(Something asks) Are Tibetan elements really absent behind "Ding Zhen"?
China News Agency, Beijing, January 27th, title: Behind Ding Zhen, are Tibetan elements really absent?
China News Agency reporter Yang Chengchen
The 20-year-old "Sweet Wild Boy" Ding Zhen has unexpectedly become popular this winter in China.
Because of his simple and handsome image, he became a "new top traffic" and was promoted as a tourism ambassador in Litang County, Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province.
The Tibetan boy's newly opened account on the social platform already has millions of fans.
Ding Zhen, a Kangba man who was praised for "there are stars in his eyes".
Photo by Liu Zhongjun
However, some foreign media and people with ulterior motives waiting to attack China also came up with Ding Zhen's idea.
A few days ago, some overseas commentators believed that the image of "Ding Zhen" on the Internet implies a kind of incompleteness. "The Tibetan history, culture, and religion behind it are absent." Caused by the ethnic policy of religious separation.
As an "old tactic" of the anti-Chinese media, this time he used the topic of "Ding Zhen" to attack China's ethnic and religious policies.
In an interview with a reporter from China News Agency recently, many Chinese scholars pointed out that the historical period in which Tibet suffered a lot of serfs in the past is the "Shangri-La" in some people's minds, and it conforms to their moral aesthetics.
"It's a prejudice to talk about Tibetan Buddhism."
Ding Zhen comes from an ethnic minority area where the Tibetan population is the majority.
In the eyes of some people, Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties in the four provinces are independent of the inland provinces and cities where the Han population accounts for a large proportion, and there are even antagonistic emotions.
They turn a blind eye or deliberately ignore the status quo of the blending of all ethnic groups.
Ding Zhen and his little white horse "Pearl".
Video screenshot
Bian Balam, a Tibetan scholar and director of the Institute of South Asian Studies of the Tibet Autonomous Region Academy of Social Sciences, emphasized to reporters that using Ding Zhen to attack China's ethnic and religious policies is a typical excuse.
People who have long lived in Tibet and Tibetan prefectures and counties in the four provinces can see that these phenomena mentioned in the report do not exist.
"China's ethnic and religious policies have been conducive to the development of Tibetan society for a long time."
Xiao Jie, deputy director of the Institute of Contemporary Research of the China Tibetan Studies Center, said that the basic principles of China’s ethnic policy are equality, unity, mutual assistance, harmony and common prosperity of all ethnic groups; the core of China’s religious policy is freedom of religious belief, which can be divided into respect Belief, manage according to law, run independently and guide religion to adapt to socialist society.
Religion is not an obstacle to the communication and integration of various ethnic groups.
He emphasized that China's ethnic policy and religious policy deal with affairs of different fields and of different nature, and should neither be deliberately mixed nor bluntly separated.
As a feudal serfdom society that once united politics and religion, the proportion of religious people in Tibet today is higher than that of other provinces, which inevitably leads some people to misunderstand that "Tibetans all believe in Tibetan Buddhism."
Since the peaceful liberation of Tibet, especially after a series of major historical stages such as democratic reforms and reform and opening up, the economy, society and culture have been in a state of rapid development, social changes have been drastic and far-reaching, and the degree of social diversity has continued to increase. Tibet’s ethnic structure and religion Significant changes have taken place in the structure. Even among the Tibetans, people who believe in different religions and do not believe in religions are widespread.
In Xiao Jie's view, this is the natural law of economic and social development, and there is no so-called "stripping" of specific ethnic religions.
Some foreigners have long viewed Tibet with ignorance and prejudice, viewed Tibet as a static society in a museum, and even emotionally nostalgic for the feudal serf era of Tibet where politics and religion were united.
Zhu Jingjin, an associate researcher at the Collaborative Innovation Center for China’s Western Frontier Security and Development at Sichuan University, also mentioned that with economic and social changes, a considerable number of Tibetan compatriots live, work and study far away from religion.
It is not possible to draw an equal sign between Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan characteristics. The relationship between ethnicity and religion must be viewed dialectically.
Guo Kefan, director of the Institute of Marxist Theory of the Academy of Social Sciences of the Tibet Autonomous Region, believes that from Ding Zhen’s unexpected popularity, it can be seen that the magnificent local landscape and Tibetan identity have become a big thrust.
"Ding Zhenre" is a cultural phenomenon, but it is not a cultural phenomenon with nationality and religion as the key words.
To politicize this phenomenon, or even to smear and attack China's ethnic and religious policies, is ulterior motive.
"When you talk about Tibetans, you must talk about Tibetan Buddhism. It is a kind of ignorance and prejudice. It is a conceptual deviation of replacing the whole with parts of Tibetan society. From this perspective, the natural state of ethnicity as a nation and religion as a religion has become a force. The product of'stripping off.' Xiao Jie pointed out that this is precisely turning a blind eye to the booming social reality of Tibet.
The picture shows Danba Tibetan Village after the snow.
Photo by Li Yongan
"Religion is not the whole of Tibetan society"
The white paper "Great Leaps: 60 Years of Democratic Reform in Tibet" previously published by Chinese officials shows that Tibet currently has 1,787 sites for religious activities, more than 46,000 resident monks and nuns, 358 living Buddhas, 4 mosques, and more than 12,000 Muslims. ; One Catholic church with more than 700 believers.
Tibetans and other ethnic minorities conduct religious activities in accordance with their own religious traditions.
After walking in Tibet, it is not difficult for people to see that traditional religious activities such as studying scriptures, debating scriptures, promoting degrees, taking ordination, initiating, chanting, and practicing Tibetan Buddhist temples are going on normally, and every major religious festival is celebrated as a routine.
