable karmic justice, the Hong Kong community's revulsion and disgust at these men is perfectly understandable. This scorn is shared by almost every sector of society regardless of religious affiliation. To be clear, they deserve to be looked upon with suspicion because they bring disrepute to the name of Chinese Buddhism, not because they are beggars. Indeed, it is a sorry situation that these professional beggars see no way to survive except through deceiving people. For their sake as well as the reputation of Chinese Buddhism, it is important that the local authorities and, ultimately, the Chinese Government, adopt policies that give these men economic opportunity and the chance to be genuinely productive, dignified members of society.

It is another tragic irony that in ancient Buddhism, monks were forbidden by the Buddha to work, in order to force them to interact with secular society by begging for alms and teaching the Dharma in return. The Blessed One thought that this was a fool-proof way to ensure a harmonious, give-and-take relationship within the Fourfold Community of monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen. What a travesty that these beggars should take up Buddhist robes but not Buddhist principles and - just like the early sangha of the Buddha's days - end up begging.

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Hong Kong: Call for visa crackdown on bogus Buddhist monks

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Police want immigration to crack down on bogus Buddhist monks working as beggars in the same way that they deal with prostitutes

Hong Kong, China -- Mainland beggars masquerading as Buddhist monks should be treated the same as prostitutes, and the immigration authorities should crack down on the practice, according to police.

<< Bogus monks at Lan Kwai Fong

One police source familiar with a rising trend of bogus Buddhist monks visiting Hong Kong as "professional beggars" said they may be violating their three-month visitor visas.

Over the past 12 months, the city had seen a major increase in the number of people clad in monks' robes and begging in Central, Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui, the source said. The police arrest people for begging, particularly in Central. But unlike prostitutes, whose work is illegal because they enter Hong Kong on tourist visas, according to the Immigration Department, begging does not constitute working.

Stronger penalties would deter bogus monks from coming to the city, the source said, adding that the police wanted a change in immigration laws.

"If these bogus Buddhist monks come here specifically to beg on a three-month tourist visa, why isn't this a breach of their conditions of stay?

"If you come to Hong Kong as a mainland prostitute on a tourist visa, you will be arrested by police for breaching your conditions of stay. Why are these bogus monks not treated the same?"

On Friday night, one man dressed like a Buddhist monk in Lan Kwai Fong tried to sell a wooden beaded bracelet to the Sunday Morning Post. The bracelets - which he said could bring blessings - cost HK$100 each.

The sale of these bracelets constitutes working and is a clear breach of tourist visa laws.

But an Immigration Department spokesman said it was difficult to define whether begging should be classed as work. He noted, however, that it was the police's duty to tackle begging.

"In the case of mainland prostitutes, they breach the conditions of their stay by establishing a business here. It is a clear immigration issue," the spokesman said.

"But it is also clear in the police ordinance that they prosecute beggars. The police are the appropriate authority to enforce the law here. There is no loophole in the immigration law."

Entrepreneur Rory Hussey, whose bar Solas is on Wyndham Street, Central, called the bogus monks a "plague".

Hussey recalled how he went on holiday last year to Thailand and a group of bogus monks were on the same flight, dressed in civilian clothes. "I see them every night, so I recognised them on the plane straight away. A few of them even had girlfriends with them," he said.

In Tsim Sha Tsui, Mike Brown, bar manager of Ned Kelly's Last Stand in Ashley Road, said the impostors "would try to get away with anything".

"They'd blatantly walk in here and ask my customers for money," Brown said. "They're regularly annoying tourists all along Nathan Road."

At Delaney's in Luard Road, Wan Chai, general manager Clare Kirkman told how up to 12 monks could be patrolling up and down the streets.

"They work in pairs; while one begs, the other keeps a lookout for police," she said. "They're a nuisance but they are very well-organised."

Last weekend, authorities in the northern province of Shaanxi closed down two temples on a sacred Buddhist mountain and arrested six people after tourists complained of bogus monks deceiving them into donating money.

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Bogus Buddhist monks exposed on the Internet

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Beijing, China -- Two men clad in traditional orange Buddhist robes have been spotted in the streets of Beijing hanging out with their girlfriends and downing cans of beer, raising more than a few eyebrows.

<< The two "monks" in a hotel with a pair of lady friends.

The two men had apparently developed a taste for going out dressed as Buddhist monks, and even created a Weibo account (the Chinese equivalent of Twitter) where they posted a photo of them holding prayer beads and smiling at the camera.

Their behaviour intrigued a fellow-Chinese Web user, who discreetly filmed the pair and posted several videos of them online. In the footage, they can be seen drinking beer and talking loudly in the subway, accompanied by two girls who they seem to know on an intimate basis.

On April 7, a man who had seen their photos online spied the two imposters in a hotel. They were attending a religious convention at the Fayun Si temple, Beijing’s largest Buddhist temple. When they realised they had been spotted, the two men hid in the bathroom to change their clothes. But when they came back out, about two dozen monks – real ones this time - were waiting for them. When the duo proved unable to recite Buddhist scriptures or show their religious certificate, they were handed over to the police.

A Beijing newspaper later identified the men as musicians Zhao Wenbo and Ren Chuankun. Police, who say they are investigating the incident, have reportedly held the pair for the last five days without giving an official explanation for their arrest.

In China, swindling operations organised by fake monks are relatively common. Men usually pose as monks from the country’s famous Shaolin temple and sell fake traditional medicines or ask for donations. According to Chinese media, some of these imposters can earn up to 20,000 Yuan per year (around 2,500 euros) – more than double the median income of Chinese factory workers.
Spokespeople for the association of Chinese Buddhists said these occurrences seriously damaged the reputation of their religion, and demanded that the imposters be severely punished.

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Buddhist vigilantes to ‘disrobe’ bogus monks who fleece the public

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MALACCA, Malaysia -- A Buddhist group here has set up its own vigilante corp to stop those portraying themselves as monks from soliciting money from the public.

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The Sangha Sanctity Protection Centre (SSPC) said its “monk police” believed an organised syndicate was behind the culprits who walked in saffron robes through the populated streets of Malacca and preyed on the generosity of the public.

These foreigners hand out amulets which they claim have spiritual powers to bestow prosperity and health to those who make donations.

SSPC vice-chairman Ronald Gan Ying Hoe said its 10-man vigilante group would go out to stop the syndicate, which is known to have fleeced hundreds of people of their money and personal belongings.

“They use scare tactics to solicit donations, especially at hospitals where they target family members of warded patients,” he told The Star.

“Genuine monks do not wear watches or shoes.

“Indeed, they have no earthly asset of any sort,” said Gan, adding that the centre's monk police would be spreading public awareness about the scam and also paste posters around the city to warn prospective victims.

“Monks are strictly forbidden to roam the streets, cheating people of their money or solicit donations and are not supposed to sell items like talismans,” he said.

“We are going to disrobe' these rogues by going to areas that have become popular haunts of these con artists,” he said.

He added that a probe by the centre found that the rogue monks travelled to Malaysia from China and operated for a month before heading back to their homeland.

“One bogus monk we nabbed recently confessed his group could earn up to RM9,000 from a month's stay here,” he said.

Gan said in recent months, the centre's monk police had caught four rogue monks who solicited donations at busy streets and private hospitals in the city.

“In one case, a bogus monk in his late 40s was forced to return to his native country with the help of the authorities,” said Gan.

He added that these conmen could damage the sanctity of the Buddhist faith if drastic steps were not taken to stop them from cheating people.

Gan said he would work closely with the relevant enforcement agencies to stop these bogus monks.

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