Thich Nhat Hanh
(pronounced Tick-Naught-Han) is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk. During the war in
Vietnam, he worked tirelessly for reconciliation between North and South
Vietnam. His lifelong efforts to generate peace moved Martin Luther King, Jr. to
nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. He lives in exile in a small
community in France where he teaches, writes, gardens, and works to help
refugees worldwide. He has conducted many mindfulness retreats in Europe and
North America helping veterans, children, environmentalists, psychotherapists,
artists and many thousands of individuals seeking peace in their hearts, and in
their world.
Thich Nhat Hanh has
been living in exile from his native Vietnam since the age of forty. In that
year of 1966, he was banned by both the non-Communist and Communist governments
for his role in undermining the violence he saw affecting his people. A Buddhist
monk since the age of sixteen, Tha^y ("teacher," as he is commonly known to
followers) earned a reputation as a respected writer, scholar, and leader. He
championed a movement known as "engaged Buddhism," which intertwined traditional
meditative practices with active nonviolent civil disobedience. This movement
lay behind the establishment of the most influential center of Buddhist studies
in Saigon, the An Quang Pagoda. He also set up relief organizations to rebuild
destroyed villages, instituted the School of Youth for Social Service (a Peace
Corps of sorts for Buddhist peace workers), founded a peace magazine, and urged
world leaders to use nonviolence as a tool. Although his struggle for
cooperation meant he had to relinquish a homeland, it won him accolades around
the world.
When Thich Nhat Hanh
left Vietnam, he embarked on a mission to spread Buddhist thought around the
globe. In 1966, when Thây came to the United States for the first of many
humanitarian visits, the territory was not completely new to him: he had
experienced American culture before as a student at Princeton, and more recently
as a professor at Columbia. The Fellowship of Reconciliation and Cornell invited
Tha^y to speak on behalf of Buddhist monks, and he offered an enlightened view
on ways to end the Vietnam conflict. He spoke on college campuses, met with
administration officials, and impressed social dignitaries. The following year,
Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., nominated Thich Nhat Hanh
for the same honor. Hanh's Buddhist delegation to the Paris peace talks resulted
in accords between North Vietnam and the United States, but his pacifist efforts
did not end with the war. He also helped organize rescue missions well into the
1970's for Vietnamese trying to escape from political oppression. Even after the
political stabilization of Vietnam, Thich Nhat Hanh has not been allowed to
return home. The government still sees him as a threat-ironic, when one
considers the subjects of his teachings: respect for life, generosity,
responsible sexual behavior, loving communication, and cultivation of a
healthful life style.
Tha^y now lives in
southwestern France, where he founded a retreat center twelve years ago. At the
center, Plum Village, he continues to teach, write, and garden. Plum Village
houses only thirty monks, nuns, and laypeople, but thousands from around the
globe call it home. Accommodation is readily available for short-term visitors
seeking spiritual relief, for refugees in transit, or for activists in need of
inspiration. Thich Nhat Hanh gathers people of diverse nationalities, races,
religions, and sexes in order to expose them to mindfulness-taking care in the
present moment, being profoundly aware and appreciative of life.
Despite the fact that
Tha^y is nearing seventy, his strength as a world leader and spiritual guide
grows. He has written more than seventy-five books of prose, poetry, and
prayers. Most of his works have been geared toward the Buddhist reader, yet his
teachings appeal to a wide audience. For at least a decade, Thich Nhat Hanh has
visited the United States every other year; he draws more and more people with
each tour, Christian, Jewish, atheist, and Zen Buddhist alike. His philosophy is
not limited to preexistent religious structures, but speaks to the individual's
desire for wholeness and inner calm. In 1993, he drew a crowd of some 1,200
people at the National Cathedral in Washington DC, led a retreat of 500 people
in upstate New York, and assembled 300 people in West Virginia. His popularity
in the United States inspired the mayor of Berkeley, California, to name a day
in his honor and the Mayor of New York City declared a Day of Reconciliation
during his 1993 visit. Clearly, Thich Nhat Hanh is a human link with a prophetic
past, a soft-spoken advocate of peace, Buddhist community, and the average
American citizen.
Vietnamese Zen master
Thich Nhat Hanh's meditation community in the south of France is an abode of
harmony, peace, and ethnic diversity. As I drive past the vineyards, chateaux,
and sunflower fields of southwestern France, en route to Plum Village, I find
myself wondering why I'm going there for my vacation. Wouldn't I really rather
be exploring the nearby medieval town of St. Emilion, famous for its macaroons?
Or sampling Bordeaux wines? Or slathering Camembert onto French bread while
lounging on the beach? But after five minutes in Plum Village, all doubts
vanish. This is clearly not a monastery-children race about laughing and calling
to each other in Vietnamese, French, and English; gray-haired women chatter in
Vietnamese as they prepare rice and vegetables in the communal kitchen; a group
of teenagers sit under a tree playing sitars. But permeating all of this
activity is a sense of peace and simplicity that I find deeply refreshing after
a week of frenzied tourism.
