Dharma Talk: Precepts as a Way of Life
By Thich Nhat Hanh in March 1992
There are many problems in the world today—alcoholism, sexual abuse, oppression, exploitation of the environment, and so forth. If we look deeply, we can see that our stability and the stability of our family and society require us to discover…
From the Editors
Published in March 1992
This issue features Thich Nhat Hanh's commentaries on the Five Precepts as presented in a series of lectures at Plum Village, France in July-August 1991. We hope this article by Thay and the other pieces on practicing the precepts and related subjects inspire your…
Beginning Anew
By Sister Annabel Laity in March 1992
In Plum Village, we practice a ceremony called, "Beginning Anew," which goes all the way back to the Buddha. Families in great difficulties have been saved by this ceremony, and lay and monastic communities have reestablished their harmony, thanks to it. I feel grateful…
Other articles in this issue
Rightful Inheritance
By Sister Jina van Hengel
Be still, and behold the jewel so precious, so bright You are like that, because I am like this. Look, and see I am in you, you are in me.…
Transforming the Past, Shaping the Future
By Greg Hessel On December 18, 1991, thirty-one people, who speak and pray in six different languages, gathered in Panama City to create a common community to walk 5,000 miles, praying for those…
Right Speech as a Gauge
It is easy to see the impact our speech has on others. What we say at the breakfast table can make or break the day for our children. It affects the bus…
Living the Precepts
Last June, I attended the retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh for Vietnam Veterans. Upon invitation, I traveled to Plum Village, where I lived for six weeks. It was in Rhinebeck that I was…
Contemplating Sugar
When I look deeply into sugar, I see millions of slaves brought to the New World to work in a plantation system which made some people tremendously rich because of peoples' escalating desire…
The Fifth Precept
"Do not drink alcohol..." was a bit too strict for me. I was used to more flexible interpretations of the fifth precept such as "Do not cloud your mind with alcohol." I…
Stuck on Right Livelihood
During Days of Mindfulness in Boulder, we would pick a different precept from the Order of Interbeing and reflect on what it meant in our lives. I got stuck on Right Livelihood, and…
Practicing with my Daughter
My thirteen-year-old daughter, Christy, and I took the precept ceremony at a mindfulness retreat last spring with Thich Nhat Hanh. She didn't feel that she should take the fourth precept because, even though…
Mindfully I Open My Baseball Cards
This summer Cisco saved his money to purchase a special baseball card package (the rage in our culture among ten-year-olds) which includes a half dozen or more individually wrapped bundles of cards.…
The Magic Bell
On a Day of Mindfulness last spring, a sangha member spoke of her trepidation concerning an ambitious summer plan. Her work was to prepare a theater project for a large number of children…
A Children’s Story for Everyone
Once upon a time in a land quite near—but to many, far, far away—there lived a little monk. He was a special little monk for he did not believe he was special.…
Letters to the Editors
Although we are greatly heartened to hear of ways the Mindfulness Bell works for you, we also welcome critical thoughts and suggestions on how to make it better. Please send us your insights.…
Announcements
ABC-TV DocumentaryThe film, "Search for Spirituality," which aired nationally in the U.S. in January, featured Thich Nhat Hanh, David Steindl-Rast, Matthew Fox, Joko Beck, and others. The footage of Thay is from the…
Mountains and Waters
"Now I see clearly that the mind is the mountains, the rivers and the great Earth; the sun, the moon, and the stars." (Dogen) Nine women came together last summer…
