The monks of Pine Wind

SHAMONG, NJ - Dusk settles in on the Pine Barrens.

Those arriving at the monastery are greeted by monks as they shuffle into the zendo.

Service begins with 20 minutes of total silence and a sign next to a statue of the Buddha reads "it is what it is."

I came across the Pine Wind Zen community while searching for local monasteries in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

I wanted to capture day-to-day life at one: Monks sweeping the temple floor, gathering fire wood for the stove, watering the plants — the everyday aspects. What did they discuss with each other? Are the rules really as strict as we see them depicted?

Pine Wind is not a stereotypical Buddhist monastery. The monks here include a tattoo artist, an environmentalist, an investigator, a retired school teacher and even a rabbi.

That diversity is what helps make the imagery. Here we have people from different religious and cultural backgrounds banding together for a common cause.

When the founder and director of Pine Wind, Seijaku Roshi, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, the monks stepped up.

Genjo is one of three monks who took a leadership role in Roshi's absence. He added, “We saw his mortality in question, but it turned out to be a great gift. All the sudden we had to start making decisions for the programs.”

Richard Simon, a rabbi and hospice chaplain said "it was very extraordinary and a great learning process. He went through some terrible times and our hearts were so open. He’s taught us how to deal with suffering." Simon, known as Chimon at Pine Wind, also took on a leadership role. 

Chimon, a practicing rabbi and Buddhist monk says he doesn't see discrepancies between the two ideologies.

“The type of zen that we practice is about being authentic with who we are. We're not asked to change our religious identity,” he said. “It's not a religion, but a way of life,” said Richard Bizub, known as Emyo.

Roshi had completed chemotherapy earlier this year and was officially in remission. Unfortunately, the cancer has since come back.

"Living with cancer everyday provides a lot of time for reflection, contemplation, and meditation. I have given a great deal of reflection about my life’s mission which began for me decades ago, and how my own lessons have always informed the teachings I have shared. Recently, one of my fellow Monks and dearest friend said to me, 'Roshi, your message has always been the same, taught by you in a thousand different ways.' Today that message has truly crystalized and proven to be more important than ever," he said.

Roshi is currently undergoing another round of chemotherapy.