The Way Out Is In

Welcome to episode 68 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino discuss Right Livelihood in Buddhism. After starting with what this means, they dive more deeply into practical steps and examples. How can we find joy, feel deeply connected, and also make a positive impact on the world through our daily work?

The conversation also touches upon ‘bringing our cosmic body to work’; the insight of responsibility; the difference between doing what we love and doing what we’re good at; ego and compassion in the workplace; planning for the future while being in the present; and much more. 

The episode ends with a short meditation guided by Brother Phap Huu.

Enjoy and thank you for listening!

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Dharma Talks: ‘Right Livelihood and True Love’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/right-livelihood-and-true-love 

Dharma Talks: ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-noble-eightfold-path 

Koan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koan 

Dharma Talks: ‘Our Cosmic Body’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/our-cosmic-body 

Buddha Mind, Buddha Body
https://www.parallax.org/product/buddha-mind-buddha-body/ 

Sister True Dedication
https://www.instagram.com/sistertruededication/ 

The Art of Living
https://plumvillage.org/books/the-art-of-living

Quotes

“Each and every one of us has a spiritual dimension inside that we can generate wherever we go, and that is a contribution to what we want to build.” 

“By being we do more effectively.”

“Don’t just do something, sit there.”

“Time is being, time is to be alive.”

“When you have anger, it can be a bell of mindfulness that tells us when we see injustice, when we see suffering. And we can be with that anger. And that anger can become a voice for us, to have empathy, to have compassion. Because compassion can come from anger sometimes. It can come from what we’re seeing, because it tells us that this is wrong. But if we allow anger to always be there and not transform, and we don’t channel it into another energy, then we will become one with exactly that outer energy that made us angry in the first place.”

“Sometimes silence is the loudest noise.”

“Why not be soft? Why not be kinder? That softness and that kindness are very loud in a moment of big aggression. The kindness, the softness becomes a louder action because it shows our humanity; it shows the heart of love.”

“Thay emphasized that all of us have a Buddha body. We have [the potential for] awakening inside of us – we just have to cultivate it. And there are moments that we’re not a Buddha. That’s okay. But remember that we have Buddha nature inside of us.” 

“Thay had a calligraphy that really informs us about deep interbeing: ‘The piece of bread in your hands is the body of the whole cosmos.’ And that is for us to have a deep understanding that this piece of bread didn’t just come from nowhere, nothing. It’s the whole lifetime of the existence of time and space. And it’s a miracle to have this piece of bread. So be grateful. Hold it with gratitude. Hold it with reverence. Eat it with gratitude. Eat it with reverence.”

Welcome to episode 67 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

This inaugural live recording of the podcast was made in London, England, on April 5th, 2024, before a sold-out audience of more than 400 people. For the first half of this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino explore what it means to step into freedom in the light of Buddhist teachings, drawing on insights from the life and teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, and including much needed practical steps which can be applied to our daily lives. Their conversation touches upon the pressure of perfection; layers of freedom; the best time to make a decision; experiencing gratitude; true happiness; vulnerability as an expression of love; working with the feeling of ‘not enough’; and much more.

The second half of the episode consists of a live question-and-answer session, with questions from the audience covering a wide range of topics: ways to embrace suffering; compassionate sharing; ending wars by cultivating peace; the joy of missing out; cultivating aspirations; empathy and mindfulness; and more.  

And this time you can even enjoy two short meditations guided by Brother Phap Huu.

Thank you for listening! 

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Stepping into Freedom: An Introduction to Monastic Buddhist Training
https://plumvillage.org/books/stepping-into-freedom 

‘Cong Phu Journal – Everything You Need to Know About the Practice Notebook’ 
https://plumvillage.app/cong-phu-journal-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-practice-notebook/

Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
https://plumvillage.org/books/old-path-white-clouds-2 

Rains Retreat
https://plumvillage.org/articles/now-we-have-a-path-2023-24-autumn-winter-rains-retreat 

Christiana Figueres
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christiana_Figueres 

Dalai Lama
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalai_Lama 

World Wildlife Fund
https://www.worldwildlife.org/

Quotes

“We’re all looking to feel free, to be ourselves, to find happiness, to be recognized, to love and be loved. It’s at the core of our deepest aspiration in life. And yet, oftentimes, we don’t feel like that. We feel disturbed in our mind; we suffer from anger or frustration; we’re too busy; we have many obligations in our lives; we’re constantly bombarded with news and social media. And so we experience a dissonance between this wish to be free and our everyday lives.”

“Practicing mindfulness is, first, a practice of mere recognition, to call our habits by their name and to recognize the sources of energy that emerge in us. That, already, is the first step towards freedom. And freedom is a continuous energy and a continuous insight that we are cultivating. Thich Nhat Hanh was very firm when he said we all have the ability to have freedom, but here freedom doesn’t come from outside in, but is what we cultivate from the inside.” 

“Thay wasn’t ever using the war to affirm who he was. He was free from that. And that is something that I still aspire to walk towards. And when we talk about cultivating, it is very practical; it’s not just a mindset. Mindset is like a will – but, for us, aspiration has to go alongside action. So, very concretely, in the Plum Village tradition of Buddhist practice, in all of our Dharma, we have to engage in everyday life.” 

