Thich Nhat Hanh

Category: Living Masters

From Buddhist Encyclopedia

Thich Nhat Hanh
I (Press Release Photo) Courtesy of Plum Village Practice Center, France
Date of birth:	October 11, 1926
Place of birth:	Vietnam
Birth name:	Nguyễn Xuân Bảo
School:	Mahayana
Branch:	Lâm Tế Dhyana/Zen (42nd generation)
Lineage:	Liễu Quán (8th generation)
Order:	Order of Interbeing
Titles/Honors:	Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967
Quote:	Looking deeply is to remove the frontier between our notions and reality.

Thich Nhat Hanh Thích Nhất Hạnh is an expatriate Vietnamese Zen monk. A teacher, author, and peace activist, Nhat Hanh was born in central Vietnam on October 11, 1926. He joined a Zen monastery at the age of 16, studied Buddhism as a novice, and was fully ordained as a monk in 1949. The title Thích is used by all Vietnamese monks and nuns, meaning that they are part of the Shakya (Shakyamuni Buddha) clan.<ref name="lineage">Phap Dung, Brother (2006) "A Letter to Friends About Our Lineage", published on the Plum Village website[1]</ref> He coined the term Engaged Buddhism in his book Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire.<ref name="giaodiem">Nhu, Quan (2002) "Nhat Hanh's Peace Activities" in "Vietnamese Engaged Buddhism: The Struggle Movement of 1963-66", reprinted on the Giao Diem site [2]</ref>

In the early 1960's, he founded the School of Youth for Social Services (SYSS) in Saigon, a grass roots relief organization that rebuilt bombed villages, set up schools and medical centers, and resettled families left homeless during the Vietnam War.<ref name="BBC">Author and date unknown, "Thich Nhat Hanh", feature article on the BBC website [3]</ref> He traveled to the U.S. a number of times to study and later teach at Columbia University, and to promote the cause of peace. He urged Martin Luther King, Jr. to oppose the Vietnam War publicly, and spoke with many people and groups about peace. In 1967, King nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize.<ref name="nomination">"Nomination of Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize" letter by Martin Luther King, Jr., 1967, archived on the Hartford Web Publishing website [4]</ref> Nhat Hanh led the Buddhist delegation to the Paris Peace Talks. One of the best known Buddhist teachers in the West, Thich Nhat Hanh's teachings and practices appeal to people from various religious, spiritual, and political backgrounds. He offers a practice of mindfulness that is often adapted to Western sensibilities.<ref>Laity, Annabel (date unknown) "About Our Teacher", Green Mountain Dharma Center website[5]</ref>

He created the Order of Interbeing in 1966, and established monastic and practice centers around the world. His home is Plum Village Monastery in the Dordogne region in the South of France.<ref name="BBC">[6]</ref> He travels internationally giving retreats and talks. Exiled from Vietnam for many years, he was allowed to return for a trip in 2005.<ref name="time">Johnson, Kay (2005) "A Long Journey Home", Time Asia Magazine (online version) [7]</ref> He has published more than 100 books, including more than 40 in English. He also publishes a quarterly Dharma talk in the journal of the Order of Interbeing, the Mindfulness Bell. Nhat Hanh continues to be active in the peace movement. He has sponsored retreats for Israelis and Palestinians, encouraging them to listen and learn about each other; given speeches urging warring countries to stop fighting and look for non-violent solutions to problems<ref>Farah, Samar (April 04, 2002), "An advocate for peace starts with listening", The Christian Science Monitor, Religion and Ethics online journal.[8]</ref>; and conducted a peace walk in Los Angeles in 2005 attended by thousands of people.<ref>Be The Cause Gallery [9]</ref>

