WHAT’S NOT WRONG

  We have to learn to practice touching what is not wrong, inside us and around us. When we get in touch with our eyes, our heart, our liver, our breathing, and our non-toothache and really enjoy them, we see that the conditions for peace and happiness are already present. When we walk mindfully and touch the earth with our feet, when we drink tea with friends and touch the tea and our friendship, we get healed, and we can bring this healing to society.

  SITTING IN CALM AND SAFETY

  With mindfulness, we become aware of the suffering that’s going on around us. There are many who can’t sit like us in calm and safety; a bomb or rocket might fall on them at any moment. What they want is peace, a cessation of the killing, but they don’t have it. There are many of us who have a chance to sit in much more safety and who live in a situation where this kind of suffering doesn’t exist, but we don’t seem to appreciate it. Mindfulness helps us to be aware of what’s going on around us, and suddenly we know how to treasure the conditions of peace and happiness that are available in the here and the now.

  ENGAGED BUDDHISM

  When I was in Vietnam, our villages were being bombed. Along with my brothers and sisters, I had to decide what to do. Should we continue to practice in our monastery, or must we leave the meditation halls to help the people who were suffering under the bombs? After careful reflection, we decided to do both—to go out and help people and to do so in mindfulness. We called it Engaged Buddhism. Mindfulness must be engaged. Once there is seeing, there must be acting. Otherwise, what is the use of seeing? With mindfulness, we will know what to do and what not to do to be of help. If we maintain awareness of our breathing and continue to practice smiling, even in difficult situations, many people, animals, and plants will benefit from our way of doing things.

  PERCEPTIONS

  Many people want to get rid of their painful feelings, but not of the beliefs and viewpoints that are the very root of their feelings. After recognizing a painful feeling, becoming one with it, calming it down, and releasing it, we can look deeply into its causes, which may be based on inaccurate perceptions. When we understand the causes and nature of our feelings, they will begin to transform. When we misperceive a person or an object, we may feel anger, disappointment, or annoyance. We need to remember that most of our perceptions are wrong. Practicing full awareness means to look deeply and go beyond our inaccurate perceptions, to see the true nature of everything.

  AVOIDING MISPERCEPTION

  Thinking is at the base of everything. It is important for us to bring awareness into each of our thoughts. Without a correct understanding of a person or situation, our thoughts can be misleading and create confusion, despair, anger, or hatred. Our most important task is to develop correct insight. If we see deeply into the nature of interbeing, that all things “inter-are,” we will stop blaming, arguing, and killing, and we will become friends with everyone.

  INTERBEING

  Our anxieties and difficulties come from our inability to see the true nature of all phenomena. We see their outward appearance, but we often fail to recognize their impermanent and interbeing nature. Everything penetrates and is made of everything else. Everything is everything else. No phenomenon can be by itself alone. Everything has to inter-be with everything else. All phenomena have the nature of interdependence.

  ARE YOU SURE?

  The real meaning of “to be” is to inter-be. You cannot be by yourself alone; you have to inter-be with everyone and everything else. This is true of everything: the flower, the table, the river. You can touch this insight by looking deeply. Touching the truth of nonself, you are free. But if you allow the illusion of self to occupy you, you’ll continue to suffer a lot.

  Scientifically speaking, the idea of a self, an entity, is an illusion. For example, you say I am Vietnamese, but are you sure? In my case I don’t have a Vietnamese passport or identity card, so legally speaking, I’m not Vietnamese. Looking into my writings, my person, my Dharma talks, you see several cultural streams: French, Chinese, Indian, even Native American; there’s no such thing as Vietnamese culture. And ethnically speaking, there’s no Vietnamese race; looking into me you can see Melanesian, Indonesian, Mongolian, and other non-Vietnamese elements. Each of us has elements of many other cultures and ethnicities. We’re not “pure.” Knowing this, you are free. The cosmos has come together to help you to manifest. In you the whole cosmos can be found.

  MINDFULNESS IN EVERY MOMENT

  There are moments when we’re capable of seeing the interbeing, nonself nature in people and things. But at other moments we forget and fall back into our world of imaginary construction. Continuous practice is important for the flower of enlightenment to bloom permanently in the field of our mind. Mindfulness can transform all our thoughts and emotions; every state of mind is sensitive to the energy of mindfulness.

  IMPERMANENCE

  Although intellectually we know that all things are impermanent, in our daily lives we carry on as though things were permanent. Impermanence is more than an idea; it’s a practice to help us touch reality. We can nourish our insight into impermanence all day long; every phenomenon can reveal to us the nature of impermanence. We should learn to be more aware of impermanence. If we’re in good health and aware of impermanence, we’ll take good care of ourselves. When we know the person we love is impermanent, we’ll cherish our beloved all the more. When we practice mindfulness of impermanence, we become more present and more loving. Impermanence teaches us to respect and value every moment and all the precious things around and inside us.

