The sky hung heavy with clouds but the energy of the waiting crowd lining the road strewn with rose petals had a lightness, a friendliness hard to come by these days. We had been anticipating this weekend’s return of the venerable monks to their home in Fort Worth, and what a gift it was.  

They exited the bus that had brought them home, to cheers and applause and shouts of “thank you” before they began their final walk to their temple. We followed the monks with the crowd, some of us silent as instructed, others chatting despite the call for quiet, and a few wiping tears from their faces as they walked. 

As we neared the temple, the crowds thickened. Music played over the speakers as we followed the venerable monks into the area just outside the temple.

The crowd was jostling but gentle and we heard more languages spoken around us than we could count. As the monks entered the temple, the chants rang out over the speakers, vibrating in our chests.  

The familiar messages from their journey resonated with us as they brought their journey to a close.  

“May you be well, may you be kind to yourself, may you live with peace.”

Many of us have heard such offerings in the increasingly popular lovingkindness meditations, yet few public forums have existed for sharing these sentiments more widely.

That changed when a group of venerable Theravada Buddhist monks from around the world chose simply to walk—mindfully and for peace. They carried no political agenda, no strategy for reducing global violence, and no intention of meeting with legislators. Their purpose was to walk, to encourage mindfulness, and to invite each person they encountered to commit to living in peace.

At stops along the way, the organizer of the Walk for Peace, the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, shared this message: “Love and kindness do not require power, or money, or a title. Before each action, pause and ask whether it will hurt anyone. Each time we do this, we make the world more kind. We make the world more peaceful.”

We can offer the same words to ourselves and others: “May I live in peace. May you live in peace. May the world live in peace.”

Pannakara began sharing this with only a few people, as about 20 monks left Fort Worth in October. By January, millions were listening and coming out to see them as they made their way toward Washington, D.C.

“May today be my peaceful day.”

This daily mantra Pannakara offered on the walk to whoever would listen became his theme. “I will invite this as a practice for my life; will you join me?” 

On February 10, after 108 days and 2,300 miles, the monks—along with their dog, Aloka—arrived in Washington. They offered reflections at the Lincoln Memorial and then led an online Lovingkindness meditation for 25,000 participants. 

Before beginning, he encouraged each of us to speak the mantra of peace aloud and to start every morning by writing it down. “Writing matters; your hands and mind work together. Write it down and say it aloud: Today is going to be my peaceful day.”

Before you pick up your phone, before you brush your teeth, before you do anything, offer these words as a sign of hope and resistance to the way the world around us is operating. 

“When you brush your teeth, brush your teeth.  And wipe off the mirror.”

At several stops along the way, Pannakara took a few moments to teach mindfulness, to be fully present to one experience at a time, without multitasking. After you write down your mantra of peace, when you brush your teeth, don’t let the distractions of the day fill your mind. Instead, breathe in and focus simply on your teeth.

When you are getting dressed, focus fully on that task. When you drive, notice your driving and only your driving. Does it feel impossible yet?  

And, when you finish brushing, clean your mirror. I had a friend who judged me for not cleaning my mirror often enough; hearing this monk offer it as a spiritual practice made me wonder whether I might finally change my habits.

He encouraged us to learn to let go of things as soon as they happen. 

Do not hold onto things. Do not make a mental record of it. Let it go immediately.

This is how we clear our minds. This is how we clean our minds. 

The mind is like a mirror. The more stains you leave on your mirror, the less clear we can see ourselves. 

Our view becomes blurrier. We keep layering negative thoughts, and as our mind fills, our anxiety builds.

Clean your mind as soon as an experience happens. Brush your teeth, clean your mirror, and you are learning to clean your mind. 

“I hope I’ve made you proud. I hope I’ve done something good, and I hope I didn’t hurt anyone.”

When Pannakara arrived home, he saw his own teacher and immediately fell to the ground, bowing his head to his master’s feet. Later, when offering reflections on the walk, he began by going to his teacher again, placing his head in his lap, and recognizing all that this leader had done for him. 

The humility and gratitude that he offered in this moment were such beautiful expressions of deference and respect, of praise and appreciation. It was an honor to walk the final mile of their journey with the monks and witness the love and care they share for each other. These gifts were obvious to everyone, and most of us were taken aback by the humility of all that they were doing. 

The diverse crowd gathered on Saturday morning was deeply moved by the monks’ work and teachings. As the walk came to an end and this group of strangers began to disperse, there was one final teaching from the monks.

“If you do not leave me, I will not leave you.”

Bhikkhu Pannakara was the last to speak. It began to rain heavily, but hardly anyone moved—we just shifted in our tiny space on the ground, leaning in to soak up the words of the one who had started the walk for peace. 

He began by saying, “Let me come out in the rain to join you,” and he encouraged the diverse gathering of followers to continue to walk for peace each day, with each breath and each step.

“I hope this moment lives on forever. This is what the world needs right now—lovingkindness, compassion, and peace. We will continue to walk so that we make a better place here for all future generations. We will not give up. If you do not leave me, I will not leave you.”

We may not be walking with the monks every day, but we hope our lives will be expressions of peace and compassion. And now, as we prepare to walk with Jesus to the cross as part of our own tradition’s Lenten practice, we hope we can offer the same love and concern for the world around us.  

As followers of Jesus, who called us to be peacemakers, we do not need to become monks to receive this invitation. This crowd of people, speaking different languages and from different backgrounds, in a world fraught with anything but peace, intentionally chose peace and presence Saturday morning. It was indeed our peaceful day.  

May the same be true today. May this be our peaceful day.