Biography

Thich Nhat Hanh was born Nguyễn Xuân Bảo in Thừa Thiên (Central Vietnam) in 1926. At the age of 16 he entered the monastery at Từ Hiếu Temple near Huế, Vietnam, where his primary teacher was Dhyana (meditation; Zen) Master Thanh Quý Chân Thật<ref name="lineage">Phap Dung, Brother (2006) "A Letter to Friends About Our Lineage", published on the Plum Village website [10]</ref><ref>Cordova, Nathaniel (2005) "The Tu Hieu Lineage of Thien (Zen) Buddhism", blog entry on the Woodmore Village website [11]</ref><ref>Author and date unknown, "Thich Nhat Hanh", published on the Community of Interbeing, UK website [12]</ref>. A graduate of Bao Quoc Buddhist Academy in Central Vietnam,<ref name="giaodiem">Nhu, Quan (2002) "Nhat Hanh's Peace Activities" in "Vietnamese Engaged Buddhism: The Struggle Movement of 1963-66", reprinted on the Giao Diem website [13]</ref> Thich Nhat Hanh received training in Zen (in Vietnamese: Thiền) and the Mahayana school of Buddhism and was ordained as a monk in 1949. Thich Nhat Hanh is now recognized as a Dharmacharya and as the spiritual head of the Từ Hiếu Temple and associated monasteries.<ref>Mau, Thich Chi (1999) "Application for the publication of books and sutras", letter to the Vietnamese Governmental Committee of Religious Affairs, re-printed on the Plum Village website [14]</ref> He is the Elder of the Từ Hiếu branch of the 8th generation of the Liễu Quán lineage in the 42nd generation of the Lâm Tế Dhyana school (Lin Chi Chan 臨濟禪 in Chinese or Rinzai Zen in Japanese).<ref name="lineage">[15]</ref> On May 1st, 1966 at Từ Hiếu Temple, Thich Nhat Hanh received the “lamp transmission”, making him a Dharmacharya or Dharma Teacher, from Master Chân Thật.<ref name="lineage"> [16]</ref> Thich Nhat Hanh has combined his deep knowledge of a variety of traditional Zen teaching methods with methods from Theravada Buddhism and ideas from Western psychology to form his approach to modern Zen practice. Thich Nhat Hanh has become an important influence in the development of Western Buddhism.

In 1956 he was named Editor-in-Chief of Vietnamese Buddhism, the periodical of the Unified Vietnam Buddhist Association (Giáo Hội Phật Giáo Việt Nam Thống Nhất). In the following years he founded Lá Bối Press, the Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon, and the School of Youth for Social Service (SYSS), a corps of Buddhist peaceworkers who went into rural areas to establish schools, build healthcare clinics, and help re-build villages.<ref name="BBC">Author and date unknown, "Thich Nhat Hanh", feature article on the BBC website [17]</ref>

During the Vietnam War

Van Hanh Buddhist University became a prestigious private university that focused on Buddhist studies, Vietnamese culture, and languages. Nhat Hanh taught Buddhist psychology and Prajnaparamita literature. At a meeting in April 1965, Van Hanh Union students issued a Call for Peace statement. Its main theme was: "It is time for North and South Vietnam to find a way to stop the war and help all Vietnamese people live peacefully and with mutual respect." When Thich Nhat Hanh left for the U.S. shortly afterwards, control over Van Hanh University was taken over by one of the Chancellors who wished to sever ties with Thich Nhat Hanh and the SYSS, calling Sister Chan Khong, who was left in control of the organization, a "communist". From that point, the SYSS struggled to raise funds and endured a number of attacks on its members, many of whom were threatened, harassed, and murdered. The SYSS persisted in their efforts, refusing to take sides in the conflict and continuing to provide aid to people in need.<ref name="giaodiem">Nhu, Quan (2002) "Nhat Hanh's Peace Activities" in "Vietnamese Engaged Buddhism: The Struggle Movement of 1963-66", reprinted on the Giao Diem site [18]</ref>

Thich Nhat Hanh has been a leader in the Engaged Buddhism movement and he is credited with bringing the idea to the West. He credits the thirteenth-century Vietnamese King Tran Nhan Tong with the origination of the concept. Tran Nhan Tong abdicated his throne to become a monk, and founded the still dominant Vietnamese Buddhist school, the Bamboo Forest tradition.<ref>Information on the Vietnamese Plum Village website [19]</ref>

In 1960, Thich Nhat Hanh came to the U.S. to study comparative religion at Princeton University, and he was subsequently appointed lecturer in Buddhism at Columbia University. By then, he had gained fluency in French language|French, Chinese language|Chinese, Sanskrit, Pali, Japanese language|Japanese, and English language|English, in addition to his native Vietnamese. In 1963 he returned to Vietnam to aid his fellow monks in their non-violent peace efforts.