“Thich Nhat Hanh was once asked, ‘What’s the difference between Buddhism and engaged Buddhism?’ And he said, ‘If Buddhism is not engaged, it’s not really Buddhism. That’s just philosophy.’”

“I practice to look at all beings with the eyes of compassion. That is a choice we have. So, if we recognize this glimmer of life, this glimmer of a moment that we can make into a moment of freedom, we have freedom. And then we don’t just stop there; Engaged Buddhism is a continuous journey.” 

“Smiling is an act of peace.” 

“Why are we meditating? It’s not to run away; meditating is to be present. And if we allow ourselves to be truly present, we start to see ourselves more clearly; we get to identify the energies that pull us away from our freedom.” 

“Each and every one of us is a flower in the garden of humanity. And a garden that is very diverse is beautiful; it’s colorful and it offers its uniqueness, its different cultures, its different understandings.”

Welcome to episode 66 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

This time, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino talk about the practice of gratitude and its power to shine a light in even the darkest circumstances. Their conversation touches on many aspects of gratitude, from the way it has been viewed in Buddhism since the days of the Buddha, to gratitude for life, gratitude as a gift and a rebalancer, and gratitude even when things don’t go well.  

Brother Phap Huu further talks about nourishing our deep connection to interbeing; opening our hearts to suffering; loneliness in the monastic community;  gratitude for the Earth, all living beings, and (even) minerals; the feeling of ‘enough’; the Cong Phu Sheet; and more. And why is gratitude a such a difficult practice, even when there are many opportunities to apply it?

Jo delves into daily practices of gratitude; coming back into balance; Christmas presents and meaninglessness; approaches to economic development in Bhutan; and more. 

The episode ends with a short meditation on gratitude guided by Brother Phap Huu.

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

The Way Out Is In live recording
https://wakeuplondon.org/thewayoutisin/ 

Bodhicitta
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhicitta 

Old Path White Clouds
https://plumvillage.org/books/old-path-white-clouds-2 

Ananda
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%80nanda 

Shariputra
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Śāriputra 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Bhutan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhutan 

The Alchemist
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alchemist_(novel) 

Dharma Talks: ‘The Three Doors of Liberation or the Three Dharma Seals’ 
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-three-doors-of-liberation-or-the-three-dharma-seals-sr-chan-duc-italian-retreat-2018-05-04

‘Cong Phi Journal – Everything You Need to Know About the Practice Notebook’ 
https://plumvillage.app/cong-phu-journal-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-practice-notebook/

Maudgalyayana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maudgalyayana 

‘A Teacher Looking for His Student’
https://plumvillage.org/poems 

Brother Bao Tang (Brother Treasure)
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/brother-bao-tang

Gratitude for the Four Elements (short audio meditation by Brother Phap Dung) 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWQlmyXF7fc

Quotes

“When we really touch the present moment with the deep insight that ‘what I have here is enough’, we start to touch freedom. But a lot of us are afraid to come home to ourselves. And the whole art of meditation is learning to come home.”

“Gratitude is a practice and a muscle that we need to develop. Because if we have a practice of gratitude, then being grateful is going to flow much more easily.”

“There is a lot of suffering today, but if we focus solely on that suffering, we may also lose the light. Therefore, gratitude becomes a light that we want to protect, to give us hope, to help us know why we are doing what we’re doing, for the activists to know what they are protecting, for the people who are calling out injustice to be grateful that, as human beings, we can use our voices to speak about suffering.”

Welcome to episode 65 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

This episode is the second to be recorded live in front of an audience, in the Still Water Meditation Hall of Upper Hamlet, Plum Village, France.

This time, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino are joined by frequent guest Sister True Dedication (Sister Hien Nghiem). Together, they discuss ‘manas’: in Buddhism, “an aspect of the mind that wants to believe we’re separate, wants to crave after all the pleasures of life, wants to avoid suffering, and does not like the idea of moderation.” 

The two monastics begin by defining manas and their larger context, as well as sharing relevant examples from their lives and the community, to support a better understanding of these concepts. The live discussion touches upon topics such as right diligence, watering the right seeds in us, Buddhist psychology, understanding how the mind works, the laws of moderation, reality checks, the importance of community in taming manas, the seven characteristics of manas, and much more.

The episode ends with a short meditation guided by Brother Phap Huu.

Enjoy!

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Sister True Dedication
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sister-hien-nghiem 

The Way Out Is In: ‘Understanding How Our Mind Works (Episode #28)’
https://plumvillage.org/podcast/understanding-how-our-mind-works-episode-28 

Sister Lang Nghiem
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sr-lang-nghiem 

Yogachara
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogachara 

The Way Out Is In: ‘Shining Light (Episode #63)’
https://plumvillage.org/podcast/shining-light-episode-63 

Dharma Talks: ‘Manas Consciousness, Teachings on Buddhist Psychology Retreat, 1997’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/manas-consciousness-thich-nhat-hanh-teachings-on-buddhist-psychology-retreat-1997 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Mahayana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana 

‘51 Mental Formations’
https://plumvillage.org/transcriptions/51-mental-formation 

Dharma Talks: ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-noble-eightfold-path

Classes: ‘(Class #13) Right Diligence’
https://plumvillage.org/library/classes/class-13-right-diligence

Quotes

“Mindfulness has to be a verb. Compassion has to be a verb. We have to practise compassion for ourselves.”

