Monks undertake 500-mile journey on their knees

Masters Zhiyuan and Hanliang will spend two months crawling to 99 temples on their way to the Putuo Mountains in eastern China until they reach a statue of Guanyin, the Buddhist goddess of mercy.

Each night the pious pair will sleep under the stars in sleeping bags without even a tent to cover them, say helpers from their home temple in Ganlu, southern China.

"They will crawl and then every third step they will stop and bow as a sign of respect to the goddess," explained one.


/Metro.co.uk/