Following a path: taking the long view

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

I admire Thich Nhat Hanh for his perseverance from a young age in Viet Nam to his current devotion to the path of Buddhism. He says that there may be obstacles to traveling to understanding truth, and don’t think that you will get it down pat anyway.

He has been quoted saying:

“We must not be attached to a view or a doctrine, even a Buddhist one. The Buddha said that if in a certain moment or place you adopt something as the absolute truth, and you attach to that, then you will no longer have any chance to reach the truth. Even when the truth comes and knocks on your door, and asks you to open the door, you won’t recognize it. So you must not be too attached to dogma–to what you believe, and to what you perceive.” [in an interview with Diane Wolkstein featured in Parabola Vol 30 No 4]. More from Wolkstein.

Traveling a Buddhist path can seem like a riddle at times, but the more you settle into the study and listen to those who provide insights the more you start to understand. Learn more abut Thich Nhat Hanh.

Following the life of Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh

One of the most impressive persons in the world today is Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese-born Buddhist monk now living in France at Plum Village. Tap into his ideas via Facebook, if you are using this site.

According to his web site, Thich Nhat Hanh is not only a monk, but also a poet, a scholar, and a peace activist. He founded the Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon and the School for Youths of Social Services in Vietnam. When not travelling the world to teach “The Art of Mindful Living”, he teaches, writes, and gardens in Plum Village, France, a Buddhist monastery for monks and nuns and a mindfulness practice center for lay people.”

This description on the web site does not do justice to how important he is to the Buddhist world, and it is better said at Shambala Sun in this month’s issue, but you will have to buy the publication because only a short interview is available on the web site.

A good summary can be found on Wikipeidia. “He traveled to the U.S. to study at Princeton University, and later to lecture at Cornell University and Columbia University. His focus at the time, was to urge the U.S. government to withdraw from Vietnam. He urged Martin Luther King, Jr. to publicly oppose the Vietnam War; King nominated Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in January 1967.  He created the (non-Zen) Order of Interbeing in 1966, establishing monastic and practice centers around the world. In 1973, the Vietnamese government denied Nhat Hanh permission to return to Vietnam and he went into exile in France. From 1976-1977 he led efforts to rescue Vietnamese boat people in the Gulf of Siam. Nhat Hanh has become an important influence in the development of Western Buddhism.  His teachings and practices aim to appeal to people from various religious, spiritual, and political backgrounds, intending to offer mindfulness practices for more Western sensibilities.”