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A group of Buddhist monks<\/a> and their rescue dog are striding single file down country roads and highways across the South, captivating Americans nationwide and inspiring droves of locals<\/a> to greet them along their route. <\/p>\n In their flowing saffron and ocher robes, the men are walking for peace. It’s a meditative tradition more common in South Asian countries, and it’s resonating now in the U.S., seemingly as a welcome respite from the conflict, trauma and politics dividing the nation.<\/p>\n Their journey began Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, and is scheduled to end in mid-February in Washington, D.C., where they will ask Congress to recognize Buddha\u2019s day of birth and enlightenment<\/a> as a federal holiday. Beyond promoting peace, their highest priority is connecting with people along the way.<\/p>\n \u201cMy hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace,\u201d said the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the group\u2019s soft-spoken leader who is making the trek barefoot. He teaches about mindfulness, forgiveness and healing at every stop.<\/p>\n Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Documenting their journey on social media, they \u2014 and their dog, Aloka \u2014 have racked up millions of followers online. On Saturday, thousands thronged in Columbia, South Carolina, where the monks chanted on the steps of the State House and received a proclamation from the city’s mayor, Daniel Rickenmann. <\/p>\n At their stop Thursday in Saluda, South Carolina, Audrie Pearce joined the crowd lining Main Street. She had driven four hours from her village of Little River, and teared up as Pannakara handed her a flower.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s something traumatic and heart-wrenching happening in our country every day,\u201d said Pearce, who describes herself as spiritual, but not religious. \u201cI looked into their eyes and I saw peace. They\u2019re putting their bodies through such physical torture and yet they radiate peace.\u201d<\/p>\n Hailing from Theravada Buddhist monasteries across the globe, the 19 monks began their 2,300 mile (3,700 kilometer) trek at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth. <\/p>\n Their journey has not been without peril. On Nov. 19, as the monks were walking along U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas, their escort vehicle was hit by a distracted truck driver<\/a>, injuring two monks. One of them lost his leg, reducing the group to 18.<\/p>\n This is Pannakara’s first trek in the U.S., but he’s walked across several South Asian countries, including a 112-day journey across India in 2022 where he first encountered Aloka, an Indian Pariah dog whose name means divine light in Sanskrit. <\/p>\n Then a stray, the dog followed him and other monks from Kolkata in eastern India all the way to the Nepal border. At one point, he fell critically ill and Pannakara scooped him up in his arms and cared for him until he recovered. Now, Aloka inspires him to keep going when he feels like giving up. <\/p>\n \u201cI named him light because I want him to find the light of wisdom,\u201d Pannakara said.<\/p>\n The monk’s feet are now heavily bandaged because he’s stepped on rocks, nails and glass along the way. His practice of mindfulness keeps him joyful despite the pain from these injuries, he said.<\/p>\n Still, traversing the southeast United States has presented unique challenges, and pounding pavement day after day has been brutal.<\/p>\n \u201cIn India, we can do shortcuts through paddy fields and farms, but we can\u2019t do that here because there are a lot of private properties,\u201d Pannakara said. \u201cBut what\u2019s made it beautiful is how people have welcomed and hosted us in spite of not knowing who we are and what we believe.\u201d<\/p>\n In Opelika, Alabama, the Rev. Patrick Hitchman-Craig hosted the monks on Christmas night at his United Methodist congregation.<\/p>\n He expected to see a small crowd, but about 1,000 people showed up, creating the feel of a block party. The monks seemed like the Magi, he said, appearing on Christ\u2019s birthday.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyone who is working for peace in the world in a way that is public and sacrificial is standing close to the heart of Jesus, whether or not they share our tradition,\u201d said Hitchman-Craig. \u201cI was blown away by the number of people and the diversity of who showed up.\u201d<\/p>\n After their night on the church lawn, the monks arrived the next afternoon at the Collins Farm in Cusseta, Alabama. Judy Collins Allen, whose father and brother run the farm, said about 200 people came to meet the monks \u2014 the biggest gathering she\u2019s ever witnessed there.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a calm, warmth and sense of community among people who had not met each other before and that was so special,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Long Si Dong, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth temple, said the monks, when they arrive in Washington, plan to seek recognition of Vesak, the day which marks the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha, as a national holiday.<\/p>\n \u201cDoing so would acknowledge Vesak as a day of reflection, compassion and unity for all people regardless of faith,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But Pannakara emphasized that their main goal is to help people achieve peace in their lives. The trek is also a separate endeavor from a $200 million campaign to build towering monuments on the temple\u2019s 14-acre property to house the Buddha\u2019s teachings engraved in stone, according to Dong.<\/p>\n The monks practice and teach Vipassana meditation, an ancient Indian technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. It focuses on the mind-body connection \u2014 observing breath and physical sensations to understand reality, impermanence and suffering. Some of the monks, including Pannakara, walk barefoot to feel the ground directly and be present in the moment.<\/p>\n Pannakara has told the gathered crowds that they don’t aim to convert people to Buddhism.<\/p>\n Brooke Schedneck, professor of religion at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, said the tradition of a peace walk in Theravada Buddhism began in the 1990s when the Venerable Maha Ghosananda, a Cambodian monk, led marches across war-torn areas riddled with landmines to foster national healing after civil war and genocide in his country.<\/p>\n \u201cThese walks really inspire people and inspire faith,\u201d Schedneck said. \u201cThe core intention is to have others watch and be inspired, not so much through words, but through how they are willing to make this sacrifice by walking and being visible.\u201d<\/p>\n On Thursday, Becki Gable drove nearly 400 miles (about 640 kilometers) from Cullman, Alabama, to catch up with them in Saluda. Raised Methodist, Gable said she wanted some release from the pain of losing her daughter and parents.<\/p>\n \u201cI just felt in my heart that this would help me have peace,\u201d she said. \u201cMaybe I could move a little bit forward in my life.\u201d<\/p>\n Gable says she has already taken one of Pannakara\u2019s teachings to heart. She\u2019s promised herself that each morning, as soon as she awakes, she\u2019d take a piece of paper and write five words on it, just as the monk prescribed.<\/p>\n \u201cToday is my peaceful day.\u201d <\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Freelance photojournalist Allison Joyce contributed to this report.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP\u2019s collaboration<\/a> with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n