Food and sleep of a Buddhist monk

This man lives in Thien Vien (that’s a Buddhist monastery). I had a word with him (in English, of course) and I found out some interesting facts.

The monks sleep about five hours a day. They go to bed at 10:00 PM, wake up at 3:30 AM. Some of them prefer to go to bed at 10:00 PM or 10:30 PM and to wake up at 2:30 AM. It means they have just 3,5 hours of sleep. They meditate a lot that is why they need less time for sleep and recovery.

The monks eat just twice a day - breakfast and lunch. They are vegetarians. During the day they are allowed to drink water, coffee and tea. They often feel hungry past noon but they think the mind is stronger than the body and hunger can be controlled.