Thich Nhat Hanh returned to the US in 1966 to lead a symposium in Vietnamese Buddhism at Cornell University and to continue his work for peace. Thich Nhat Hanh had written a letter to Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1965 entitled: “Searching for the Enemy of Man” and it was during his 1966 stay in the U.S. that Thich Nhat Hanh met with Martin Luther King, Jr. and urged him to publicly denounce the Vietnam War.<ref>"Searching for the Enemy of Man", in Nhat Nanh, Ho Huu Tuong, Tam Ich, Bui Giang, Pham Cong Thien. Dialogue. Saigon: La Boi, 1965. P. 11-20., archived on the African-American Involvement in the Vietnam War website [20]</ref>

Dr. King gave his famous speech at the Riverside Church in New York City in 1967<ref>"Beyond Vietnam", April 4, 1967, speech made by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Riverside Church, NYC, archived on the African-American Involvement in the Vietnam War website [21]</ref>, his first to publicly question the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. Later that year, Dr. King nominated Thich Nhat Hanh for the 1967 Nobel Peace Prize. In his nomination Rev. King said, "I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of [this prize] than this gentle monk from Vietnam. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity." (Despite King's high praise, the committee decided not to make an award that year. King's revelation of his nomination was a violation of tradition and the explicit "strong request" of the prize committee.)<ref name="nomination">"Nomination of Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize" letter by Martin Luther King, Jr., 1967, archived on the Hartford Web Publishing website [22]</ref>

In 1969, Thich Nhat Hanh was the delegate for the Buddhist Peace Delegation at the Paris Peace talks. When the Paris Peace Accords were signed in 1973, the Vietnamese government denied Thich Nhat Hanh permission to return to Vietnam, and he went into exile in France. From 1976 through 1977, he led efforts to help rescue Vietnamese boat people in the Gulf of Thailand|Gulf of Siam, but was forced to stop because of the hostility of the governments of Thailand and Singapore.<ref>Author and date unknown, "Thich Nhat Hanh", article on the Integrative Spirituality website [23]</ref> In 1969, Thich Nhat Hanh established the Unified Buddhist Church (Église Bouddhique Unifiée) in France (not a part of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam).

Establishing the Order of Interbeing

In 1975, he formed the Sweet Potatoes Meditation Center. The center grew and in 1982 he and his colleague Sister Chân Không founded Plum Village Buddhist Center (Làng Mai), a monastery and Practice Center in the Dordogne in the south of France.<ref name="BBC">[24]</ref> Since the mid 60s he heads a monastic and lay group, the Order of Inter-Being, teaching the Five and Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings and "Engaged Buddhism." The Unified Buddhist Church is the legally recognized governance body for Plum Village (Làng Mai) in France; for Maple Forest Monastery and Green Mountain Dharma Center in Vermont, the Community of Mindful Living, Parallax Press, Deer Park Monastery in California, and Magnolia Village in Mississippi.<ref>Information about Practice Centers from the official Community of Mindful Living site [25]</ref>

There are now two monasteries in Vietnam, at the original Từ Hiếu Temple near Huế and at Prajna Temple in the central highlands. Thich Nhat Hanh and the Order of Interbeing have established monasteries and Dharma centers in the United States at Deer Park Monastery (Tu Viện Lộc Uyển) in Escondido, California, Maple Forest Monastery (Tu Viện Rừng Phong) and Green Mountain Dharma Center (Ðạo Tràng Thanh Sơn) both in Vermont, and Magnolia Village Practice Center (Đạo Tràng Mộc Lan) in Mississipp]. These monasteries are open to the public during much of the year and provide on-going retreats for lay people. The Order of Interbeing also holds focused retreats for groups of lay people, such as families, teenagers, veterans<ref>Information about retreats from the Deer Park Monastery site [26]</ref>, the entertainment industry, members of Congress<ref>"Thich Nhat Hahn Leads Retreat for Members of Congress" (2004) from the Faith and Politics newsletter, Rev. W. Douglas Tanner, Jr., president, linked on the Faith and Politics Institute website [27]</ref>, law enforcement officers<ref>Bures, Frank (2003) "Zen and the Art of Law Enforcement", Christian Science Monitor [28]</ref>, people of color<ref>Information about the "Colors of Compassion" retreat for people of color on the official Community of Mindful Living site [29]</ref> <ref>Archived information referencing the "Colors of Compassion" retreat on the official Plum Village site[30]</ref><ref>Information about the 2006 "Soul of Gratitude" retreat for people of color at the Deer Park Monastery[31]</ref>, and professional and scientific<ref>Information about retreats on the official Plum Village site [32]</ref> interest groups.

