A monk prays for a dead man in the station hall of the Shanxi Taiyuan Train Station, China

loki010 · 7 months

“I remember clearly that it was about 5 p.m. on November 25. I was just finishing an assignment photographing retired military soldiers bidding farewell to their comrades at the train station. On my way out, I heard someone yelling from a corner and soon after lots of people gathered around. I ran towards the sound and made my way to the front of the crowd, only to find an old man dead on the bench. As I raised my camera, a Buddhist monk walked out of the crowd and went directly towards the dead man. The monk bent down to hold the old man’s hand and started to chant scriptures. I began to take pictures immediately. One minute later, police came over and cordoned off the area. After the monk finished the ceremony, he bowed to the old man and quickly disappeared among the other busy passengers.”

Source.

RaisinToGrapeProcess · 7 months

I like how the guy sitting two seats away from the dead person is like "I'll be damned if I'm giving up this seat".

BaxterRhymes · 7 months

I think the contrast between all the other people gawking upon the situation at a distance and the monk letting down all reservations to make contact with the man is beautiful.

jimflaigle · 7 months

I saw that happen at Penn Station once. Then the monk grabbed the guy's wallet and ran.

Also, the guy wasn't so much dead as napping.

And it wasn't a monk in the traditional sense.

hopeful_toker · 7 months

I got chills.

tbreak · 7 months

That's a very powerful image.

blastoman334 · 7 months

The importance of having dignity in death transcends religious and cultural divides. This is not understood by enough people.

shiny_dunsparce · 7 months

ITT: The first 4 words of half the comments 'I'm an atheist, but'

erkapathy · 7 months

This is a great picture but I really dislike how reddit always brings up atheism vs. christianity no matter what the context.

andrewsmith1986 · 7 months

Monks are awesome.

Dunabu · 7 months

Beautiful and sad.

AludraEltanin · 7 months

I wish we all had the chance to experience more of that kind of compassion before we died.

dirtsandwich · 7 months

As a psuedo-Buddhist I think "This is what it's all bout."

As a healthcare worker I think "Start resuscitation efforts, locate the airports AED and call 911, or whatever 911 is in China."

EvilFlyingSquirrel · 7 months

As an atheist, if I was found dead and someone wanted to say a prayer, dead me would be honoured.

SamuraiAlba · 7 months

Such a beautiful picture of humanity being... perfect :)

Desmodaeus · 7 months

This is so beautiful in so many ways... The fearlessness of the monk to approach the unknown man and acknowledge his passing, the bystanders as they pause to stare at death, suddenly shocked into remembering that we all die someday despite the daily routine, and the dead man himself as his head lies fallen to the side signifying his end.

Mexagon · 7 months

AS AN ATHEIST AS AN ATHEIST

bewarethetreebadger · 7 months

DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE ATHEISTS ON REDDIT!?

Tashre · 7 months

My old supervisor told me about a time when some guy had a heart attack and died in an airport bathroom stall. Created quite a scene. There was this old Chinese gentleman who my supervisor thought was with the dead guy, and the port police were trying to get the guy to come into the bathroom to identify his companion, but he wouldn't enter the bathroom, with another Chinese bystander who spoke english who said the man was saying something along the lines of the bathroom being cursed. Another flight from China had recently just arrived and one of the passengers from that flight was passing by and noticed the scene. They, took note of what the translator said and told the police that there was a monk on board the flight he was just on. Port police tracked him down and asked him if he would bless the bathroom (or whatever you do to ward dead spirits and whatnot) so they could get the other guy to come in and identify who the dead guy was. Monk goes in, does his thing, speaks to the live man and bestows a small blessing on him and is then on his merry way. Live guy, incredibly distraught up to this point and adamant about not entering the bathroom, then proceeds to walk right in.

i_am_stardust · 7 months

I'm an atheist but I have to say the humanity of this photo is beautiful nonetheless.

