You can't be a photographer in Southeast Asia for long and not eventually become obsessed with monks and the culture surrounding them. Well, I couldn't.
One Sunday morning while visiting friends in the countryside, I had just finished my coffee when my good friend, Josh, suggested checking out the nearby Chisor Mountain temple, which has another smaller building near it called Sen Rovieng Temple - both of which are older than Angkor Wat. I'd been to Chisor numerous times but had not yet checked out the stone gates or smaller ruins below it, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity.
When we got there, to our shock and delight it was a day of celebration for the area. The villages had invited 100 monks from all over to bless a small pagoda that had been donated for the local monks to pray and study in. We'd arrived just in time.
People encircled the entire building, eagerly awaiting their turn to give alms to the monks as each passed, in return for blessings. Some held pots of cooked rice scooping it right into the alms collection urns, while others had bricks of crisp new cash, reaching out to deposit their offerings directly into the monks' satchels, as monks cannot touch money themselves.
After the monks had circled the temple and finished their collection, they were given a meal cooked by some of the villagers. Once they were done eating, anyone else could join the feast.
These are some images made from that morning.
A meal is served inside the new pagoda. Out of respect, monks always eat first.
The Venerable LokTa Teang travels between temples, spreading the word of Dharma. He is believed to bring good luck to those around him.
