Find lasting happiness: woman claiming to rent Chinese temple for US$5,700 a year to find ‘inner peace’ accused of inventing story
- The woman says she left her ‘highly stressful’ job in tourism when the industry suffered a downturn during the Covid-19 pandemic
- She found the temple through a friend but the management of the park where the temple is located denies rooms are rented out
A woman who “rented” part of a Taoist temple in eastern China for a year to find “inner peace” after career burnout has resonated with many Chinese workers in high-pressure jobs, but her story has been questioned after contradictions emerged.
The woman, who was born in the 1990s, claimed she has leased a house and courtyard covering 200 square metres for 40,000 yuan (US$5,700) on the grounds of a Taoist temple in the Daji Mountain Forest Park in Shandong province, Chao News reported.
“Seek inner peace and nourish health,” said the woman, identified only by her surname Ouyang, in a post about her new life on Chinese social media.
“I sometimes chat with people who visit the Taoist temple. The workplace is too competitive.
“I once thought of opening a bed and breakfast, but I really don’t want to put on a smile to please others,” Ouyang said.
Daji Mountain is one of the five sacred Taoist mountains in China and regarded as one of the birthplaces of the religion. Ouyang said she felt relaxed living in the temple as she is the only person renting living space in the complex.
She previously worked in the tourism sector in southern China but said she became stressed when the industry suffered a downturn due to the country’s strict coronavirus restrictions before they were lifted last year.
She discovered the Daji Mountain area after a local friend told her about vacant rooms in the Taoist temple and suggested she enquire about renting one.
However, her claims have been contradicted by the park’s management and the local tourism authority, which denied any leases for accommodation at the temple.
“We don’t provide meals or accommodation,” a park employee told Chao News.
“In the past, some visitors have asked if they could stay for a night in the temple, but we don’t have many rooms.”
Ouyang’s social media post has caused heated discussion among mainland social media users, with many defending her after questions were raised about the story.
“It’s a luxury for many people to have some time after a busy day to be alone,” one person said on Weibo.
“I can think of one sentence: how come every person in China in every age group feels so exhausted?” another person asked rhetorically.
“I understand her feelings. I also don’t like to please others. I could easily get lost and depressed,” another person added.
Conversely, many commenters accused Ouyang of fabricating the story for self-promotion.
“She first caught eyeballs on the internet. Now she can turn her fame into cash by doing live-streaming to sell goods or opening that bed and breakfast,” one person said.
An increasing number of young and middle-aged people in China are choosing alternative lifestyles to find lasting happiness or demanding a better work-life balance.
In March, a story about a 30-year-old woman with a master’s degree from a top university who quit her high-paying job to become a watermelon farmer went viral.
That same month, a similar story appeared about a relatively well-off Shanghai couple who, unable to find jobs they liked, decided to retire early to enjoy life by “just eating, drinking and having fun” every day.