Muttonclop · 7 months

Nah, the monk was just shaking hands with the guy, but mid-shake the man died so the monk kinda just rolled with it.

roylez · 7 months

As a native Chinese, I guess it is my chance to get some upvotes by showing off all photos of this incident.

estin · 7 months

wow, what a powerful image

jaihu · 7 months

This is an awesome picture. I'm also very curious to understand why so many people are commenting about how amazing they think this picture is with a qualification that they are atheist ... why does it matter?

kittyzipper · 7 months

How we treat our dead is a reflection upon us as a society. To me this is beautiful. Thank you.

masterdll7 · 7 months

Oh, the humanity!

CheekySprite · 7 months

If it were a Catholic priest, you would all be hooting and hollering like a bunch of hypocritical monkeys.

This picture is amazing.

jabb0 · 7 months

In the end it is something we all have coming.

wonderboy2402 · 7 months

Wow, great share.

emm22ett · 7 months

this is beautiful

BRAPP · 7 months

As much as religion is bashed and torn apart on this website, there is something very comforting about this picture and what it represents, good call on the upvotes

naked_ditchdigger · 7 months

Now THAT is a humanitarian. Look closely, kiddos.

nd1312 · 7 months

So did it work?

hayden_evans · 7 months

I wonder how long that guy was dead in that station for

Arx0s · 7 months

I love posts like this. It's really heartwarming and sad at the same time. Also, coincidently, the same time I saw this post, Fox Mulder's mom died on TV.

PrplFlavrdZombe · 7 months

Christian here, I think it's a beautiful photo

moving0target · 7 months

Man...how long was HE waiting for a train?

HoagieHaven1 · 7 months

Is that Death photobombing in the very top right corner?

tiddre · 7 months

that monk is actually so cool

Buhnanah · 7 months

I read, "A monkey prays for a dead man...".

nighttmoon · 7 months

Shanxi Taiyuan is where I was born and raised. Its not a well known city, not even in China. I don't live there anymore. I also studied Buddhism many years ago. I was taught to be kind to all forms of life (ie: not harm bugs). I was still a kid back then, and didn't understand much of the teachings. Now that I think back, they really do give you a new perspective on life, a way to understand nature.

ekbrf4 · 7 months

This is very touching. He looks peaceful, the monk is holding his hand tightly, like he is telling him he is not alone.

xFaded · 7 months

How did people first find out he's dead? Has he been dead for a long time or something?

broncobob · 7 months

That is intense

d0wnside · 7 months

Those damn train delays!

roostarr · 7 months

Ambivalent buddhist here; this really moved me.

[deleted] · 7 months

Thank you for this. Today it meant a lot.

back_in_austraya · 7 months

This is possibly the most beautiful photo I've ever seen

iwillkillbullboy · 7 months

safe to say, one of the most mesmorizing images i've ever laid eyes on..

TruXter · 7 months

Monks are cool.

[deleted] · 7 months

Did anyone else read that as 'monkey'?

syzygt · 7 months

I don't understand why we can't respect everyone's religion wether its our own or not. Everyone likes to belong to something bigger then themselves. All of us face birth and death the same. Believe what you feel is the right path and show others respect for doing the same.

singularityneuromanc · 7 months

This is amazing. It would be tight as a species if we could stop having conflicts regarding spirituality.

dnsbubba · 7 months

I am always amazed at frozen moments of human experience such as this one. Nothing truly extraordinary, just a person at the same end we all face, and the compassion of someone caring for them.

It must happen a million times a day, but it still humbles me to see it.

bartendalot · 7 months

How do 15,000 downvote this post? If someone shoops a kitten on the bench next to the dead guy, will upvotes ensue?

KSMKxRAGEx · 7 months

Bless you monk :D

Seagull84 · 7 months

Buddhist monk explains how close science, Atheism, and Buddhism really are, and emphasizes there are no gods, is no creator, and is no being supreme.

digit01 · 7 months

So one did give a fuck. This is actually nice to see. I mean what the monk is doing.

IamAnAnswer · 7 months

I Just had a good friend pass away last week... this picture gives me more comfort than anything else so far.

gorwell · 7 months

This is actually a photo of a monk murdering a man with bare hands at a bus stop.

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