Religious people generally have sutra halls or Buddhist niches in their homes. Religious activities such as passing prayers, visiting the Buddha, and inviting monks and nuns in temples to do things are all the same.
The reincarnation system of living Buddhas, as a unique method of inheritance of Tibetan Buddhism, has been respected by the central government and governments at all levels of the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Data map: Potala Palace.
Photo by China News Agency reporter He Penglei
Guo Kefan emphasized to reporters that China’s constitution, laws, and ethnic and religious policies have never had special regulations linking certain ethnic groups to religions, let alone such “special practices”.
Religious work can be summarized as: protecting legality, stopping illegality, curbing extremism, resisting infiltration, and fighting crime.
Actively guiding religion to adapt to the socialist society is the fundamental purpose of China's religious work.
Xiao Jie analyzed that from a microscopic and static perspective, the proportion of people in the farming and pastoral areas of Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties in Tibet and the four provinces is relatively high, and temples are closely related to the daily lives of the people.
However, from a macro and dynamic perspective, Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties in the four provinces as a whole are in a state of high social development and progress, which is inseparable from the policies of the central and local governments at all levels to build and assist Tibet.
In Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties of the four provinces, there is a partial and overall relationship between religion and social development.
Xiao Jie introduced that the relationship between the various religions is harmonious, and as a whole it is a situation of "the years are quiet and good."
If you enlarge your horizons, all aspects of society in Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties in the four provinces are in a state of "dynamic prosperity", including the protection and promotion of excellent traditional culture, the development of modern industries, the advancement of people's livelihoods, and the protection of ecological environment and construction.
He emphasized that it is important not to treat religion as the entire Tibetan society.
In Tibet in the past, there was indeed a tradition of farmers and herdsmen’s families sending their children to monasteries as monks. This was the only way for children to receive the most basic education under the conditions at that time; but now Tibet is China’s first 15-year public expense. Educational provinces.
The 11th Panchen Lama Erdeni Chokichijeb said in a discussion with Chinese religious leaders in the summer of 2020 that nowadays, basic education in Tibet has been implemented very well, and the population coverage of compulsory education is higher than the national average. .
From this point, we can see that the social responsibilities assumed by Tibetan Buddhist temples are changing with the times.
Regarding overseas reports that Tibetan families “will send their best children to monasteries,” Xiao Jie said that although there are still minors not receiving compulsory education and entering monasteries in Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties of the four provinces. The phenomenon of monks, but with the continuous improvement of the economic and social development level of Tibet and the Tibetan prefectures and counties of the four provinces, and local governments at all levels deeply consolidating the results of poverty alleviation and promoting rural revitalization, the children of Tibetan families have long been far more than "entering monasteries as monks" "One way out, but with completely diversified choices.
More and more families in farming and pastoral areas are willing to let their children receive compulsory education.
"The kidnapping of Tibetan social development on the grounds of preserving traditions and even hindering the realization of modernization is a long-standing prejudice of some foreigners." Bambaram also pointed out that the phenomenon of sending children to monasteries mostly occurred before the democratic reforms in 1959.
In that era of the integration of church and state, there is only one way to become a social elite or change your destiny.
Nowadays, our entire country is developing in the direction of modernization. Why do we require Tibetan society to stick to the old ways, retain backward traditions, and deprive children of the right to education?
"People who make these unrealistic claims often lead modern lives by themselves and even receive good education."
"Ding Zhen" who cannot bear the single imagination of the outside world
The image of Ding Zhen is a fierce collision between the mixed Internet information and the historical Tibetan culture.
The resulting chemical reaction is beyond the imagination of the photographer who took the short video and everyone around him.
Recently, Ding Zhen has caused controversy because of e-cigarette smoking, and netizens have labeled "image reversal" and other labels.
It took only two months for Ding Zhen to apologize publicly.
Many people began to reflect on the reveries of Ding Zhen himself and the outside world on the image of Ding Zhen. How big is the gap between this?
Zhu Jingjin said that when the spread of Internet products related to Ding Zhen at home and abroad reaches a certain order of magnitude, various interpretations of this character and its surroundings will be produced, and it is also easy to be distorted by foreign forces with ulterior motives.
Xiao Jie also pointed out that "Ding Zhen Hot" is essentially an inevitable product of the ever-deepening exchanges and integration of various ethnic groups in the era of mobile Internet.
From the media, netizens and even the official state of concern about the "Ding Zhen phenomenon", we can see that people from all walks of life care about the ethnic minority compatriots and appreciate the multi-cultural integration of China, rather than the "Orientalist perspective" as stated in overseas speeches. Curious attitude towards exoticism."
Just as the late sociologist Fei Xiaotong summarized the cultural exchanges between different ethnic groups, "Everyone has its own beauty, the beauty of the beauty, the beauty of the same, the world is the same", the Han and all ethnic minorities respect each other and appreciate each other. It is a kind of "beauty and beauty", the only way to build a common spiritual home for the Chinese nation community.
"The key to looking at Ding Zhen's phenomenon is not whether the information dissemination is comprehensive or misunderstood, but should be fully aware of the in-depth appreciation of ethnic minorities and their culture behind this Internet boom, as well as the huge demand and motivation for exchanges between ethnic groups." Xiao Jie added that "Ding Zhen Hot" may be just a fragment. As smart devices and mobile Internet become more and more popular in Tibet and the four provinces and counties in Tibet, more and more Tibetans are using Douyin, Live webcasts on apps such as Kuaishou, show personal talents or "carry goods online".
It is conceivable that more Tibetans and other ethnic minority compatriots will become "Internet celebrities" in the future, further accelerating the building of mutual understanding, appreciation and shared emotional bonds between the Han and ethnic minorities.
(Finish)