Cooking and Eating as Meditation

Busy people often try to eat quickly. But one monk in Tokyo thinks busy people should take their time to take slow meals, as eating slowly can give them a good opportunity to reflect on themselves. We talked with “cooking monk” Kakuho Aoe about his ideas on slow meals, which have roots in Japanese Buddhist cuisine, and how he reached his unique perspective.

“Cooking monk”

Aoe is a Buddhist monk of the Pure Land sect and the 14th-generation priest at Ryokusenji Temple in Asakusa, Tokyo. He cooks and serves his take on vegetarian food called “shojin ryori,” which monks at Buddhist temples developed over time. He has published numerous recipe books and held regular events such as “Kurayami gohan” (meaning “Diner in the dark” in Japanese), where participants experience eating their meals in the darkness. Aoe hopes that these special eating experiences provide participants with opportunities to realize what they have been ignoring during their hectic daily lives.