Sacred Traditions and Uneven Footing: Inequality and the Fate of Inner Mongolia’s Religious Heritage
Since the foundation of the People’s Republic of China, the government has always promoted in official narratives a harmonious relationship between the Han people and other minorities, especially Tibetans and Mongolians. However, it seems like the government has been increasingly vigilant toward uprising movements in Tibet and Inner Mongolia recently, triggered by a series of violent attacks and rebellious movements in those areas. To ensure societal stability and governmental authority, the government has enacted several policies to restrict the autonomy of monasteries in Inner Mongolia, including Sinicization. This essay discusses the disruptive challenges facing Inner Mongolia’s monasterial culture due to Sinicization policies enacted by the Chinese government. The essay will also analyze how Mongolia deals with similar religious problems, which may be helpful for China to reference in solving religious conflicts and promoting national stability appropriately.
Tibetan Buddhism has been the dominant religion in Mongolia since the 13th century when the Mongol emperor converted and promoted it throughout the nation (from 1271 to 1368, the Yuan dynasty). This religion has profoundly influenced Mongolian people’s culture and society. After the Mongolian region is divided into two parts, around 51.7 percent of the population in Mongolia identify as Tibetan Buddhists. In China’s Inner Mongolia, only 12 percent of Mongols consider themselves Tibetan Buddhists, while 80 percent of Inner Mongols converted to Chinese Buddhism due to the continuous influence of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) after the foundation of the PRC.
CCP’s concern over Inner Mongolia has sprouted since 1967, when the Inner Mongolia incident happened. During that incident, millions of people were labeled and arrested as members of the already-dissolved Inner Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party, which strived to promote self-determination in Mongolia and abolish feudalism and religious hierarchy. In the 21st century, the Ürümqi riots and the Inner Mongolian People's Party further ignited the CCP’s worries over the secessionist movements in minority areas. In order the thoroughly eliminate the secessionists and ensure stability in the region, the government started enacting Sinicization policies, and the first target was Tibetan Buddhism. CCP mandates Buddhist tenets to acknowledge and follow the CCP’s leadership and prioritize the party’s authority. Additionally, it was also mandated that Buddhism should align with the traditional Han values and Marxist principles. By assimilating Tibetan Buddhism with Marxism and Han culture, CCP aim to unify the ideology nationally so that the secessionism rooted in Mongolian identity will be dissolved.
CCP’s Propaganda at Dazhao Temple
However, these radical policies regarding Tibetan Buddhism in Inner Mongolia had significant cultural and environmental impacts. From a young age, students of Mongol ethnicity are compelled to adopt Han Chinese culture and language, with all religious rituals and knowledge banned in schools. Over generations, this policy threatens to diminish and eventually erase the native Mongol belief, creating equity barriers for the natives to adopt their own identity and traditions by heritage. Mongolian culture is deeply intertwined with the historical practice of Tibetan Buddhism, with significant influence over many aspects of Mongols’ life. Religious practices and rituals permeate Mongol’s daily lives; they practice prayer rituals, use prayer wheels, and do meditation, all religious activities from Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism can also be found in Mongolian art and architecture. The religious paintings and monastic architecture consist of most Mongolian works of art. The essence of Mongolian culture blends into people’s lives, reflected by social values like compassion, mindfulness, and respect for all living beings. However, the Sinicization of the religion threatens to replace the distinctive core of Mongolian culture, the Tibetan Buddhist culture, leaving only the name "Mongol" while the cultural meaning is lost. These Sinicization policies threatened to deprive their right to practice religious rituals freely in temples, and the Tsagaan Sar, the Mongolian Lunar New Year, was removed from a statutory holiday by national law.
The Biggest Tibetan Buddhist Temple - Dazhao Temple
Although some Mongols don’t strongly resist the erosion of Han Chinese Culture driven by an attraction to the modernity and prosperity promised by the CCP, there are still portions of the native Mongols that are insular toward other cultures like the Han. The "stubborn" Mongols, particularly local nomads whose lifestyles are profoundly influenced by Buddhism, refuse to adopt lifestyles other than their traditional Mongolian way and reject marriage with other ethnic groups. Therefore, the policies of restricting religious activities and the intrusion of Han culture and Marxist Materialism might outrage them, igniting their relentless revolt due to the perceived injustice and cultural suppression. Even though only a small portion of nostalgic Mongols are unwavering when facing the temptation of prosperity brought by Sinicization and the threat of not complying with the governors, their determination is non-negligible. This resistance may have undermined the CCP's efforts to stabilize Mongolia by converting all Mongols from Tibetan Buddhism to "Marxist Buddhism’’, bringing it to an even worse situation because Mongols had a reasonable excuse to defend their heritable culture.
One of the most essential philosophies conveyed by Tibetan Buddhism is the animistic practice surrounding sacred places and their spirit. Stones piles called ovoos are what Mongols build to worship the natural deities inhabiting sacred places, showing their reverence toward nature. The genuine belief of the spirit in Tibetan Buddhism prohibits Mongols from activities that harm the environment, such as logging, hunting, and overexploitation of prairie resources for their herds. The Sinicization policy replaces Buddhism's environmental preservation values with Marxist development principles, driven by China's need to be more economically competitive on the international stage. The Mongol's traditional practices of preserving nature, rooted in their extensive experience living on the Mongolian land and prairies, are at risk of being lost, threatening the stability of the local environment they have carefully looked after.
Ovoos at A’gui Temple
Beyond the tangible harm to the environment, Mongols’ religious freedom was brutally intruded upon because of the passive and mandatory Sinicization policies. Though seemingly effective in terms of economic improvements, the policy violates the ethics and consensus on religious freedom that are globally acknowledged.
Mongolia, a country located just beside Inner Mongolia, adopts totally different methods when trying to govern its citizens, most of whom are Tibetan Buddhists. The constitution there guarantees freedom of conscience and religion, prohibits discrimination based on religion, and mandates the separation of the activities of state and religious institutions. They strive to ensure the independence of both the state and the religious institutions based on a belief that the two entities should serve different purposes: government is for maintaining societal stability and development, while religion is for people’s well-being and spiritual support. The law prohibits government interference in religious groups, ensuring that politics remain unaffected by the dominant influence of religion in a country where over 50 percent of people identify as religious. In this case, the two seemingly incompatible entities from the CCP’s perspective coexist harmoniously.
Religious Equality
Admittedly, Inner Mongolia has more complex factors at play than Mongolia, so a more strategic approach is necessary to find the balance between minorities’ religious beliefs and the government’s developmental goal. However, Mongols' inequality in religious freedom and the right to preserve their ancestral heritage should not be overlooked as the country pursues economic development. Achieving growth and stability at the expense of indigenous people's freedom and rights is never truly sustainable or just.
