My dad just got back from the Novitiate programme in a Buddhist temple in Brickfields, which is basically a programme where you become a monk for 2 weeks under the guidance of real monks. Experience the monk’s lifestyle, or lack thereof, and attain enlightenment along the way. Okay, maybe not that dramatic, but my dad enjoyed it and here’s the pics to prove it.

You might think Buddhism has strange customs but I assure you, this one is really crazy. In the olden days, monks would walk the streets carrying a bowl and people would offer portions of food for them when they walk by. Some would even invite these monks into their houses for a full meal, in exchange for words of wisdom and blessings. It used to be a big thing in India, and it became an instituitioned ritual here in Malaysia. People actually came to the temple and lined up under the blazing sun to offer rice to the monks as a sign of respect. Maybe gathering good karma too.

The amount of rice is staggering. This is only one of the dozen pots used to dump the rice whenever a monk’s bowl gets full.

A fun day it was. And extremely tiring too. Maybe that’s why nobody’s smiling in this pic? Or is the no-smile-camera-face a genetic thingy? You decide.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 16th, 2008 at 9:53 pm and is filed under Fun and Weird, Rants. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.