Written by By Zoya Kirmenia, CNN Bangkok, Thailand
Meditation has a long and sometimes convoluted history in Buddhism. According to one translation, a monastic monk, on whose inner strength a monastic institution was founded, was brought by his concubine to study Zen meditation from a local Zen monk in the Sumatra province of Purusikorn in the 17th century. As the centuries passed, it became customary in Buddhist monasteries to “meditate every morning after waking,” and practices developed as an outgrowth of that meditation.
CNN Style takes a look at the scene inside Thailand’s striking Wat Dhammakaya Meditation Center, on the outskirts of Bangkok. From meditation bowls in red rock formations to rudimentary craftsmanship in the granite walls, there is no shortage of inspiration for these monks to meditate on. The 200-year-old temple was recently listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and boasts one of the greatest collections of Buddhist art in the world.
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