01/09/2026
Why are we all emotionally undone by monks who are… just walking?
Yes—there’s also Aloka, a rescued dog. Obviously. 🐾
Right now, Buddhist monks are walking 2,300 miles from Texas to Washington, D.C..
No protest signs.
No shouting.
No outrage.
No hot takes.
Just… walking.
For peace.
And yet—
People are lining the streets.
Tracking them online.
Crying in public.
Re-evaluating their lives mid-afternoon.
So what’s actually happening here?
Here’s the truth: We are
overstimulated,
overworked,
over-argued,
over-informed,
and profoundly under-rested.
And suddenly…
calm feels erotic.
Science backs this up, by the way.
Humans regulate better with:
simplicity
compassion
mindfulness
fewer notifications
Turns out your nervous system hates the news cycle.
And yes—when the rescue dog joined the pilgrimage, the attention doubled.
Aloka became the emotional support icon we didn’t know we needed.
Because this walk isn’t loud.
It isn’t clever.
It isn’t trying to convince you of anything.
It’s just embodied peace moving through a noisy world.
And your body recognizes that before your mind can explain it.
So maybe peace isn’t something we wait for.
Maybe it’s something we walk toward—
in small, unglamorous, everyday ways.
Peace can look like:
pausing before reacting
walking without your phone
choosing kindness over being right
breathing instead of spiraling
letting “simple” be enough
No robe required.
I always say this: You don’t wait for joy.
You place yourself on the path to it.
And yes—peace, pleasure, and prosperity are allowed to coexist.
And this is why the monks’ walk matters.
Not because it fixes the world overnight,
but because it regulates it.
Their steady steps slow people down.
Their silence gives permission to exhale.
Their presence reminds us—without preaching—that peace is a practice, not a performance.
For a moment, people feel safer in their own bodies.
Less alone in their overwhelm.
More willing to choose gentleness over urgency.
That’s the real impact.
They aren’t marching at anyone.
They’re walking with us—
showing, not telling, what calm looks like in motion.
You don’t wait for joy.
You place yourself on the path to it.
And yes—
peace, pleasure, and prosperity are allowed to coexist.