“If you want a child to stop playing with something, you have to give him something else to play with.”

“Mindfulness is always to be mindful of something. The energy of mindfulness is like a light that we are able to generate, and we can shine that light towards ourself.” 

“Our manas is what keeps us alive, and we take care of it with nonviolence, with compassion, and with the insight of interbeing and nondiscrimination. Thay is known for his worldly or political nondiscrimination, but his insights on nondiscrimination extend to our whole being, our whole mind, and what it means to be human. And there’s so much compassion and nonviolence in that.” 

“We always say understanding – true, real understanding, right understanding – will generate compassion. And compassion is one of the elements of true love for oneself and for others.” 

“In the path that Thay has opened up for us, we are allowed to show up with our whole self, including all our shortcomings, and it’s such a special feeling to be accepted for who you are.” 

Welcome to episode 64 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

This episode is the first to be recorded live in front of an audience, in the Still Water Meditation Hall of Plum Village, France, during a retreat, rather than in Thay’s Sitting Still hut. 

Together, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino explore the Buddhist concept of ripening, or the Fourth Dharma Seal of Plum Village: the understanding that the care, love, attention, and commitment we put into what’s important in life take time to ripen, and that we shouldn’t expect instant results.

Brother Phap Huu starts off by introducing the first Three Dharma Seals and why Thay created them, before digging deeper into the Fourth Dharma Seal, the main theme of this episode; the process of ripening; the life journey of the practice; and much more.

Jo brings examples of lifelong journeys of forgiveness, and explores trust versus control, dharma rain, and more.

And: how can we all apply this practice of ripening to our own lives?

The episode ends with a short meditation guided by Brother Phap Huu. 

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

The Way Out Is In – Live recording information
https://wakeuplondon.org/thewayoutisin/

‘The Four Dharma Seals of Plum Village’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/the-four-dharma-seals-of-plum-village 

Sutras: ‘Discourse on the Dharma Seal & the Three Doors of Liberation’
https://plumvillage.org/library/sutras/discourse-on-the-dharma-seal-the-three-doors-of-liberation

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing

The Way Out Is In: ‘The Three Doors of Liberation (Episode #18)’
https://plumvillage.org/podcast/the-three-doors-of-liberation-episode-18 

Dharma Talks: ‘Three Doors of Liberation’ https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/three-doors-of-liberation-br-phap-khi-italian-retreat-2018-05-01/

‘The Doors of Liberation’
https://www.lionsroar.com/the-doors-of-liberation-may-2014/ 

Mahayana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana

Dharma Talks: ‘Right View: Understanding the Roots of Our True Happiness’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/right-view-understanding-the-roots-of-our-true-happiness 

Old Path White Clouds
https://plumvillage.org/books/old-path-white-clouds-2

Fragrant Palm Leaves 
https://plumvillage.org/books/1998-neo-ve-cua-y-fragrant-palm-leaves

Sister Chan Khong
https://plumvillage.org/about/sister-chan-khong

Sister Lang Nghiem
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sr-lang-nghiem 

Sister True Dedication
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sister-hien-nghiem

Quotes

“When we practice meditation and mindfulness to come home to the here and now, we start to discover that the present moment is the only moment in which we can be alive. And the present moment embraces the past as well as creating the future.”

“If we don’t have darkness, the light won’t have a chance to appear.”

“It is impossible to physically go back to the past, but I can bring the past into the here and now, and heal it by being right here, right now. By this present moment, I am creating a new path.”

“The world is created by our mind.” 

“The insight of ripening allows us to understand that the path of practice is a wonderful journey, and that it takes time and space for things to mature, for things to transform, for things to heal. When we hear about ripening, we may think of a tree – say, an orange tree. It takes time for the seed to be planted. For the roots to deepen. For the tree and its leaves and flowers to grow. Even when the fruit appears, it takes time to ripen. And so our practice can be viewed as a journey of ripening.” 

“Each thing we say, each thing we think, each thing we do, ripples out. I love that image of a pond or a big lake where you throw in a stone and see the ripples spread in every direction. And even when you can’t really see them, they’re still there in a subtle way, stretching out further and further.” 

“The learning journey is endless.”

“If you know how to suffer, you suffer less.”

“If we take away the need for the outcome and are instead just present for people, then life can show up fully.”

“The Buddha said that the dharma is like fine-tuning an instrument for our path. If we are too intense, too rigid, too extreme, we won’t go the distance. The string might snap because there’s too much effort, there’s too much intensity. But if we’re too lazy, and are just daydreaming about what can be, then the string is loose and doesn’t play the the sound that’s needed.”

Welcome to episode 63 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino explore ‘shining light’. This deep-looking practice, established in the Plum Village community, allows monastics to share and receive feedback, so that they can learn and grow together, and better understand each other.

Fresh from a shining light session, Brother Phap Huu offers insights into the practice and its evolution over the years, while Jo brings insights from feedback systems in the lay communities. Their conversation touches upon radical transparency, power dynamics, generating joy and happiness in the sangha, the practice of gratitude, the importance of language in the process of growth, bringing this shining light into the everyday, and much more. 

