In case you haven’t heard of the nineteen Buddhist monks who have been trekking on foot over the last 100+ days as part of a ‘Walk for Peace‘ campaign, then this is going to be for you!
The nineteen monks, who sought to promote national healing, compassion, and unity, began a 2,300-mile journey on foot from the Hương Đạo Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth, Texas, aiming to reach the nation’s capital by mid-February.
Over the last 103 days, the nineteen monks have journeyed across several states, including Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina.
The monks are currently passing through Northern Virginia, finally approaching their final destination, Washington, D.C.!
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When will the Buddhist monks arrive in Washington, D.C.?
The monks are expected to reach the District early next week; they have invited all venerable monks and nuns to attend events they have planned on the 10th and 11th of February in the nation’s capital.
However, there is a new weather forecast that predicts snow in the DMV area on Friday, along with high winds and freezing temperatures over the weekend that could hinder the monks’ efforts.
If the weather forces the monks to pause their walk, their arrival time in the District would likely only be pushed back a day or two at most.
Why are the monks walking, and what is the ‘Walk for Peace’?
Why the monks have taken on this journey can best be explained by the monks themselves, who shared this statement in a blog post back in January:
Our walking itself cannot create peace. But when someone encounters us—whether by the roadside, online, or through a friend—when our message touches something deep within them, when it awakens the peace that has always lived quietly in their own heart—something sacred begins to unfold.
This is our contribution—not to force peace upon the world, but to help nurture it, one awakened heart at a time. Not the Walk for Peace alone can do this, but all of us together—everyone who has been walking with us in spirit, everyone who feels something stir within them when they encounter this journey, everyone who decides that cultivating peace within themselves matters… This is our hope. This is our offering. This is why we walk.