Our answer
Up before dawn, vegetarian for life 晨钟暮鼓，素食终身
A fixed routine of morning and evening services, and a diet with no meat, eggs or pungent vegetables
The short answer
Chinese Buddhist monks and nuns follow a fixed routine: up before dawn for a morning service of chanting, work and study by day, and an evening service. They eat no meat, and traditionally no eggs, dairy, garlic or onions. On ordination they take a Dharma name and the shared surname Shi (释), from Shakyamuni.
| In Chinese | Nun 比丘尼 bǐqiūní; temple vegetarian food 素斋 sùzhāi |
|---|---|
| Typical day | Up about 4:30am, morning chanting, breakfast, work, evening meditation (Lingyin Temple example) |
| Surname | 释 Shì, from 释迦牟尼 Shìjiāmóuní, Shakyamuni Buddha |
| Diet | No meat; traditionally no eggs, dairy or the ‘five pungent vegetables’ such as garlic |
| Prayer beads | 佛珠 fózhū, ‘Buddha pearls’: 108 on a full string, 18 or 27 on a wrist string |
| Precepts | 250 rules for monks and 348 for nuns, under the Four Part Vinaya |
| Temple festivals | Buddha’s Birthday (8th day, 4th lunar month); Laba (8th day, 12th lunar month) |
A day in a Chinese monastery
Timetables differ from temple to temple. This is the routine a young monk at Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou described to CGTN in 2021; on special occasions the whole community gathers in the main hall as early as 4am.[1][2][3]
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 4:30am | Wake up |
| 5:15am | Morning service: chanting in the hall |
| 7am | Breakfast |
| Daytime, until 4pm | Work and study |
| Evening | Evening service; meditation at 6:30pm |
What Chinese monks chant
Most Chinese monasteries follow a standard liturgy of morning and evening services (朝暮课诵, zhāo mù kè sòng). The morning service includes the Shurangama Mantra and the Great Compassion Mantra; the Heart Sutra is recited at both. In the evening, monks chant the Amitabha Sutra on odd-numbered days and a repentance before the Eighty-eight Buddhas on even-numbered days. Ritual meals, with chanting at mealtimes, Dharma lectures and walking around the Buddha hall fill out the day.
Services are accompanied by traditional instruments: the wooden fish (木鱼, mùyú), drums, bells, gongs, cymbals and a small hand bell. For the most common chant of all, the name of Amitabha Buddha, see our guide to Buddhist gods.[3][4]
Dharma names, robes and prayer beads
| Chinese | What to know | |
|---|---|---|
| Surname Shi | 释 Shì | Ordained monks and nuns take the surname Shi, the first character of 释迦牟尼, Shakyamuni Buddha. The monk Dao’an (312–385) advocated it for all monastics. |
| Dharma name | 法名 fǎmíng | Given by a teacher, and can show the teacher-to-student lineage; a monk may receive more than one. |
| Outer robe | 袈裟 jiāshā | A patchworked rectangle of cloth, worn over a long, cross-collared robe. |
| Long robe | 海青 hǎiqīng | A broad-sleeved robe worn by monastics and lay followers to pay homage to the Buddha. Usually black; yellow for the abbot or the monk leading a service. |
| Prayer beads | 佛珠 fózhū | A full string has 108 beads plus a ‘mother bead’; 108 is often explained as the number of human afflictions. Pure Land Buddhists use them to count recitations of Amitabha’s name; smaller strings of 18 or 27 are worn on the wrist. |
Buddhist vegetarian food
In Chinese Buddhism, monks and nuns are expected to abstain from meat. Traditionally they also avoid eggs, dairy and the five pungent vegetables: garlic and four related plants of the onion family, a rule that today often extends to onions and coriander. The Brahmajala Sutra is one of several Mahayana scriptures that condemn eating meat, and Emperor Wu of Liang, a devout Buddhist ruler of the early 6th century, is recorded as eating only vegetarian meals. Many lay Buddhists eat vegetarian on set days, such as the 1st and 15th of each lunar month.
