Young Chinese are flocking to "lie flat " in temples

• More are seeking to escape from pressure and pray for good fortune, while some soak up ‘temple life’ as volunteers for months
• Buddhism and Taoism are part of traditional culture, and now their temples are ‘a key pillar of tourism’, religious affairs expert says

 

After graduating from university at the height of the pandemic in 2021, Lu Zi landed an enviable job with an e-commerce giant. A year later, she had given it all up and was living at a Buddhist temple in eastern China.

Like many of her peers, Lu was ambitious and spent her university years planning for her career – with a degree in Chinese, she saw a future in e-commerce. But 12 months into her first job she needed a break and decided to volunteer at the temple in Jiaxing, Zhejiang province.

Lu is among a growing number of young graduates who, feeling disillusioned or burnt out, have temporarily retreated from the highly competitive job market to rethink their path.