Return to Vietnam

From January 12 until April 11, 2005, Thich Nhat Hanh returned to Vietnam after a series of negotiations that allowed him to teach, have select titles of his books published in Vietnamese, and allowed 100 monastic and 90 lay members of his Order to accompany him in his travels around the country, including a return to his root temple, Tu Hieu Temple in Hue.<ref name="time">Johnson, Kay (2005) "A Long Journey Home", Time Asia Magazine (online version) [33]</ref><ref>Warth, Gary (2005) "Local Buddhist Monks Return to Vietnam as Part of Historic Trip", North County Times, re-published on the Buddhist Channel news website [34]</ref>

Prior to the 2005 trip, Thich Nhat Hanh’s organization had been highly critical of the restrictions imposed by the Vietnamese government regarding a possible visit. Those restrictions included: not allowing his monastics to stay in Buddhist monastaries, not allowing him to teach to large crowds as he does in the West, and not allowing his books to be published in Vietnamese.<ref>Phap An, Brother (1999) "When will Thay Nhat Hanh Return to Vietnam?", archived article on the Plum Village website [35]</ref>

The trip was not without controversy. Thich Vien Dinh writing on behalf of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (considered illegal by the Vietnamese government) called for Thich Nhat Hanh to make a statement against the Vietnam government’s poor record on religious freedom. Thich Vien Dinh feared that the trip would be used as propaganda by the Vietnamese government, making the world believe that the issues of religious freedom are improving there, while abuses continue.<ref>"Buddhist monk requests Thich Nhat Hanh "to see true situation in Vietnam", 2005, Letter from Thich Vien Dinh as reported by the Buddhist Channel news website [36]</ref><ref>"Vietnam: International Religious Freedom Report 2005", Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, 2005, report published by the U.S. State Department [37]</ref><ref>"Vietnam: The Suppression of the Unified Buddhist Church", Vol.7, No.4, 1995, Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, executive director [38]</ref>

Names applied to him

The Vietnamese language|Vietnamese title Thích (釋) is from "Thích Ca" or "Thích Già" (釋迦), means "of the Shakya (Shakyamuni Buddha) clan."<ref name="lineage">Lineage information on official Plum Village site [39]</ref> All Vietnamese (and Chinese) Buddhist monks and nuns adopt this title as their "family" or surname implying that their first family is the Buddhist community.

Neither Nhất (一) nor Hạnh (行) — which approximate the roles of middle or intercalary name and given name, respectively, when referring to him in English — was part of his name at birth. Nhất (一) means "one", implying "first-class," or "of best quality," in English; Hạnh (行) means "move", implying "right conduct" or "good nature." Thích Nhất Hạnh has translated his Dharma Names in the following manner: Nhất = One, and Hạnh = Action. Taken collectively, his Dharma Names are best translated as "One Action". Vietnamese names follow this naming convention, placing the family or surname first, then the middle or intercalary name which often refers to the person's position in the family or generation, followed by the given name.<ref>"Vietnamese Names", Excerpted from "Culture Briefing: Vietnam", published by Geotravel Research Center, Kissimmee, Florida, 1995, on the Things Asian website [40]</ref>

Thich Nhat Hanh is often referred to as "Thay" (Vietnamese language|Vietnamese: Thầy, "master; teacher") or Thay Nhat Hanh by his followers. On the Vietnamese version of the Plum Village website, he is also referred to as Thiền Sư Nhất Hạnh which can translated as "Zen Priest" or "Zen Master".<ref>Title attributed to TNH on the Vietnamese Plum Village site [41]</ref> Any Vietnamese Monk can be referred to and are often addressed as "Thầy" or "Thầy tu" ("priest" or "monk"); Nuns are addressed as "Sư Cô" or "Sư Bà" ("sister").

