HOUSTON, Texas \u2013 For weeks, a group of Buddhist monks walking across the country on a 2,300-mile \u201cWalk for Peace\u201d made their way through Texas before two members of the group were injured in a crash on U.S. 90 near Dayton on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The Walk for Peace began on Oct. 26 at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth. A group of about two dozen monks set off on foot with a simple mission: to promote unity, healing, compassion, and inner peace across the United States.<\/p>\n
Organizers describe the pilgrimage not as a protest, but as a spiritual journey meant to \u201cheal, inspire, and seed peace wherever their footsteps fall.\u201d The route spans 10 states and will end at the nation\u2019s Capitol and the White House in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
The monks follow traditional Buddhist discipline as they travel, walking mindfully each day, accepting food and support from local communities, and sharing quiet moments of reflection with those they meet.<\/p>\n
Their journey through Texas \u2014 and Houston<\/p>\n
After leaving Fort Worth, the monks walked through Austin before heading south toward the Greater Houston region. By the time they reached Houston, they had covered hundreds of miles over more than two weeks on the road.<\/p>\n
On Day 20 of their journey, the Sangha visited Houston for several community gatherings. They held a morning lunch and peace event at Hong Kong City Mall and visited Lien Hoa Temple and the Vietnam Buddhist Center, where community members offered prayers, meals, water, and encouragement.<\/p>\n
Residents across the area, from Pearland to Crestmont Park to Nieto Park, greeted the monks as they passed through, some joining them for short stretches of their walk. <\/p>\n
A dog named Aloka, who has accompanied the Sangha since the beginning, quickly became a favorite among families and children who met the group along the way.<\/p>\n
By the time the monks left Houston and continued east, they had walked more than 400 miles with nearly 1,800 miles remaining before reaching Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
The crash near Dayton<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, around 6:15 p.m., Dayton police said a truck traveling on U.S. 90 near SH-99 crashed into an escort vehicle that had been following behind the monks with its hazard lights on. The impact pushed the escort vehicle into the monks who were walking on the shoulder.<\/p>\n
Two monks were hospitalized. One suffered serious lower-body injuries and was flown by helicopter to a trauma center. Another sustained minor injuries and was taken by ambulance. <\/p>\n
In a statement, the Walk for Peace team said they are working closely with law enforcement and medical officials to confirm the monks\u2019 conditions and asked the public to refrain from sharing unverified information.<\/p>\n
A tradition of walking for peace<\/p>\n
Long walking pilgrimages have deep roots in Buddhist practice. Monks often travel on foot as a form of mindfulness, humility, and spiritual discipline. But a cross-country peace walk of this scale is rare in the United States. Organizers say this journey, stretching from Texas to Washington, D.C., is one of the first of its kind.<\/p>\n
Despite the long road still ahead, the group had planned to continue walking for more than 100 days, stopping at state capitols and historic sites to share their message: peace begins within, and every step plants the seed.<\/p>\n
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