Deep in the snowy mountains of Japan lies Eihei-ji, the main temple of Soto Zen Buddhism. The temple dates back nearly 770 years ago, when it was founded by Dogen Zenji as a place for ascetic training. Around 200 monks from all over Japan engage in rigorous training at the temple. Zen meditation and sutra chanting play an essential role. As Dogen instructed, though, cooking and eating are also part of training. This teaching is handed down by the tenzo, the priest who takes care of all the cooking at Eihei-ji. Despite his important position, the current tenzo Ryokyu Miyoshi still cooks in the kitchen with the trainee monks. The camera follows tenzo Miyoshi as he prepares food at Eihei-ji. Dogen Zenji wrote down his instructions and teachings about cooking in the tenzo kyokun, or "Book of creeds." For example, Dogen insists all ingredients are living things, so even a single grain of rice must not be wasted. In accordance with this, the monks at Eihei-ji try hard not to waste food, with the skin and seeds of vegetables, for instance, being reused to make soup stock. The food is prepared from the heart with the eater in mind. Tenzo Miyoshi believes society benefits when food is treated with more care. This is the essence of Dogen Zenji's teachings, a lesson that continues to be passed on down through the ages.