Quotes

• I think we have the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast. But in the name of freedom, people have done a lot of damage. I think we have to build a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast in order to counterbalance. Because liberty without responsibility is not true liberty. We are not free to destroy.
  • Abernathy, Bob, interview, "Thich Nhat Hanh", Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, episode 703, Public Broadcasting Service[42]

• The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth, dwelling deeply in the present moment and feeling truly alive.

• If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. If we really know how to live, what better way to start the day than with a smile? Our smile affirms our awareness and determination to live in peace and joy. The source of a true smile is an awakened mind.
  • From Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life, Bantam reissue, 1992, ISBN 0-553-35139-7

See also

• Order of Interbeing
• Timeline for Thich Nhat Hanh and the Order of Interbeing
• Buddhism in Vietnam
• Buddhism in France
• Buddhism in America
• The Five Wonderful Precepts
• Questions and Answers
• Resting in the River

References

Bibliography/Further reading

• Vietnam: Lotus in a sea of fire. New York, Hill and Wang. 1967.
• Being Peace, Parallax Press, 1987, ISBN 0-938077-00-7
• Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha, Parallax Press, 1991
• Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life, Bantam reissue, 1992, ISBN 0-553-35139-7
• Touching Peace: Practicing the Art of Mindful Living, Parallax Press, 1992, ISBN 0-938077-57-0
• Zen Keys: A Guide to Zen Practice, Three Leaves, 1994, ISBN 0-385-47561-6
• Living Buddha, Living Christ, Riverhead Trade, 1997, ISBN 1-57322-568-1
• Fragrant Palm Leaves: Journals, 1962-1966, Riverhead Trade, 1999, ISBN 1-57322-796-X
• Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers, Riverhead Books, 1999, ISBN 1-57322-145-7
• The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching, Broadway Books, 1999, ISBN 0-7679-0369-2
• Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism, Parallax Press 3rd edition, 1999, ISBN 1-888375-08-6
• The Miracle of Mindfulness: A Manual on Meditation, Beacon Press, 1999, ISBN 0-8070-1239-4 (Vietnamese: Phép lạ c̉ua sư t̉inh thưc).
• The Raft Is Not the Shore: Conversations Toward a Buddhist/Christian Awareness, Daniel Berrigan (Co-author), Orbis Books, 2000, ISBN 1-57075-344-X
• Essential Writings, Robert Ellsberg (Editor), Orbis Books, 2001, ISBN 1-57075-370-9
• Anger, Riverhead Trade, 2002, ISBN 1-57322-937-7
• No Death, No Fear, Riverhead Trade reissue, 2003, ISBN 1-57322-333-6
• Touching the Earth: Intimate Conversations with the Buddha, Parallax Press, 2004, ISBN 1-888375-41-8

External links

About Thich Nhat Hanh and the Order of Interbeing

• Biography of Thich Nhat Hanh on the Parallax Press site (an official TNH site)
• Biography of Thich Nhat Hanh on the Magnolia Village site (an official TNH site)
• Biography of Thich Nhat Hanh on the seaox.com site (independent site)
• Thich Nhat Hanh quotes, articles and biography
• Buddhist Masters and their Organizations - Thich Nhat Hanh
• SpiritSight.com - Excerpts from selected Thich Nhat Hanh books
• Questions and Answers by Thich Nhat Hanh
• ShambhalaSun Magazine - do a search on "Thich Nhat Hanh" for a list of previous articles
• Speaking of Faith - Downloadable Public Radio broadcast about the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh

Websites for Thich Nhat Hanh and the Order of Interbeing

• Parallax Press Publishing house founded by Thich Nhat Hanh's community
• La Boi Society - publishes books by Thich Nhat Hanh in Vietnamese
• Sangha Directory - List of communities (Mindfulness Practice Groups) practicing in Thich Nhat Hanh's tradition
• Plum Village - Thich Nhat Hanh's main monastery and practice center, located about 85 km east of Bordeaux, France
• Deer Park Monastery - located in Escondido, California
• Maple Forest Monastery - located near Woodstock, Vermont (this site is temporarily off-line)
• Green Mountain Dharma Center - located in Hartland-Four-Corners, Vermont
• Magnolia Village Practice Center - newest practice center, located near Memphis, TN
• I Am Home - Community of Mindful Living; home of the "Mindfulness Bell" magazine with news, articles, and talks by Thich Nhat Hanh and other Order of Interbeing members