Shaolin Temple’s African apprentices help harvest wheat

June is the time for monks of the Shaolin Temple, a Buddhist temple in central China’s Henan province, to harvest wheat.

Besides the monks, several apprentices from Africa also participated in this year’s harvest. They are students of the sixth Shaolin Kungfu Class which is jointly held by the temple and the Ministry of Culture. The class is expected to enhance cultural exchange between China and Africa.

The combination of spiritual cultivation and farming is a tradition of the temple, as the monks believe farming can help them pursue the experience of Zen.