Luangprabang (LA) - Monks in the Morning Mist's by krisek

Luang Prabang - Laos, Louangphrabang I took this picture around the Christmas and New Year holidays, when I ventured into Indochina. The fourth monk from the front, actually novice, talked me into getting up in the morning to see them collecting alms, after we spent two days chatting about the life in the wat (the Buddhist temple). He was complaining about the ordeal of not being able to eat after 1 pm and having to walk bare foot in the cold mornings. Monks and novices were allowed only breakfast and lunch, provided by the people from the town in the form of offering. No other meals were allowed. That morning was my birthday, actually. It was about 7 a.m. on the clock.

Dec 2009

Uploaded: Dec, 29 2009 | Taken: Jan, 05 2004| Viewed: 509 times  | 22 votes Camera: FUJIFILM | Model: FinePixS2Pro | Exposure 10/600s, f4.5, ISO 400 | FLength: 42mm | SW: Adobe Photoshop CS3 Macintosh

pesu - Dec, 29 2009 06:12pm Great contrast between the foggy ambiance and the colourful cowls - superb angle. basia - Dec, 29 2009 07:12pm Beautiful photos. The monks coming out of morning fog ... Contrast clothes monks and mist is amazing. horourke - Dec, 29 2009 07:12pm A deeply touching portrayal of a culture that spans in varied forms many continents and ages. The depth of patience and compassion required to acquire the acquaintance of and serious exchange of information is implicit in the picture. mistybleu - Jan, 16 2010 10:01am A great picture and amazing story. It is so nice to get a local persective even if it was a little negative. joe_schmidt - Jan, 16 2010 02:01pm Excellent view and mystical with the mist. rangutan - Apr, 02 2010 08:04am Love it, and another great achievement too :-) ***** hieronyma - Jun, 18 2010 11:06am These monks are collecting alms, in Bhutan their food is payed by the state, in Mynanmar they too collect alms, but turn their bowls upside down to protest against the government. They do it silently and with dignity as the picture shows. Hieronyma jacko1 - Jun, 19 2010 11:06am Do they contribute anything, other than good wishes, to the society that feeds them? I do not wish to offend anybody but this is usually seen as begging. hieronyma - Jun, 19 2010 01:06pm At least in Myanmar they fed the poor. They also offer schooling without demand to be paid for the little ones whose parents can't pay for primary school. The education for the monks and nuns is free, they can't not only study in the monasteries but can go to the schools in the villages and to university. They do not obliged to commit themselves to a life in the monastery, tjhey can leave and lead a civil life and can return in old age. krisek - Jun, 19 2010 05:06pm Tony, as far as I know, the novices and monks did not pay for school in Laos, except for university. So, one can get their boys educated for free in Laos, provided one can give all the monks and novices in the village/town some sticky rice in the morning. Otherwise, the wat (temple) doesn't provide any food at all, one's child starves while receiving education. For some, as I learnt, a pinch of rice everyday was very little and frustrating, if they found a sponsor, they would rather leave the wat and go to a civil school. Then, they'd be able to take a civil job to earn extra money for their living and would not need to starve. I sponsored one to leave the wat, and another to go to university. The latter graduated this year. He said he'd like to be a teacher. jacko1 - Jun, 20 2010 06:06pm My thanks to both Christl & Krys for the info. it makes better sense to me now, I, like many English people, have very little knowledge of these cultures, Globies continue to educate me! rangutan - Dec, 09 2015 08:12pm I just love every image, this is special, of these monks and respect them emensly! *****'