John Massey, his family, and friends enjoy a special meal of rice soup called bau bau. This will be John's last meal as a member of the lay community. After today he is not allowed to eat after the noon hour. The monks who reside in the temple will remain downstairs in their living quarters until the meal is finished. Traditionally, meals would be eaten in another room or building out of view of the Buddha statue; this, however, is one of many digressions from strict observance that the Cambodian Community of Lowell has had to make in re-establishing Buddhism in the Greater Lowell area.
Ordination of Novice Monk, photograph 5 of 30, from Cambodian Traditional Crafts and Religious Ceremonies.
View the Ordination of Novice Monk group of photographs in order on the Internet Archive,
https://archive.org/details/OrdinationNoviceMonk.