Master Hsin-Tao, the Buddhist monk plagued by an alleged sexual tryst with a disciple's wife, yesterday went public to proclaim his innocence.
The shocking scandal surrounding Hsin-Tao first came to light when a man by the name of Hsieh Cheng-ta told Next! Magazine, a tabloid, that he had photos showing the accused monk engaging in intimate acts with his wife.
The magazine also reported that Hsieh attempted to get back some NT$15 million he had donated to Hsin-Tao's monastery and to keep the racy pictures from going public.
As the magazine hit newsstands earlier this week, the Buddhist monk's supporters immediately sprung to action in launching their counter attacks, disputing the supposedly groundless report.
Accompanied by a large group of followers, Hsin-Tao said during a press conference Friday that the baseless sex scandal was concocted up by those only with their own interests in mind.
He then added that the incident has inflicted damage to "the social harmony and stability" in addition to posing threats to the future of Buddhism in Taiwan.
The Buddhist monk claimed that he's never seen or heard of any "racy pictures" as suggested by his accuser.
Hsin-Tao said if the pictures really existed, his followers would have seen them before they deserted him for betraying their trust.
In a unique approach toward the incident, Hsin-Tao yesterday half-heartedly joked that the tabloid probably decided to turn him into a newsmaker because of its dwindling readership.
He also said that it was absurd for the tabloid to report that he had stored specially brewed medicinal liquor in his room for impotence relief.
Despite the Buddhist monk's vehement denial of his involvement of sex scandal, Chang Shui-ping, a man who used to work for Hsin-Tao to help him set up the Museum of World Religion, yesterday claimed otherwise.
Chang said when he was working for the monk 10 years ago, he did witness Hsin-Tao "getting way too touchy feely" toward several female disciples on numerous occasions.
In addition to the already damning statements, Chang even went as far as accusing the monk of "asking women to go to his hotel room" whenever he was on his overseas trips.
In light of latest allegation, officials from the Lin Jeou Mountain Foundation, a not-for-profit organization founded by Hsin-Tao, said yesterday that they reserved the right for future legal action against Chang over his "comments".