13th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Travel
Midst of Religious Monks

This photo is taken on April 5, 2015 at Sertar. I decided to make a trip there after seeing an Internet photo of the little huts. The Larung Gar Buddhist Academy in Sêrtar, China, is the biggest Buddhist settlement in the world and home to as many as 40,000 monks and nuns. Each of them lives in a little hut with very limited and basic facilities. Once I arrived in Sertar, I immediately felt a part of it. Although it is packed and freezing cold, it made me feel peace and quiet. I took this photo when the sun came out after an overnight snow. The place became peaceful and vivid at that moment.

This photo is a finalist in the Travel category of our 13th Annual Photo Contest. See all 70 finalists here.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 04.2015
Date Uploaded: 10.2015
Photo Location: Larung Gar, Sêrtar, China
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark III
Copyright: © Wanson LUK
Awards
Photo of the Day: 10.20.15
Editor's Pick
Finalist