THICH NHAT HANH

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Art of Power (New York: HarperOne, 2007) ("There are also people whose motivating desire is not so wholesome. They live only to accumulate wealth, influence, and recognition. They want to be admired and envied by others, drive fancy cars, have famous and attractive lovers, and live in luxurious houses. Then there are people whose strongest desire is to punish those they believe have caused them a lot of suffering. They live only for revenge. They focus their whole lives around the desire to attack, destroy, punish, and cause suffering to the people they think made them suffer. They're ready to blow up an airplane or force their way into an embassy carrying a bomb, losing their own lives in the explosion just because they want revenge. They consider themselves victims of injustice, and they want to inflict sorrow and pain on other groups or other nations. This kind of motivation is the foundation of their lives and the basis of their actions. These people have given up on happiness, because if your motivation is to punish someone else or to run after fame, glory, and power, you are going to suffer a lot. Id. at 66. The law, I think, is often found attractive to such people. And, as a consequence, there a many unhappy and suffering lawyers, inflicting mental and emotion pain on others. As lawyers they do not bomb planes and embassies, but they often do damage in the form of law, rules, regulations, and processes that give cover to those who manufacturing, sell or provide dangerous, hazardous, and unhealthy products (e.g., gun manufacturers, fraudulent securities brokers, junk food venders, recreational drugs providers, etc.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Blooming of a Lotus: Guided Meditation for Achieving the Miracle of Mindfulness, translated from the Vietnamese by Annabel Laity (Boston: Beacon Press, 1993).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Calming the Fearful Mind: A Zen Response to Terrorism (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2005) ("Communication is the practice. We live in a time when there are so many sophisticated means of communication: email, telephone, fax, yet it is very difficult for individuals, groups, and nations to communicate with each other. We feel we can't use our words to speak and so we use bombs to communicate." "When we arrive at the point when we can't communicate with our words and have to use guns, we have succumbed to despair. We have to learn how to communicate. If we can show a group we are in conflict with that they having nothing to be afraid of, then we can begin to trust each other. In Asian countries, people often greet each other by bowing and joining their palms to form a lotus flower. In the West, when people meet each other, they shake hands. I learned that this tradition comes form medieval times when people were afraid of each other, and every time they met they wanted to show that they had no weapons in their hands." "Now we have to do the same thing. With our action, we can say, 'Dear friend, I have no weapons. See? Touch for yourself. I am not harmful, there are no guns hidden on me.' This is the kind of practice that can begin to build trust. With trust and communication, dialogue becomes possible." Id. at 92.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Creating True Peace: Ending Violence in Yourself, Your Family, Your Community and the World (New York: Free Press, 2003).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Dragon Prince: Stories and Legends From Vietnam, translated from the Vietnamese by Mobi Warren, and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop & Nguyen Dong (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2007) (From "Watermelon Seeds": "To Know the seeds planted in former lives / Look at the fruit reaped in this life. / To know the fruits your future lives hold / Look at the seeds you now sow." Id. at 79, 80.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Fragrant Palm Leaves: Journals 1962-1966, translated from the Vietnamese by Mobi Warren (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1966, 1998) ("The best medicine to chase away the heart's dark isolation is to make direct contact with life's sufferings, to touch and share the anxieties and uncertainties of others. Loneliness comes form locking yourself in a false shell. You think of yourself as a separate, self-contained entity not in relation to others. Buddhists call this 'attachment to self.' In reality, we are empty of a separate self. But we needn't take the Buddhists' word for it. Looking deeply, we can see that a person is not a separate self." Id. at 173. One of the reason I am not optimistic about the advance capitalist Western nations, and specifically the United States, being true leaders in the twenty-first century and, if we make it that far, the twenty-second century is its infantile emphasis on the individual. The toughest problem facing us (e.g., climate change, global warming, overpopulation) will require true cooperation, of a kind that individualism will not much serve to foster. American as a whole, sadly, are not deep thinkers. They may be doer, but what is the value of mindless, thoughtless, reactive doing?). 

Thich Nhat Hanh, Freedom Wherever We Go: A Buddhist Monastic Code For the Twenty-First Century (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2004) (A offhand comment suggested that I live like a monk. I laughed. This short book shows how a monk might live. I am too weak to live such a life. I wish I were stronger. Next life?).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Hermitage Among the Clouds, translated from the Vietnamese by Mobi Warren and Annabel Laity (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1993) ("Sister Fragrant Garland taught that liberation was found in how you lived your daily life and not something you hoped for in the future. If you couldn't experience liberation in the present moment, you would never experience it. It was clear... that Sister Fragrant Garland lived a liberated life and was able to do so because she had untied the ropes of affliction that usually bind one's heart and mind.... She found peace and joy in the heart of everyday tasks like threshing and hulling rice, spreading dung, or watering plants...." Id. at 84.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social, with a foreword by Daniel Berrigan (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1993).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Moon Bamboo, translated from the Vietnamese by Vo-Dinh Mai & Mobi Ho; illustrations by Vo-Dinh Mai, and with an introduction by Mobi Ho (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1989).

