Do you ever feel like your being watched? That is the feeling I wanted to capture with this image.
I spent the afternoon wandering around and making photographs at the Swayambunath Pagoda, also known affectionately as The Monkey Temple due to it's most populace residents. I came around a corner and noticed this group of young monks perched on a concrete platform three steps above me. I was drawn immediately to the composition of the "all seeing eyes" of Buddha watching over the group of young devotees as they engaged, as boys the world over do, in an intense game of checkers.
As so often happens, the idea of this image screamed out to me well before I actually captured it on film. I had seen this intriguing gaze of Buddha's eyes along with the question mark looking symbol where his nose should be all over Nepal. I learned that the symbol actually represented the "all seeing" third eye of Buddha always watching over us keeping a tally of our karmic record. Not only was this a perfect vantage point to compose this philosophy, but I knew if I could get the monks to notice and look at me, I could really express the feeling of being "watched" with their eyes highlighted in a beautiful shaft of afternoon light along with this philosophical symbol of Nepal.
I inconspicuously set my f-stop and shutter speed for the desired depth and movement, quietly sat on a step and composed the photo knowing the key to the entire image would be timing. Seconds later as a couple of the monks noticed me, they all turned to see what I was up to. Magic!
This photo will always serve as a reminder to me of the Nepalese belief that Buddha and the karmic universe see everything. How is your karma?
