By Sister Ha Nghiem When I first became a nun I felt like a bird trying to live in the ocean. Under the water I couldn't understand a word anyone was saying. Everything I had learned of what was important, what was beautiful, was somehow different here. Sometimes I felt lonely and out of…
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The Queen of the Night
Aurora Leon and Felipe Viveros share about bringing spirituality into conversations about racial equity and inclusion during the “Science, Spirituality, and Action” retreat at Plum Village, France.
Opening the Voice with the Practice of Chanting
Brother Goodness When I was in grade school and high school I attended chorus classes, but I never paid much attention. It was a wonderful time to goof around, and for my classmates and I it often turned towards playful endeavor that tested our teachers’ sanity. I was not aware…
Beginning Anew
By Penelope Thompson & Lee Lipp It has been more than six months since our Sangha "got a divorce," and it has been a time of suffering and broken-heartedness for everyone. It has also been a time of looking inward, learning to take responsibility for ways we have caused each other pain. For seven…
My Father’s Smile
By Susan Hadler Note: Second Body is a practice that is sometimes used to pair Sangha friends who intentionally support one another’s mindfulness practice. In our Sangha, second body pairs usually meet once a week for about four months. An early morning breeze blows through my cotton jacket as I…
Zero And One
By Elizabeth Wood For me personally, the story of Thay's visit to Moscow last September began two nights before his arrival. I dreamed I was trying to hold the numbers zero and one together in my mind. As I woke up, the dream felt like a koan. Emptiness and form, zero and one, how…
Counting Dragonflies
Deep Listening and Diagnostic Assessment I first meditated with Thich Nhat Hanh at a retreat at Nottingham University in 2012. One day on the retreat, I was quite tired and decided to miss the mindful walking with Thay and go back to my room and rest. I paused on a…
An Offering for the Dharma
By Andrew Weiss On the evening of April 6, 1993, Pham Gia Binh, a quiet, dedicated practitioner of Pure Land Buddhism, immolated himself in Ellington, Connecticut, in the presence of five friends. Binh made this offering of himself to alert us to the continued violation of human rights in Vietnam, and the continued mistreatment of…
The Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings and Sangha Building
Sister Annabel, True Virtue THE EIGHTH MINDFULNESS TRAINING:TRUE COMMUNITY AND COMMUNICATION Aware that lack of communication always brings separation and suffering, we are committed to training ourselves in the practice of compassionate listening and loving speech. Knowing that true community is rooted in inclusiveness and in the concrete practice of…
Beach Cleaning Meditation
By Penelope Thompson Several months ago, our small sangha met at the beach for a morning of mindfulness. First we sat together, then we did forty-five minutes of "cleaning the beach meditation." After that we shared our experiences together and ended with walking meditation. The experience was extraordinary for all of us, and we have…