By Megan Phelps Sister Thanh Trí and Megan, Solidity Hamlet, Deer Park, 2018 On September 9th, 2018, my sister was ordained at Deer Park Monastery along with nine other new monastics. It was an unusual experience to watch my sibling become a nun; I felt a mixture of pride, excitement,…
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Love Letter from Auschwitz
By Peter Kuhn Auschwitz Memorial; photo by Peter Kuhn Dear Friends, Auschwitz, the site of the most notorious concentration camp in Nazi-occupied territory during World War II, may not sound like a vacation destination, but it is a powerful spot for retreat. Last summer, my wife Jackie and I joined…
Shining the Light
It’s very precious to have someone show us how our practice is going. When a friend shines light on our practice we benefit greatly, because we have many wrong perceptions that can keep us in a prison of self-pride. That is why when we are offered guidance, we can make…
The Venerable Thích Nhất Hạnh and the Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism
Sister Trì Nghiêm describes her experience of Thầy as a truly great spiritual leader, and highlights the importance of embodiment of the practice of mindfulness as a foundation for true spiritual greatness.
Hugging as Practice
By David Hughes I’ve always viewed myself as a hugger, a toucher. I hug my family members, and like to be hugged. I touch a lot — I’ll walk by my wife and touch her shoulder, or reach over and touch my daughter’s arm. My Dad was like this, too.…
Breaking up as a Mindfulness Practice
By Octavia Baker For months, I was clinging to my relationship with my partner, thinking we could somehow stay together without my becoming a parent, although he wanted to have children. I thought my partner could adopt my best friend’s children. He could become a mentor, a big brother. He…
Loving Deeply
By Allan Hunter Badiner A commentary on the fourth of the Five Awareness: "We are aware that understanding is the very foundation of love." While the foundation of love may be understanding, it is equally true that confusion and misunderstanding often surround love. The key to the Five Awarenesses is to understand ourselves as a…
The True Warrior
A Dharma talk on feeling safe and secure in the island of self
From Soldier to Buddhist Monk
Brother Phap Uyen shares his path of practice from Brother Phap Uyen’s writings and an interview by Sister Steadiness My mom and I met Thay at a retreat in Redlands, California in 1989. I took the five mindfulness trainings and received the name Tam Houng, Strength of the Heart. Two…
Got White Rice?
By Lien Shutt I was born in Saigon in 1964. My birth mother was a clerk at the American Embassy. When she realized that she was dying of cancer, she asked her boss to help her find Americans to adopt my older sister and me. In 1973, European Americans adopted us. Because my adoptive parents…