Thich Nhat Hanh, My Master's Robe: Memories of a Novice Monk, with a foreword by Sister Annabel Laity (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2002) ("He said, 'If we have sown the seeds of disaster, no matter where we go, we will not be able to avoid the consequences.'" Id. at 86.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Novice: A Story of True Love (New York: HarperOne, 2011) ("Surely anyone who has lived on Earth has had to experience injustice of one kind or another. If we allow hatred and revenge to dictate our response, then our suffering will only go on and on. How do we find a way out? How can we free ourselves? A person who feels injured by another typically harbors thoughts of revenge, wanting to punish the offender. But the Buddha taught that hatred is never removed by adding more hatred. The only stream that can wash away the pain of unjust acts is the sweet water of loving-kindness and compassion. Without loving-kindness and compassion, hatred and vengeance will continue to accumulate from one year, and one lifetime, to the next." Id. at 83.).

Thich Nhat Hanh & the Fourfold Sangha of Plum Village Monastics and Worldwide Lay Practitioners, One Buddha Is Not Enough: A Story of Collective Awakening (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2010).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Opening the Heart of the Cosmos: Insights on the Lotus Sutra (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2003).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Path of Emancipation: Talks for a 21-day Mindfulness Retreat (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2000).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Peace Is Every Breath: A Practice for Our Busy Lives (New York: HarperOne, 2011).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Pine Gate: Stories by Thich Nhat Hanh, translated from the Vietnamese by Vo-Dinh Mai & Mobi Ho; and illustrations by Vo-Dinh Mai (Fredonia, NY: White Pine Press, 1988) (The three stories contained in this edition, The Pine Gate, The Giant Pine, and The Ancient Tree, are also found in The Stone Boy and Other Stories listed below.).

Thich Nhat Hanh (with Monks and Nuns of Plum Village), Stepping into Freedom: An Introduction to Buddhist Monastic Training (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1997) ("On Mindful Speech and Deep Listening: Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech, I vow to cultivate right speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am determined to say only things that inspire self-confidence, peace, joy, and hope. I am determined to speak the truth in a way that brings about understanding and harmony. I vow not to say things that are untrue, or that bring about division and hatred. I vow not to spread news that I do not know to be certain nor criticize or condemn things of which I am not sure. I am determined to listen deeply with love and compassion in order to understand the suffering and the difficulties of others and to bring them comfort. I am determined not to say things that might bring about division or disharmony in my community of practice, or that can cause the community to break. I am determined not to speak to anyone about the faults of any monk or nun outside my Sangha or of another practice center, even though I may think that these faults are real." Id. at 130-131.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Stone Boy and Other Stories (New Delhi: Full Circle, 1997) (From "Peony Blossoms": "He knew that all phenomena are interdependent, that we are all part of the entire universe, and it is because we exist that other phenomena and the universe exist. 'To live mean to live with the entire universe,' Doan thought. 'Who can say that when I clap my hands, the sound will not, in some small way, disturb the entire Andromeda Constellation? Who can say that when I take a breath, the air that enters my lungs does not contain a tiny amount of the air breathed by Julius Caesar?' 'To exist means to live in the totality of time with no beginning and no end. If there is no past, then there is no present or future. If there is no future, there is no present or past. Birth and death are conventional expressions, but they obscure the vision of a total reality which has never been born and will never die.'" Id. at 189, 212-213.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing, with Commentary by Thich Nhat Hanh, translated from the Vietnamese by Annabel Laity (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1988) (From the backcover: "The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing is one of the main meditation texts of early Buddhism. Along with the Sutra on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, it is still regarded as one of the two most important scriptures of Theravada Buddhism.").

Thich Nhat Hanh, A Taste of Earth and Other Legends of Vietnam, translated from the Vietnamese by Mobi Warren, Drawing by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1993) ("The hermit replied, '... It is my duty to show you the Way.' 'The way to where?' asked the puzzled Dong Tu. 'The way to inner peace,' replied the monk. 'The fortunes of this world constantly rise and fall, but the heart of one who has attained the Way is never without peace and freedom. You possess all that is needed to realize the Way: Stop seeking wealth and seek the treasures of your own Mind instead.'" Id. at 69.).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Thundering Silence: Sutra on Knowing the Better Way to Catch a Snake, translated from the Vietnamese by Annabel Laity (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 1993).

Thich Nhat Hanh, Together We Are One: Honoring Our Diversity, Celebrating Our Connection (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2010) ("There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way. There is no way to enlightenment, enlightenment is the way. When you breathe in, when you know that you are alive, that is already enlightenment. You smile to life, there in the present moment. We don't need to strive for it." "A step, an in-breath can bring you awareness, mindfulness--it is already enlightenment. Enlightenment brings happiness and release. Every moment of your daily life should be a moment of enlightenment, of mindfulness. There is no way to peace, peace is the way. This is the spirit of aimlessness. An enlightened person is a person with nowhere to go, nothing to do. Everything is fine. We enjoy every moment of our daily life. We are not striving for anything, including power, fame, wealth, or sex. We are completely released. Each moment of our daily  life should be an act of release, an act of liberation. If we are still running after something, we are not a happy person. We are still missing something." Id. at 223-224.).

Thich Nhat Hanh & Daniel Berrigan, The Raft Is Not The Shore: Conversations Toward a Buddhist-Christian Awareness, with a foreword by bell hooks (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1975, 2001).

Thich Nhat Hanh & The Global Plum Village Family, I Have Arrived, I am Home: Celebrating Twenty Years of Plum Village Life (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2003).

Thich Nhat Hanh & Monks and Nuns of Plum Village, compilers, Plum Village Chanting and Recitation Book (Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press, 2000).