Tibetan Monks in TST

While jogging in TsimShaTsui East on Sunday, I bumped into this group of monks. They looked friendly enough, so I chatted with them a bit. They were from Tibet but they spoke Putonghua. And they were here as tourists.

Tibetan Buddhism is a bit different from the brand of Buddhism that we are familiar with in Hong Kong, as far as I know. They dress differently. Their brand is supposedly “big vehicle” as opposed to “small vehicle”. They seek more the enlightenment of all beings than personal liberation…

In any case, I thought it was somewhat incongruous for Buddhist monks to be tourists. Aren’t tourists are attracted by worldly sights; while Buddhists seek liberation from worldly snares? Perhaps I was missing something.

But I thought it might be a bit impolite to ask them. So I didn’t.