Enjoy!

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

‘Shining the Light’
https://www.parallax.org/mindfulnessbell/article/shining-the-light/ 

‘The Practice of Gratitude’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/the-practice-of-gratitude 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing

Sutras: ‘Discourse on the Dharma Seal & the Three Doors of Liberation’
https://plumvillage.org/library/sutras/discourse-on-the-dharma-seal-the-three-doors-of-liberation

‘The Four Dharma Seals of Plum Village’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/the-four-dharma-seals-of-plum-village 

Bhikkhu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhikkhu 

Quotes

“Meditation on offering guidance. Lord Buddha and teachers over many generations, today we have a chance to practice offering guidance to our brothers, sisters, and friends. We know that in spirit, we are all part of one sangha, that our flesh and bones are also part of one sangha. Therefore, we are aware that offering guidance to another is offering guidance to ourselves. We vow to use all of our love and understanding in order to practice offering guidance. We promise that every word we speak will come from the good intention of wanting to have a correct view about the person to whom guidance is being offered. We vow not to let our anger, sadness, and prejudice wrongly influence our opinion. We promise that every word we speak will come from love, because offering guidance to one is also offering guidance to many. We are aware that this practice will offer benefits to each of us. Dear Buddha and ancestral teachers, please support us in our wholehearted effort to successfully offer guidance today.” 

“The essence of this [practice] lies in real friendship or in real relationships. According to my understanding and experience of relationships, they require the time and space to acknowledge the flowers, as well as to support one another when we see a particular negative habit or tendency. This may be a viewpoint, or a recurring action. And if you don’t fix it, or if you don’t support the other person to change it, it will grow.”

“When you hear something as simple as, ‘When you smile, brother, you make the whole room smile’, that’s a wonderful quality [to be told that you have]. I received this [complement] when I was a young novice. And I’d never experienced that before: being acknowledged for a simple action that can help brighten the room. And that became one of the threads in the fabric of who I am, and I always remember that [complement] when I smile. So shining light can water the seed that helps the wonderful characteristics of a human being grow and develop.” 

“Freedom is freedom from something.”

“My life is my message.”

Welcome to episode 62 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino continue their discussion with Sister True Dedication (Sister Hien Nghiem) about the 16 exercises of mindful breathing which are at the heart of the teachings offered by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village community. 

This episode, the second of a two-part special, explains and breaks down the practice of breathing exercises nine to 16. It includes the exercises’ traditional texts, revised versions, and variations and adaptations, with extensive explanations given by the two monastics about how to apply each to our daily lives. The first eight exercises are also briefly recapped, along with a description of the Three Doors of Liberation.

Also, where do the 16 exercises come from? How do we gladden the mind? What is true strength? What about authenticity? Why is it important to name the mental formations? What does liberation feel like? And how do we integrate the 16 exercises into a busy life? These and many other questions are answered in this installment of the podcast.

Enjoy.

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Sister True Dedication
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sister-hien-nghiem/ 

Songs: ‘The 16 Exercises of Mindful Breathing’
https://plumvillage.org/library/songs/the-16-exercises-of-mindful-breathing 

Thay’s Poetry: ‘Please Call Me by My True Names (Song & Poem)’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/please-call-me-by-my-true-names-song-poem 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Sister Jina
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sr-dieu-nghiem 

‘51 Mental Formations’
https://plumvillage.org/transcriptions/51-mental-formation 

Dharma Talks: ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-noble-eightfold-path

The Way Out Is In: ‘The Three Doors of Liberation (Episode #18)’ https://plumvillage.org/podcast/the-three-doors-of-liberation-episode-18 

The Art of Living
https://plumvillage.org/books/the-art-of-living 

Chinese Buddhist canon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Buddhist_canon

Dharma Talks: ‘The Five Remembrances’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-five-remembrances-sr-thuan-nghiem-spring-retreat-2018-05-17

‘The Four Dharma Seals of Plum Village’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/the-four-dharma-seals-of-plum-village 

Master Tang Hoi
https://plumvillage.org/books/master-tang-hoi

Nagarjuna
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagarjuna 

Yogachara
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogachara 

Quotes

“‘What is going on in my mind?’ This phrase is a mental formation. And, especially in our tradition of Buddhism, we love this term ‘formation’; it means that everything is made of everything, is composite. Even our happiness, our sorrow, or our depression is made of lots and lots of different elements. There are many threads to them, and that insight, simply the word ‘formation’, can help us to not be so scared or overwhelmed by our feelings. There’s an inquiry here, an investigation: ‘What is going on in my mind? What has come to be, what has formed in my mind at this moment?’”

“In terms of Buddhist psychology, because our mind has different layers and different depths, we can be carrying a feeling in it without knowing that we’re carrying it. And I would say my loneliness is a feeling. It’s partly in the body, but largely in the mind, because of the way my mind processes my daily life. So, unconsciously, I’m processing my daily life, and perhaps even without words, non-verbally, I’m experiencing all sorts of moments as lonely moments. So I’m feeding the seed of loneliness in myself, without even knowing it.”

