Re-Education as Conversion: “Thought Reform” of Buddhists on Mount Jiuhua in the People’s Republic of China, 1949–1966

Abstract: The socialist transformation of Chinese Buddhism began with socialist re-education aimed at ideologically converting the clergy into citizens of the PRC. This study focuses on the process that took place on Mount Jiuhua, a renowned Buddhist mountain. It investigates the formats, procedures, and impact of re-education on the clergy, primarily based on archival sources. It argues that local cadres used education to compel clerics to display loyalty to the CCP and the regime and endorse the policy on “freedom of religious belief.” The cadres also conducted political investigations to assign political labels to clerics. The value of the clergy for united front work led the cadres to use persuasion and sometimes coercion, rather than violent methods, in education. The clerics’ reactions varied depending on personal characteristics (e.g., age, religious qualifications, personal aspirations). This study sheds new light on the dynamics of grassroots state-religion power struggles.