This photo of breakfast in silence at the temple of Plum Village at dawn is part of a triptych. Because the photo was taken early in the morning, there was little light and the photo has a slightly coarser grain which makes the atmosphere even more mystical.
I selected the triptych from my reportage on the Buddhist retreat I attended in Plum Village, France (2016) by renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh and my travelogue on Vietnam (1999) for Living magazine.
In Vietnam, I came by chance to Thich Nhat Hanh's temple in Hué. There I was invited for a walk through the temple garden where a monk recited to me the following poem by Thay: "The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms." Then I decided to go to a retreat by Thich Nhat Hanh in Plum Village where Thay lived during his exile because, as a Zen master, he did not take sides in the Vietnam War. It was a life-changing experience.
Watch and read the entire article 'I live, I enjoy and feel connected' about my encounter with Buddhism at - https://www.tessajol.com/retreat-publications
Food for Thought 3 is part of a triptych: Food for Thought 1, 2 & 3. You can also buy them as individual pictures or as a diptych.
Tessa Jol is a Dutch photographer, journalist and holistic art teacher with publications worldwide in famous spiritual, travel, interior design and lifestyle magazines.
"In 2010, I was asked to exhibit my photography at the Living Tibet event in the Netherlands, where six Lamas from Tibet shared..
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