  NONSELF

  Just as the flower is made of the sunlight, the soil, the rain, and so on, we know that everything, including ourself, is made only of nonself elements. Thanks to this realization, we have the insight that happiness and suffering are not individual matters. We see the nature of interconnectedness of all things. We all have the capacity to live with the nondiscriminative wisdom that everyone and everything belongs to the same stream of life.

  THE DANDELION WILL KEEP YOUR SMILE

  Our smile will bring happiness to us and to those around us. Even if we spend a lot of money on gifts for everyone in our family, nothing we buy could give them as much happiness as the gift of our awareness, our smile. And this precious gift costs nothing. At the end of a retreat in California, a friend wrote this poem:

  I have lost my smile,

  but don’t worry.

  The dandelion has it.

  If you have lost your smile and yet are still capable of seeing that a dandelion is keeping it for you, the situation is not too bad. You still have enough mindfulness to see that the smile is there. You only need to breathe consciously one or two times and you will recover your smile. The dandelion is one member of your community of friends. It is there, quite faithful, keeping your smile for you. In fact, everything around you is keeping your smile for you. You don’t need to feel isolated. You only have to open yourself to the support that is all around you, and in you. Like the friend who saw that her smile was being kept by the dandelion, you can breathe in awareness, and your smile will return.

  WE ARE ALL LINKED TO EACH OTHER

  Maintaining our awareness of the interdependent nature of life, we know the survival of the developing countries cannot be separated from the survival of the materially wealthy, technically advanced countries. Poverty and oppression bring war and, in our time, every war involves all countries. The fate of each country is linked to the fate of all others. The only way to end the danger is for each of us to recognize each other as brothers and sisters. We are all humankind, and our life is one.

  LEARNING FROM SUFFERING

  As you look deeply into suffering, you may find out many things. You can investigate its roots and see what habits of consumption you’ve been feeding it with, what you ingest in terms of the four nutriments: edible food; sense impressions (sights, sounds, etc., that you bring in through your senses); your deepest motivations; and your thinking. You may discover that your suffering is not only an individual manifestation but a collective manifestation that carries within it the suffering of your parents, your ancestors, your people, your nation, and the world. Maybe your parents or ancestors didn’t know how to handle their suffering and transform it, so they have transmitted that suffering to you. If we listen deeply enough, we will understand and suffer less.

  OUR WORLD

  Many of us worry about the world situation. As individuals, we feel helpless, despairing. The situation is so dangerous, injustice is so widespread, the danger is so close. In this kind of situation, if we panic, things will only become worse. We need to remain calm, to see clearly. Meditation is to be aware and to try to help. After the war, many people left Vietnam to travel in small overcrowded boats across the Gulf of Siam. Often they were caught in storms or rough seas. People could panic, making the boat more likely to sink. But if one person aboard could remain lucid and calm, knowing what to do and what not to do, that person could help the boat survive. Their voice and body would communicate clarity and calm; people would trust them and listen to what they had to say. One such person can save the lives of many. Our world is something like a small boat. Compared with the cosmos, our planet is a very small boat. We may be about to panic because our situation is no better than that of the small boat in the sea. Humankind has become a very dangerous species. We need people who can sit still, are able to smile, and can walk peacefully in order to save us. In my tradition it’s said that you are that person, that each of us is that person.

  WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT?

  The seed of mindfulness is in each of us, but we usually forget to water it. We think that happiness is only possible in the future—when we get a house, a car, or a degree. We struggle in our mind and body, and we don’t touch the peace and joy that are available right now in the blue sky, the green leaves, and the eyes of a loved one. What is most important? Many people have passed exams and bought houses and cars, yet they are still unhappy. What is most important is to find peace and to share it with others. To have peace, you can begin by walking peacefully. Everything depends on your steps.

  WALKING MEDITATION

  Walking meditation is to be aware and to enjoy walking. We walk, not in order to arrive, but just to walk—to be in the present moment, aware of our breathing, our walking, and to enjoy each step. Any time I have to go from one place to another, I practice walking meditation—even if the distance is only five or six feet. I do not have any other style of walking—just mindful walking. It helps me very much. It brings me transformation, healing, and joy.

  WALKING ON THE EARTH

  The Apollo astronauts were able to take a picture of the Earth from far away and send it to us. It was the first time we saw the whole Earth—very beautiful—a bastion of life. With mindful walking, we have a chance to enter into deep communion with the planet Earth and realize the Earth is our home. It’s wonderful to enjoy walking on planet Earth. Mother Earth has brought us to life and provided all the conditions for our survival. She has developed an environment from which humans can manifest and thrive. She created a protective atmosphere, with air we can breathe, abundant food for us to eat, and clear water for us to drink. She is constantly nourishing and protecting us. She is our mother and the mother of all beings.

  IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE BUDDHA

  In 1968, I went to India for the first time. I wanted to visit Bodhgaya where the Buddha reached enlightenment. So I took a flight from New Delhi to Patna, and as we were coming in to land, I had fifteen minutes to contemplate the landscape below. For the first time, I saw the legendary Ganges River and, looking down, I could see the footprints of the Buddha a little bit everywhere. I was very moved. The Buddha loved to walk, and he spent a lot of time walking along the river and visiting the river kingdoms. I visualized the Buddha walking with dignity, freedom, peace, and joy. He walked like that for forty-five years, bringing his wisdom and compassion to many places and sharing his practice of liberation with many people—from the most powerful to the most excluded people in society. There were no cars, trains, or planes. He walked with his friends and disciples and visited and taught in perhaps fifteen ancient kingdoms of India and Nepal, meeting people and helping them to practice. Looking down, I vowed that I would practice walking meditation to bring the steps of the Buddha to other parts of the world. I have been all over the world and have shared the practice of walking meditation with many people. I have friends, both monastic and lay, who have been walking like that on all five continents. The Buddha’s footprints are now everywhere.

  MINDFUL STEPS

  Wherever you are, you can enjoy mindful walking, and every time you make a mindful step you stop your forgetfulness and go back to life, touching the wonders of life for your healing and transformation. It’s very nice to walk for your parents or your grandparents who may not have known the practice of walking in mindfulness. Your ancestors may have lived their whole lives without the chance to make peaceful, happy steps. We practice for all generations of ancestors and descendants.

  EATING WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS

  Having the opportunity to sit with our family and friends to enjoy wonderful food is something precious, something not everyone is able to do. Sitting at the table with other people is a chance to breathe and offer an authentic smile of friendship and understanding. If people eating together cannot smile at each other, then something is not right. Look down at the food in a way that allows it to become real and reveals your connection with the earth. Each bite contains the life of the sun and the earth. You can see and taste the whole universe in a piece of bread.

  MINDFUL EATING

  Many people in the world are hungry. When I hold a bowl of rice or a piece of bread, I know that I am fortunate. I feel compassion for all those who have no food to eat and are without friends or family. This is a very deep practice. Looking at our plate, we see Mother Earth, the farm workers, and the tragedy of hunger and malnutrition. Mindful eating can cultivate seeds of compassion and understanding that will inspire us to do something to help hungry and lonely people be nourished.

  LISTENING TO OUR WOUNDED CHILD

  Inside each of us is a young, suffering child. We’ve all had times of difficulty as children and many of us have experienced trauma. To protect ourselves from further suffering, we try to forget those painful times. But the wounded child is always there, calling for our attention. We have to go back to tenderly embrace and listen to the child inside. We can talk to the child with the language of love, saying, “My dear, I know you’ve suffered. I’ve neglected you. I’m sorry. I won’t leave you alone again.” If you go back to the wounded child and listen carefully every day for five or ten minutes, healing will take place. When you go on a walk, contemplate the sunset, or climb up a beautiful mountain, invite them to enjoy it with you. When sitting alone, you can talk to your wounded child, “My darling, I know you’ve been seriously wounded. But we have grown up now. Take my hand and let’s walk out of the past into the present moment.” Our sangha can help. We can help each other be released from the prison of the past or the future. Although I received love and care from my parents, I too have done this practice, and it has helped me tremendously.

  RESTORING COMMUNICATION

  Our ancestors may not have known how to care for their wounded child within, so they have transmitted their wounded child to us. Our practice is to end this cycle. The people around us, our family and friends, may also have a severely wounded child inside. If we’ve managed to help ourselves, we can also help others. When we’ve healed ourselves, our relationships with others become much easier. There’s more peace and love in us, and we can allow people to love us. Before, we may have been suspicious of everything and everyone. Compassion helps us relate to others and restore communication.

  A STORM OF EMOTIONS

  Many young people have difficulty handling strong emotions and they suffer a great deal. Some commit suicide because they have no other method for dealing with strong emotions than putting an end to their life. Emotions are like a storm; they come, stay for a while, and then move on. We shouldn’t die because of an emotion. Parents can teach their children how to handle their emotions and weather the storms more easily. When we have a strong emotion, we are like a tree in a big storm. We don’t stay up in our head, in the high branches that are tossed about by the wind and could be broken off. Bring your awareness down to your abdomen, to the trunk of the tree, which is stable and rooted. Become still, not carried away by your thinking and emotions. Practice deep breathing, breathing down into your abdomen. It isn’t difficult. Teenagers and children can learn it. We shouldn’t wait for strong storms to arrive before starting the practice. If you practice together with your child, for five or ten minutes each day, for two or three weeks, the practice of deep belly breathing will become a habit. When the emotion is about to come up, the young person will know what to do. They will have the experience of knowing they can survive their emotions.

 

1 2 3 4