Shi Yongxin, abbot of China's Shaolin Temple, attends the third Shaolin Cultural Festival with a team of 70 disciples in London, Oct 12, 2014. [Photo/IC]

Since 2010, Shaolin Temple has had a presence on Sina Weibo, and it now boasts more than 77,000 followers. A gaming app is also being developed to teach users kung fu on their mobile phones.

"We have entered a commercialized society. ... People tend to evaluate things from the angle of commercialization," said the abbot, one of the first Chinese monks to gain an MBA.

"But you need to look at what is behind the business practice," he added. "Some people do business so they can survive, and some do it to seek their fortunes. Shaolin Temple just wants to survive, to practice Buddhism."

Zheng Caixiong contributed to this story.