“A lot of people feel power in their negative mental formations. If we’re angry or jealous, or whatever the feeling is, sometimes we feel that gives us power. And gladdening the mind at that point feels like disloyalty to our negative feelings. So it feels like a rebellious act to have a strong negative feeling and then to gladden one’s mind, or bring happiness at that moment when, actually, we often want to feel righteous; we want to believe that that negative feeling is who we are and is justified.”

“How we cultivate our mind shapes how we interact with the world. So if we have an evil thought, that evil thought can become our speech, can become our action. But if we have a kind thought, that would then become our kind action, our kind speech, our kind attitude.”

“Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible.”

“You are much more than your emotions. Never die because of one emotion.” 

“We may feel completely stuck in the depths of the ocean of our despair and depression, but thanks to impermanence a day will come when that depression will no longer be there. That depression is surviving because it has sources of food. That depression is a mental formation. It is composed of different threads and by identifying the threads that are feeding it, one by one, we can dissolve it. We can find a way through.”

“The future is not known to us, because of impermanence. And that’s good news.” 

“One of Thay’s simple teachings is to contemplate the friend or loved one that we are angry with. And in that moment of anger, ask yourself, ‘Where will they and I be 200 years from now?’ Apply this very simple lens of impermanence, this concentration of impermanence, even in the moment of great fury – because we’re often angry at the people that we love the most because we think, ‘How dare they be the ones that hurt us?’ And then Thay would say, ‘You realize right away that they will be dust. I will be dust. But in this moment, we’re both alive.’ And if we really touch the fruit of that insight, then all we want to do is hug that person and cherish the fact that, ‘Wow, in this moment we are both still alive in this human form. How wonderful that we can hug.’”

“Going through these exercises, if we found that we were sitting with a specific anger towards a specific person, applying the practice of impermanence can really help us to hold that anger. Throw it away, choose to free yourself from it, and just get on with your life. That’s a wonderful aspect of our teaching, and of Zen: to sometimes just cross to the other side of the road and keep going. We don’t need to penetrate every aspect of why we were angry or, ‘Does the other person need to do this or that?’ Choose a different channel and just proceed; let it go, leave it behind. Set yourself free. Don’t make too much fuss. Move on. Life is new in this moment. Celebrate it. Embrace it. Go forward.” 

“A little bit of growth can seem like a good idea. But now it’s become this terrible systemic mechanism that’s destroying our planet. And that’s the absolute hook. So you have to reel back. But in these [16 breathing] exercises we’re starting with ourselves, our own bodies, and our own wrong perceptions about what we think we need to be happy.”

“Monastics of 15 or 20 years of meditation might spend 30 minutes only on those first four exercises. So, listen to yourself. And one reason it’s lovely to master these 16 exercises of mindful breathing is that we then have our own internal guided meditation to follow. Because when we listen to a recorded guided meditation, we’re following the pace of the person giving the guidance. The idea with these 16 is that they’re yours; they’re yours to keep and take to heart. They’re yours to play with, to experiment with, and to take as long as you need for each step, and to feel listened to and really respond to your own body and mind.”

“Gladdening our mind is exactly that: a declaration of freedom around the mental formation, around our feelings. It’s like, ‘I have the freedom to choose, here. My anger is a seed that has manifested as a formation in my mind consciousness. But I am more than that.’ So we trust in something, we have faith. We are claiming freedom by gladdening our mind, like, ‘I am angry and I have the right to take five breaths in peace and freedom because my anger isn’t all I am in this moment.’ So I think that’s a great affirmation and freedom. And it’s not bypassing, it’s not escaping.” 

“The breath is the rope that brings our mind and our concentration back to the present.”

“Especially when we look at suffering, it can be very tempting to go down a dark hole and get lost in it. So sometimes we have to remember that we are alive right now; we’re present, breathing. And then, when you have this wonderful habit of knowing how to come back to the body and come back to the present, you can apply this in meetings, gatherings, and big crowds, or when you’re very lonely. So it becomes your friend; it’s a companion for life.” 

Welcome to episode 61 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino are again joined by frequent guest Sister True Dedication (Sister Hien Nghiem). Together, they discuss the sixteen exercises of mindful breathing which are at the heart of the teachings offered by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village community.

This episode, the first of a two-part special, explains and breaks down the practice of breathing exercises one to eight. It includes the exercises’ traditional texts, revised versions (plus the reasons for their revision), and variations and adaptations, with extensive explanations given by the two monastics about how to apply each one to our daily lives. 

In addition, stories are shared about Thich Nhat Hanh practicing meditation, as well as the concrete steps taken and challenges faced over time by both Brother Phap Huu and Sister True Dedication. 

And why is sitting meditation the hardest practice? Is it essential to meditate in order to be a good practitioner of mindfulness? How can one ease oneself into attention? What difference does paying attention to our breathing actually make? These and many other questions are answered in this installment of the podcast.

Enjoy.

