Advice for Daily Practice

On Wednesday night, we had a wonderful gathering at Mindfulness in Healing. Our practice center is undergoing some changes because we are merging with another sangha in the tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, who we call Thay. We meet in this wonderful Chinese medical clinic, the Pine Street Clinic in San Anselmo. The […]

Awareness Is A Life-and-Death Matter

These words of wisdom come from my teacher, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. We call him Thay, meaning beloved teacher. This teaching is important because in everything we think, say, or do, awareness is a life-and-death matter. When I had breakfast with Thay in 2006, I witnessed the way he would grasp his bowl with […]

Walk In Peace

These words of wisdom for today come from my teacher, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, who we call Thay. The picture and image reflect on the Thay’s principal teachings: walk in peace. I love this image and it reminds me of my days with Thich Nhat Hanh in 1997. It was a retreat on the […]

8 Ancient Beliefs

In a recent article in the Huffington Post, Alana Hall reported on 8 Ancient Beliefs Now Backed By Modern Science. These beliefs are embraced in Arianna Huffington’s new book, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder, part of which is dedicated to scientific breakthroughs that often […]

5 Contemplations

The four-fold community of monks, nuns, lay men, and lay women of Plum Village, home of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh have released a new version of the 5 Contemplations before eating. I really liked an even older version, which began, “This food is the gift of the whole universe – the earth, the sky […]

The Fertile Soil Of Sangha

These words of wisdom are taught by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (known as Thay by his followers). I have heard Thay teach about the fertile soil of sangha many times. He also teaches that the next Buddha, Maitreya, might well be a sangha. The sangha is one of the three precious jewels of Buddhism. […]

The Three Jewels

Every Buddhist practitioner takes refuge in the Three Jewels. The Three Jewels are The Buddha, The Dharma, and The Sangha. The Buddha What does it mean to take refuge in the Buddha? When we take refuge in the Buddha, we aspire to awaken the seeds of joy, happiness, peace, and serenity in our lives and […]

Martin Luther King And Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh Were Friends

These words of wisdom were spoken by Dr. Martin Luther King. They come on January 20, 2014, Martin Luther King Day in the United States. It is well known that Dr. Martin Luther King and Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh were friends. In fact, Dr. King nominated Thich Nhat Hanh (known as Thay by his […]

19 Reasons Why Pope Francis Is Time Magazine Person Of The Year

This is the text of an email I received from a friend of mine in the dharma. I am reproducing it here because I was so moved by the actions of Pope Francis. There are 19 reasons why Pope Francis is Time Magazine Person of the Year: I hope this Pope lives forever !!! Pope […]

The Third Precious Jewel

These words of wisdom are from my teacher, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, known as Thay by his followers. It is about the third precious jewel of Buddhism, the Sangha. The other two jewels are the Buddha and the Dharma. When a person takes refuge in the three jewels, he or she is declaring his or […]