What happens when a stray dog wanders into a group of Buddhist monks on a peace walk through India? Naturally, he joins them.
Meet Aloka — the dog who recently tagged along on a 2,300-mile trek across the United States with Buddhist monks as part of their Walk for Peace.
Who Is Aloka the Peace Dog?
Aloka (Sanskrit for “light) is a street dog from India making his mark all around the world.
His breed, known as the Indian Pariah Dog, is one of the most common street dog types found in India. Pariah dogs are often called “Indies” because of their prevalence in the streets of a country home to an estimated 60 million stray dogs. They survive by finding scraps of food or hunting small animals, and despite naturally good health, are often killed in traffic incidents or rabies outbreaks.
Historically, the dogs have been negatively stigmatized and deemed undesirable for adoption, though the tide is turning and many Indians have taken greater attention to providing these dogs better lives.
How Aloka Joined the Monks on the Peace Walk
In 2022, Aloka was wandering the streets on the outskirts of Kolkata when he saw a group of monks on the sixth day of their peace walk in India. The stray must have found something intriguing about the group of monks and decided to trail them out into the Indian countryside. As they continued their barefoot journey through the country, Aloka stayed right alongside them.
Day after day, Aloka continued to follow the monks. He stayed with the group for the remainder of the walk, which lasted more than 100 days, slowly earning their affection. The monks, spreading messages of peace, stopped in villages and significant Buddhist sites along an 1,800-mile trek that finished near the mountainous border of Nepal.
Proving his grit to the group, monks eventually took Aloka in, as he became their “Peace Dog.” Aloka became such a fixture of their travel that he was brought along to America for their next big trip.
What is the Walk for Peace?
A band of 19 Buddhist monks from Theravada monasteries around the world made it their mission to walk from Texas all the way to Washington D.C.. On their way, through rain and wintry weather, they carried any of their personal possessions on their back and relied on the generosity of locals for places to sleep each night.
Their goal on the 2,300-mile journey was to interact with local communities, inspire mindfulness, and promote nonviolence. The monks walked from sunrise to sunset, only stopping for opportunities to contribute to others. They held community meetings, taught meditation, and tied beads on the wrists of those they encountered.
“My hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace.” — The Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, leader of the monk group
Walking in a single-file line, mostly in silence and sometimes barefoot depending on the weather, the monks crossed 10 states on their way to the US capitol. The walk finished on February 10th, after a journey lasting 108 days from start to finish.
What Was Aloka’s Role on the Walk for Peace?
Aloka’s natural calm demeanor and persistence to walk through any weather helped him fit right in with the group of monks, acting as a symbol of peace and a gateway for strangers to bond with the monks and their mission.
The simple act of walking alongside the monks and interacting kindly with strangers quickly captured attention online (Aloka has over 1.5 million followers on his social pages!) he has spread the peacemaking journey much further than the monks could have done on their own.
Where is Aloka Now?
Inevitably, thousands of miles of wear and tear took a toll on Aloka’s legs. Along the way, an injury to the cranial cruciate ligament (similar to an ACL in humans) in one of his legs needed repair. His surgery was performed in South Carolina, and remarkably, he was able to rejoin the group of monks late January to finish out the walk.
Other than his stop for a surgery, Aloka was able to keep up for most of the journey that lasted over 2,000 miles. Whenever he was tired, he was either carried by a monk or had a chance to rest in the RV that was tailing the group.
In the final days of the journey, he was limited to only a few short walks per day. It was a striking difference from the miles he was used to covering, but he remains in good spirits as he continues to recover and inspire.
Aloka is currently recovering in Fort Worth, Texas, only a few weeks away from full health. He continues to meet supporters and take part in ceremonies at the nearby Huong Dao Buddhist Temple.
Why Aloka’s Story Matters
Aloka’s life might be vastly different from most other dogs or humans, but there is an easy lesson for us all. The joy Aloka has brought to those 19 monks — and now millions of people around the world — comes down to one simple characteristic: persistence.
Aloka saw something he felt worth following, and just kept walking.