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Sister True Dedication
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sister-hien-nghiem/ 

Songs: ‘The 16 Exercises of Mindful Breathing’
https://plumvillage.org/library/songs/the-16-exercises-of-mindful-breathing

Dharma Talks: ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-noble-eightfold-path

The Five Contemplations Before Eating
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjyQVYqr6-U 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Breathe, You Are Alive!
https://plumvillage.org/books/breathe-you-are-alive 

Mahayana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana

Jo-ann Rosen
https://www.parallax.org/authors/jo-ann-rosen/ 

Sister Jina
https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sr-dieu-nghiem 

Dharma Talk: ‘Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing’
https://www.parallax.org/mindfulnessbell/article/dharma-talk-sutra-on-the-full-awareness-of-breathing-2/

Quotes

“From a more Western background, there’s a goal we need to meet and then we’re done. And I think that has also been applied to meditation, mindfulness, or spirituality: we think that there is one aim and if we practice for this long, then we will feel successful and accomplished, and then we’re finished. But Thay didn’t stop practicing, even after being named a Zen Master. The Buddha himself never stopped practicing, even after his enlightenment. So we have to change our view of meditation, to see and understand it as a path of practice. And each step, each breath is a journey, is a continuation. And we will grow in our own understanding of the breath.”

“Our practice is also learning to befriend the breath, and seeing that the breath is our spiritual foundation, our spiritual home. And it’s mobile, because wherever we go, that breath is with us.” 

“Meditation in the sitting position offers a combination of stillness, alertness, and deep calm, and then deep looking can arise from that stopping and that stillness. And so, each of us may have to be quite creative to find the moment when we can have real stillness.”

“Meditation is not a fixed point in time or a fixed place; it’s a way to see the world.”

“In our deepest tradition, we learn there’s nothing to attain. There are fruits that may ripen, which we will get to in the later steps of these 16 exercises of mindful breathing, but ultimately there is no goal.”

“It was very important to Thay to bring meditation out of the meditation hall and to integrate it into our daily life; for it to be accessible to everyone. So there is a doorway, a pathway to touch peace and stillness in our day. We don’t need to be in a temple; we don’t need to be in a formal setting in front of an altar. But, even at home, that stillness, peace, and presence is available to us. And the doorway which allows each of us to reach it is the breathing and the simplicity around that moment. And that’s where we really have this direct authenticity of Zen, which is there in the present moment, whatever it contains.”

“There is no such thing as sitting for peace. We will sit in peace.”

“Sitting meditation is a cultivation of true presence; a practice of learning to be there for yourself.”

“In the sutra on the full awareness of breathing, the Buddha shows us how to transform our fear, despair, anger, and craving. I was so happy the day I discovered this sutra. I thought I had discovered the greatest treasure in the world. Before, I’d been content to simply gain knowledge, but I didn’t know how to enjoy the present moment, how to look deeply into my life, and how to enjoy the positive conditions that were all around me. This sutra is so basic and so wonderful. There are many great sutras, but approaching them without this one is like trying to reach the top of a mountain without a path to follow.”

“By being with our breathing and our breath, we’re opening up doors of experience that are not normally available to us in our daily life, especially in the West, where the particular paradigm we live in excludes other modes of perception and ways of being in an embodied, interrelated way in the world. And so, by establishing ourselves in the body – by opening up the door of our body, by opening up the door of our senses – we start to experience the embodied mind.”

“With this practice of mindful breathing, we’re establishing a real quality of presence and perception around ways of being in touch with ourselves in the present moment.” 

“To be a little bit more flexible and allow myself space to grow in the meditation is also very important, in the body as well as in the breath.” 

“One of the challenges with meditation is that our own ideas about it get in the way of doing it successfully, of having a fruitful time. We’re so convinced that there’s something to do, but that we’re doing it wrong, that we don’t allow ourselves to be as we are. And it’s simply the quality of our presence that is the meditation that is embracing, allowing us to be in the present moment in a deeply attentive, curious way.”

“It is a daily practice to live in such a way that we are awake to the joys in life. And it’s a training to actively identify them, and to balance that against our society telling us that we don’t have enough: ‘You can only be happy when you have this, when you have that, when you’ve done this or realized that.’ And so this is using our breathing, quietness, and stillness to cultivate, to activate, and to generate a feeling of joy as we’re sitting on the cushion, and then a feeling of happiness that has a little more peace in it.”

Welcome to episode 60 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach and journalist Jo Confino share 32 words from Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that can make your relationships deal with suffering and create happiness. The Four Mantras, Thay’s beloved teachings, are intended to help create healthy relationships by allowing conversations and enabling people to be truly present for each other. 

The discussion touches upon generating presence; setting up intentional practices; being a refuge for people; building two-way communication; calligraphy as a way ‘to change the energy’; and so much more.

Brother Phap Huu shares the origins of mantras and helps introduce each mantra with practical tips, real stories from his life and from the monastic community, as well as unheard (yet!) insights from Thay’s practice and creation of the mantras. And can you guess which is Thay’s favorite mantra? 

Jo brings his lay perspective on the mantras and their application in life. A couple of new mantras are discussed, too, but you’d better dive in for some pure essence of Buddhist wisdom. 

The episode ends with a mindful recap of the mantras discussed. 

