Daitaiji Temple is located in the Ota district of Nachikatsuura Town, Wakayama Prefecture. With a history of about 1,200 years, Otaiji not only has a lodging house where visitors can stay at the temple, but also offers tent sauna experiences, sutra copying experiences, and zazen experiences. Among those experiences is the morning porridge experience. The temple hopes to provide a healthy mind and body not only by having guests stay at the temple, but also by having them experience the temple’s meals. ”Warm porridge is known to improve blood circulation and increase metabolism,so you can build your health from the inside out. ” says chief priest Nishiyama

Monks’ manners that are still relevant today

In addition, from ancient times, there is a rule that monks in temple training must not “speak out loud” when eating. Without speaking out loud, they communicate “another plate” or “I don’t need any more. In this day and age, people say “eat silently” to prevent infectious diseases, but the abbot told us that in temples where people practiced asceticism in a closed environment, they were not allowed to speak during meals to prevent the spread of infectious diseases from that time onward. It has always been believed that infectious diseases spread during meals. The detailed etiquette will be explained in detail during the morning porridge experience and in a video that will be distributed before the experience, so even first-timers can feel free to participate.

For a peaceful start to the day.

Breakfast at a temple is different from daily life, with different foods, different manners, and more time spent on the meal. Morning porridge served in the temple grounds, with the morning dew remaining and the chirping of birds echoing in the air, seems to be a very peaceful way to start the day.