Temple vegetarian food (素斋, sùzhāi) is also a draw for visitors. At Shanghai’s Jade Buddha Temple, a bowl of vegetarian noodles usually costs 25 yuan, and on Lunar New Year’s Eve in 2024 the kitchen sold more than 20,000 bowls, with queues still forming at 2am.[5][4][6][7]
Buddhist nuns in China
Chinese Buddhism has kept the full ordination of women. Nuns (比丘尼, bǐqiūní) follow the same Four Part Vinaya as monks, with 348 rules to the monks’ 250. Tradition counts Zhu Jingjian (292–361), a widow from Luoyang who took her vows in 357, as China’s first nun; nuns of her time were formally novices, and fully ordained nuns were recognised in the following century.[13][4][14]
Two temple festivals: Buddha’s Birthday and Laba
| Festival | Date | What temples do |
|---|---|---|
| Buddha’s Birthday (佛诞 Fódàn, or 浴佛节 Yùfó Jié, ‘Bathing the Buddha’) | 8th day of the 4th lunar month | Monks gather before dawn, place a figure of the infant Buddha in a basin of fragrant water and pour water over it, and visitors take turns to do the same. At Lingyin Temple the community assembled at 4:45am in both 2024 and 2025. |
| Laba Festival (腊八节) | 8th day of the 12th lunar month | Marks the Buddha’s enlightenment, which tradition says came after he ate a bowl of congee. Temples cook Laba congee of mixed grains, beans, nuts and dried fruit, and one account says monasteries were already giving it away in the Song dynasty. Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou gave away about 300,000 portions in each of 2017 and 2018, to care homes, hospitals, building sites and the public. |
Questions readers ask
What do Buddhist monks eat in China?
Vegetarian food only. Chinese monks and nuns are expected to abstain from meat, and traditionally also from eggs, dairy and the ‘five pungent vegetables’ such as garlic. Some temples, such as Shanghai’s Jade Buddha Temple, run vegetarian restaurants that visitors can use.
Why do Chinese Buddhist monks have the surname Shi?
Shi (释) is the first character of Shijiamouni (释迦牟尼), the Chinese name of Shakyamuni Buddha. On ordination, monks and nuns give up their family surname and take Shi, a practice the 4th-century monk Dao’an advocated for all monastics.
Why do Buddhist prayer beads have 108 beads?
Explanations vary, but a common one is that people have 108 afflictions. A full string of Buddhist prayer beads (佛珠 fózhū) has 108 beads plus an uncounted ‘mother bead’; shorter strings of 54, 27 or 18 are used too, often on the wrist.
What do Buddhist monks chant?
In Chinese monasteries the morning service includes the Shurangama Mantra, the Great Compassion Mantra and the Heart Sutra; the evening service includes the Amitabha Sutra or a repentance before the Eighty-eight Buddhas, depending on the day. Chanting is accompanied by the wooden fish (木鱼), bells and drums.
Are there Buddhist nuns in China?
Yes. Chinese Buddhism has kept full ordination for women. Nuns (比丘尼, bǐqiūní) follow the same Four Part Vinaya as monks, with 348 rules to the monks’ 250, and also take the surname Shi.
What time do Buddhist monks wake up?
Before dawn. A young monk at Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou told CGTN he wakes at 4:30am, chants at 5:15am and has breakfast at 7am. On festival days the community can gather in the main hall from 4am.
What is Laba congee?
A porridge of mixed grains, beans, nuts and dried fruit eaten on the Laba Festival, the 8th day of the 12th lunar month, which marks the Buddha’s enlightenment. Temples give it away; one account dates the custom to the Song dynasty, and Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou has handed out about 300,000 portions a year.
When is Buddha’s birthday in China?
On the 8th day of the 4th lunar month, which fell on 15 May in 2024 and 5 May in 2025. Temples hold a ‘Bathing the Buddha’ ceremony, pouring fragrant water over a statue of the infant Buddha.
Sources
- CGTN, What life is like as a Gen-Z monk photographer (18 October 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Lingyin Temple, Chinese New Year Dharma Service (22 February 2024) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Buddhist liturgy · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Chinese Buddhism · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Buddhist vegetarianism · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Emperor Wu of Liang · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Sixth Tone, The Shanghai Temple Offering Noodles for the Soul (22 March 2024) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Dharma name · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Dao’an · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Kasaya (clothing) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Zhiduo (clothing) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Japamala · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Bhikkhunī · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Jingjian · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Buddha’s Birthday · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Lingyin Temple, Bathing the Buddha ceremony (2025) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Laba Festival · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Lingyin Temple, Lingyin Temple distributes Laba porridge to the general public (22 January 2017) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- China Daily (Zhejiang), Lingyin Temple sends congee at Laba Festival (24 January 2018) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Lingyin Temple, Bathing the Buddha ceremony (15 May 2024) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
Update log. 1 November 2026 — reviewed. Next review due 1 February 2027. Suggest a correction