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

Rains Retreat
https://plumvillage.org/retreats/info/rains-retreat-2023 

Historical Vedic religion
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_Vedic_religion 

Vedas
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vedas 

Mahayana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana

New Heart Sutra translation by Thich Nhat Hanh https://plumvillage.org/about/thich-nhat-hanh/letters/thich-nhat-hanh-new-heart-sutra-translation 

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Sister Chan Khong
https://plumvillage.org/about/sister-chan-khong 

Dharma Talk: ‘The Six Mantras’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-six-mantras-2 

‘Plum Village Mantras and How to Be the Sum of Your Acts’ 
https://tnhaudio.org/2012/07/30/plum-village-mantras-and-how-to-be-the-sum-of-your-acts/

‘The Four Dharma Seals of Plum Village’
https://plumvillage.org/articles/the-four-dharma-seals-of-plum-village 

Dharma Talks: ‘True Love and the Four Noble Truths’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/true-love-and-the-four-noble-truths

Quotes

“Thay created these mantras, which are very practical; it sounds very simple, but if done with right mindfulness, it has such impact. The first mantra is the essence of the practice of mindfulness. When we practice mindfulness, it is to generate the energy of awareness, so that we can offer ourselves a presence and know what is going on inside of us and around us. And with that mindfulness, we are in control. We have the agency of the present moment.”

“When we’re close to someone, we take each other for granted. We stop noticing the little things. We stop noticing that what someone is doing is generous. That what someone’s doing is making them happy. We just stop noticing.” 

“The first Dharma seal of Plum Village is, ‘I have arrived, I am home.’ What does it mean to arrive and be home? It is to say, ‘I am safe here. I can show up as myself and I know that I will be held.’”

“We forget how precious things are right in front of us, and we forget to be present for the ones we truly love. So the first mantra is, ‘I am here for you.’ It is as simple as that. But in the word ‘present’, when we want to give somebody a present, our natural tendency is to think about buying something, to consume in order to offer something that we feel will make them feel loved. And what we’ve learned in true love is that to be loved is to be seen. To be loved is to be recognized, is to be heard.”

“The real practice of true love, first and foremost, is learning to be there for one another.’” 

“The way Thay poured tea, he was the freest person ever. So, in true presence, you are free because you’re not being distracted, you’re not being carried away, and you are just there for the person you love. And in our modern time, this is probably the most advanced training because we are so distracted, there is so much noise, there is so much information. And the seed of fear, anxiety, worries – even worrying for the goodness of life – can make us lose ourselves in the present moment.” 

“The practice of mindfulness is to always shine that light [that says] that you’re not alone and that there is love around you. But if we do close our hearts, we will not be able to tap into the love and the support that is around us.” 

“One time, walking with Thay, he stopped. It was in the evening. And Thay saw the full moon. And we took a very long pause and we just admired the moon. And in that admiration of the moon that is present is the practice, ‘I know you are there and I am very happy.’” 

“Love is understanding. Because that is true love, being there for our suffering. Because we all suffer, we have multiple sufferings. And if we’re truly there for our suffering and each other’s suffering, how can that not be love?”

“When we have the insight of interbeing, if a person is going through a hard time, there is no way that we cannot be in touch with their suffering, because we are interconnected through a relationship. And so the practice is to have courage. It is to show up for those who suffer and say, ‘I know you suffer and I’m here for you.’ And ‘I’m here for you’ doesn’t mean I have the answer. ‘I’m here for you’ doesn’t mean I’m going to save you, or that I have the solution. It’s just, ‘I want you to know that I see you. I want you to know that I want to acknowledge what you are going through.’ By showing up with this openness, if we do it with real presence and a true openness, without expectations and without creating the story of what will happen when I say that, but just showing up and sharing this, we may be able to allow that person to have the courage to also accept what they are going through.” 

“Do you want to be happy or do you want to be right?”

“I am here for you.”

“I know you are there, and I am very happy.” 

“I know you suffer. Therefore I am here for you.”

“I suffer. Please, help.”

“This is a Happy Moment.”

“In true love there is freedom.”

“You are partially right.”

“I love you to not consume you. I love you to show you that you are enough.”

Welcome to episode 59 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

In this episode, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach and journalist Jo Confino discuss conflicts in our world. They focus on the war in the Middle East, through the prism of Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings, which remain so relevant in the current moment. 

Exploring Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings in relation to conflict, pain, and the path to peace, the presenters investigate ways to not take sides during a conflict, and how Thay managed this during the Vietnam War; deep listening, holding space, and transforming the conflict in us; keeping communities together; cultivating nondiscrimination; walking the path of love and understanding in times of war; and gratitude. 

Brother Phap Huu further shares around Thay’s legacy of dealing with conflict and the joint retreats he organized for Palestinians and Israelis in Plum Village; ways to show love for humanity; right action and enabling healing in the present moment; the importance of small acts of kindness; our own true presence of peace and nondiscrimination. 

Jo also opens up about what it feels like to go through a “period of deconstruction”; being the child of refugees and the deep connection this can create to generational trauma; dealing with the tensions created in organizations by global conflicts; and fear, and how to not be consumed by despair, but, instead, how to feel it in order to transform it.

The episode ends with offerings of gratitude and a short meditation guided by Brother Phap Huu. 