This interweaving of
practice and daily living is the essence of Plum Village, founded in the early
1980's to fulfill Nhat Hanh's decades-old dream of a community where people
involved in the work of social transformation could come for rest and spiritual
nourishment. Exiled from his native Vietnam because of his antiwar activities,
he finally established his spiritual oasis on eighty acres of land in the wine
country east of Bordeaux. In exchange for a home, Vietnamese refugees helped
clean and renovate the beautiful, rustic, eighteenth-century stone farm
buildings and construct additional cinder block structures. Currently, only
about fifty residents stay year-round, studying Buddhism, working to help
Vietnamese refugees and political prisoners, and tending the 1,250 plum trees,
whose crop earns money to send medicine to Vietnam. But for one month each
summer, the community is open to the public, and nearly 1,000 visitors--about
half Vietnamese and half Westerners--come to practice. This month is by no means
a grueling meditation retreat. In fact, Nhat Hanh likes to use the word "treat,"
rather than "retreat," to describe these gatherings of Buddhist practitioners.
The emphasis is on learning skills for bringing mindfulness into everyday life.
Family practice is central, and children are wholeheartedly encouraged to
participate in all activities, including meditation, tea ceremonies, and Dharma
talks. Typically, Tha^y directs the first ten minutes of every talk to the
children, who then play outside for the rest of the talk.
No matter what the
activity, visitors are gently reminded to perform it with joy and awareness. For
me, the spirit of Plum Village is epitomized by the carved wooden sign beside
the walking meditation path: "The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on
this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each
step, a flower blooms."
-From A Joyful Path , "Plum Village Summer Opening" by Anne Cushman.
At PLUM VILLAGE Thich
Nhat Hanh leads a year-round program of meditation practice for residents and
for visitors who come for at least one week. The Summer Opening is from July 15
to August 15. For information write in advance to:
"Do not be idolatrous
about or bound to any doctrine, theory, or ideology, even Buddhist ones. All
systems of thought are guiding means; they are not absolute truth.
Do not think that the
knowledge you presently possess is changeless, absolute truth. Avoid being
narrow-minded and bound to present views. Learn and practice non-attachment from
views in order to be open to receive others' viewpoints. Truth is found in life
and not merely in conceptual knowledge. Be ready to learn throughout our entire
life and to observe reality in yourself and in the world at all times.
Do not force others,
including children, by any means whatsoever, to adopt your views, whether by
authority, threat, money, propaganda, or even education. However, through
compassionate dialogue, help others renounce fanaticism and narrowness.
Do not avoid contact
with suffering or close your eyes before suffering. Do not lose awareness of the
existence of suffering in the life of the world. find ways to be with those who
are suffering by all means, including personal contact and visits, images,
sound. By such means, awaken yourself and others to the reality of suffering in
the world.
Do not accumulate
wealth while millions are hungry. Do not take as the aim of you life fame,
profit, wealth, or sensual pleasure. Live simply and share time, energy, and
material resources with those who are in need.
Do not maintain anger
or hatred. As soon as anger and hatred arise, practice the meditation on
compassion in order to deeply understand the persons who have caused anger and
hatred. Learn to look at other beings with the eyes of compassion.
Do not lose yourself
in dispersion and in your surroundings. Learn to practice breathing in order to
regain composure of body and mind, to practice mindfulness, and to develop
concentration and understanding.
Do not utter words
that can create discord and cause the community to break. Make every effort to
reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.
Do not say untruthful
things for the sake of personal interest of to impress people. Do not utter
words that cause diversion and hatred. Do not spread news that you do not know
to be certain. Do not criticize or condemn things you are not sure of. Always
speak truthfully and constructively. Have the courage to speak out about
situations of injustice, even when doing so may threaten your own safety.
Do not use the
Buddhist community for personal gain or profit, or transform your community into
a political party. A religious community should, however, take a clear stand
against oppression and injustice, and should strive to change the situation
without engaging in partisan conflicts.
Do not live with a
vocation that is harmful to humans and nature. Do not invest in companies that
deprive others of their chance to life. Select a vocation which helps realize
your ideal compassion.
Do not kill. Do not
let others kill. Find whatever means possible to protect life and to prevent
war.
Possess nothing that
should belong to others. Respect the property of others but prevent others from
enriching themselves from human suffering or the suffering of other beings.
Do not mistreat your
body. Learn to handle it with respect. Do not look on your body as only and
instrument. Preserve vital energies (sexual, breath, spirit) for the realization
of the Way. Sexual expression should not happen without love and commitment. In
sexual relationships be aware of future suffering that may be caused. To
preserve the happiness of others, respect the rights and commitments of others.
Be fully aware of the responsibility of bringing new lives into the world.
Meditate on the world into which you are bringing new beings.
Do not believe that I
feel that I follow each and every of these precepts perfectly. I know I fail in
many ways. None of us can fully fulfill any of these. However, I must work
toward a goal. These are my goal. No words can replace practice, only practice
can make the words.
Parallax Books Books and tapes by Thây. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED SITE!
Real Audio Thây reads from his
book "Call Me By My True Names"
Real Audio Thây explains the meaning
and use of the bell