傳統佛寺的近代轉型：民國泰縣光孝寺培安和尚個案研究=The Modern Transformation of a Traditional Buddhist Temple: The Case of Abbot Peian of Guangxiao Monastery in Tai County during the Republican Period
Master Peian served as the abbot of Guangxiao monastery in Tai County, Jiangsu Province from early years of the Republican period. But he was sued by local gentry, expelled by the local government, arrested by policemen in Shanghai, and finally died unexpectedly in the early 1930s. Master Changxing was elected as his successor and reformed the temple after Peian’s death. This article clarifies the facts of the case based on Buddhist newspapers, periodicals, gazetteers, archival materials, and monks’ memoirs and other writings, to trace how the abbot was replaced and an important traditional Buddhist temple was transformed in the context of social and Buddhist reforms. The case highlights the different roles played monks, lay Buddhists, local gentry, and officials in the transformation of a county temple. This article emphasizes such issues as the disposition of temple property, tensions between clergy and laity, negotiations between Buddhists and governments, and the division and unity of different types of monks, which are all crucial to the history of modern Buddhism. Thus this case allows us not only to learn more about how religious networks functioned in a local community, but also to seek a better understanding of modern Chinese Buddhism from a local perspective.
