Singapore – A popular South Korean DJ ‘monk’, known for donning a cleric’s robes and combining electronic dance music with Buddhist mantras, is stirring controversy among the faithful in Singapore who claim he is denigrating the religion.
On Sunday, May 19, the Singapore Buddhist Federation called for NewJeansNim’s two performances at a disco club in June to be cancelled. In a Facebook post, it noted that the DJ dons a monk’s robe even though he is not ordained – this is “against [the] Vinaya”, or the code of conduct for Buddhist monks. The federation urged authorities to cancel his performance permits in order to “avoid bringing embarrassment to Buddhists”.
