Thích Nhất Hạnh teaches us about interbeing, impermanence, no discrimination, and the end of civilization: "Mother Earth does not discriminate. If you throw perfume or flowers on her, she’s not proud. If you throw urine or excrement on her, she’s not offended. For her, everything is perfect. She knows that without this, the other cannot be. Without the mud, the lotus cannot be. So we can learn a lot from Mother Earth."
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Love without Frontiers
By Thich Nhat Hanh November 25, 2004 Thanksgiving Day Lower Hamlet, Plum Village Good morning, dear Sangha. Today is the 25th of November in the year 2004, and we are in the Lower Hamlet during our Fall Retreat. This morning we spoke about a telephone line that should be called…
Summer Camp of the Pure Land
By David Lawrence Getting to Plum Village was not easy. I had a strong desire to go, but the prospect of leaving my many activities created doubts that I would actually be able to make the trip. Yet the anticipation of being with the greater Sangha and deepening my practice…
Touching the Blue Sky
The Story of Thay Phap An By Thay Phap An photo by Robert S. Harrison Before I became a monk, I suffered from depression but did not know it. This created a deep need within me to look for something, although I did not know exactly what I was looking…
The Gift of True Freedom
We often hear reference to what it means to be free. We speak of the “free world.” We speak of “freedom of speech.” Most of us, at least in the West, as well as in many Eastern cultures, have the freedom to choose our mates, our careers, and even how…
Invoking the Name of Avalokitesvara
By Sister Giac Nghiem Before l was a nun, I found Avalokitesvara one day at my acupuncturist's office. He had a beautiful statue of Avalokitesvara and told me that she has the same energy as Mother Mary. I felt I had met Mother Mary in another form, with the same…
Visit to Vietnam
By Linda Spangler I had wanted to go to Vietnam for a long time. I grew up with the Vietnam War on TV and watched the fighting and the nightly list of American dead. Escaping the draft was a frequent topic of conversation in my high school. I could not understand how anyone could…
Miracles of Reconciliation
photo courtesy of monastic Sangha August 11, 2011 North American Tour University of British Columbia In the Five Mindfulness Trainings, we learn that Right Speech goes with loving speech and deep listening. Right Speech is free from discrimination and hate, from separation. When the father sees himself in the son,…
Letter from the Editor
To Our Readers The Invitation ceremony has concluded the three-month winter retreat in Deer Park Monastery. Members of the Fourfold Sangha are sitting on the beach with nowhere to go, nothing to do; enough to make us very happy. During the three months of the retreat, the Fourfold Sangha has…
The Wonderful World of Gathas
By David Percival The mind can go in a thousand directions,But on this beautiful path, I walk in peace.With each step, a cool wind blows.With each step, a flower blooms. If your path is like mine, you often find your mind jumping into the future, back to the past, fabricating…