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/ 

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

List of resources 

A Cloud Never Dies
https://plumvillage.org/a-cloud-never-dies

Interbeing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing 

Peace Begins Here
https://www.parallax.org/product/peace-begins-here/ 

Calming the Fearful Mind
https://www.parallax.org/product/calming-the-fearful-mind-a-zen-response-to-terrorism/ 

Love in Action
https://www.parallax.org/product/love-in-action/ 

Peace Is Every Step
https://www.parallax.org/product/peace-is-every-step/

The Way Out Is In: ‘War and Peace (Episode #24)’
https://plumvillage.org/podcast/war-and-peace-episode-24

Dharma Talks: ‘Right View: Understanding the Roots of Our True Happiness’
https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/right-view-understanding-the-roots-of-our-true-happiness

Rains Retreat
https://plumvillage.org/retreats/info/rains-retreat-2023 

Quotes

“Thay went through the Vietnam War, or as it is known in Vietnam, the American War, and was constantly under pressure to take sides. And he refused to take sides and advocated for peace, knowing that violence does not end violence, that war does not end war, that killing does not end killing, and that all it creates is generational trauma.”

“Thay’s foundation of action was peace, and his foundation of action came from true love and deep mindfulness. To be aware of the suffering, to listen to the suffering, and to look deeply at the suffering will be the way out of the suffering.” 

“What you can offer is your true presence of peace, your true presence of nondiscrimination, and your true presence of courage to show up where it is needed.” 

“Thay did not take sides; he took nonviolence as the path and peace as the path. So the voice that we speak, that we use, the actions of body, speech, and mind, is to generate and cultivate peace inside, to bring peace around us.”

“Thay always spoke about cultivating inner peace in order to touch true love inside, because love reminds us of our human nature, of our humanity. If there is love in us, there is love in others. If there is suffering in us, there is suffering in others. So these practices are to go deeper, to see the interbeing nature of all that is happening in the here and now.”

“When somebody kills somebody, they are also killing themself. They’re killing a part of humanity.”

“Thay said, ‘If you ask me what we want in Vietnam, we want the bombing to stop. We want the fighting to stop, the killing to stop, because only when we get it to stop can we start to listen deeply, to listen to the suffering that is happening and not be carried away by views and ideology that are probably not even true, that are probably based on greed and fear.’” 

“We have learned that the quality of our actions really matter. If we want a world of care, then love and compassion has to be the fabric of every moment. What we do every day is of cosmic importance.” 

“We need to make room for more than one truth.”

“Stop the killing. Stop the bombing. Cease fire. I think that these are the main messages and calls for action that I am seeing across the world right now in protests. And this happened also during the Vietnam War. And this is also a way of showing love for humanity. And I feel that if we are taking actions to stop the killing, to stop the bombing, to cease fire, that is the course of right action. Like Thay said, ‘As a monk, I am not to go down the path of being a politician. But where there is suffering, I need to shine my light.’”

“Sometimes, it’s powerful just to breathe together and acknowledge we’re all going through something.”

“If we are to walk the path of peace, the peace has to be cultivated inside. So the way we show up has to be the peace.”

“Anger is not a bad thing. Anger is a bell of mindfulness, a feeling that we experience. But we need to invite peace to hold and embrace anger. Because if we walk with anger, that can lead to destruction. But anger is like a bell of mindfulness that tells us that this is not right, this is injustice. But we also have many other emotions and feelings that are more wholesome, which lead down the path of peace. So we have to invite those energies up to accompany anger and not let it be alone. And so the walk is also peace itself.”

“I remember Thay saying that he would walk so slowly that he created traffic jams in the march, but he was so committed to that because that was his voice. This is what peace is. It’s to be the peace, the transformation inside.” 

“I have a lot of gratitude, because it’s the most important thing in times of pain or suffering or despair to have a light to see in that darkness.”

“Not all the darkness in the world can put out the light of a single candle.”

“People don’t dare to listen. That is the problem. They don’t have the capacity and the courage to transform their own suffering, to truly look at the discrimination that is present inside of them. And that’s why meditation is so scary, for some, because you are learning to look at yourself and to really accept yourself. Acceptance is the first path of transformation. Once you accept that, there’s transformation already in action.” 

“There is a transmission through actions of kindness, of love and care, that we may not see the fruit of right away. And the fruit of it, for Thay, which he transmitted to us, was that every action counts and not to feel powerless. But every action that we can generate to offer to our loved ones, our community, our nation, the world, starts with each breath, each smile, each loving thought, each prayer, understanding, courage to hold, courage to speak, courage to shine the light. Where there is ignorance, you have to shine the light.”

“Once the deep listening and loving speech happens on both sides, the heart starts to connect and the heart starts to open. Once the heart starts to open, once the heart connects, we have a bridge of communication. And therefore reconciliation is already happening, just by listening.” 

“What can I do? What I have to do in my current state is to transform the seed of discrimination in me, to transform the fear and the violence inside of me. That is my responsibility.”

“Even if you only have five minutes, that five minutes is for you to cultivate peace so that it contributes to the peace of the world. And if you live for ten years, it is your responsibility to cultivate peace for those ten years so that it starts to transmit that culture into our way of being. And however many years you have, that is your responsibility. That is your practice: transforming war, the wars that have not yet broken out.”