Monday Blogcrawl - Buddhism

Some Buddhist stuff from around the www this past week:

Stories of the Buddha in art

• Some random Buddhist links
• Boundless gives us a beautifully simple explanation of Thai Buddhist art
• Thich Nhat Hanh visits North America in 2013, and the Shambhala Sun Space has the details. To get you into the mood, here is an audio file of a talk by Thay. And another one here. And Sumeru gives us the dates of his Canada tour. Sweeping Zen wants to nominate Thich Nhat Hanh for the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize
• Thai Buddhist art exhibtion opens - details from artdaily.org
• 94 year old monk is Burma is considered lucky, or so says The Irawaddy
• Ajahn Brahm is touring Hong Kong in 2013

5 Interesting Books by Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh is one of the most fascinating and compelling people alive - a real living spiritual treasure. I first came upon his work when I was a very young man, and I was delighted by the simplicty, clarity and lack of pretension in his message. I wanted to find out more about Buddhism, and he was the first writer to really bring it alive for me. It is because of Thich Nhat Hanh that I have spent the last 20 years exploring Buddhism and exploring Vietnam. It is no wonder, then, that my book Destination Saigon carries a thank-you note to him in the acknowledgements.
As well as being a meditation master and the second most famous Buddhist monk in the world (the Dalai Lama beats him), he is also a scholar and linguist, with a great love for literature and a real gift for expression. He has been a prolfic writer over the years, so I thought I would humbly present my own list of his books that have helped and inspired me over the years:



Savor - This is his newest book, and is co-authored with Dr. Lilian Cheung. It is a fascinating exercise - a kind combination Buddhist manual and diet book. Thich Nhat Hanh has always talked a lot about food in his writings: the need to eat mindfully, the need to be thankful for our meals, how to eat ethically etc. So I guess devoting a whole book to it is a natural progression. Interestingly, this is also the book that finally got him noticed by Oprah - so he at last carries the imprimatur of the queen of popular culture!


The Energy of Prayer - This little book is probably the one I turn to most. My copy is battered and dog-eared, filled with highlighting and comments. I have used it a lot in my meditation teaching, because I find it uses language that is quite familiar to Western, non-Buddhist minds. Master Nhat Hanh has been interested in the meeting of Eastern and Western spiritualities since he was a young man, and this book is the best melding of those traditions. Its final section is a series of prayers and meditations that would be helpful to anyone's spiritual life.



The Miracle of Mindfulness - Probably his best-known book, The Miracle of Mindfulness was something of a Bible for me in the 90s. I read it over and over as I traveled through Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, and my filthy copy was perused at some of the most beautiful and amazing locations! It is a beautifully written and belletristic exploration of meditation and mindfulness, and I promise it will be a constant inspiration.


Master Tang Hoi - One for the history buffs. Master Tang Hoi was the first Zen teacher in Vietnam, and this is the most intriguing book about him and his teachings. It is essential reading for anyone interested in Vietnamese history and culture, and for Zen enthusiasts it represents a meditation teaching that pre-dates Bodhidharma by 300 years!




Joyfully Together - If you are interested in building community and making the world a nicer place to be, this is a really wonderful place to start. It is one of Thich Nhat Hanh's more obscure titles, but I have found it to be tremendously useful and inspiring, and have drawn on its wisdom and advice many times. Master Nhat Hanh has himself established a global community of gigantic proportions, so why not learn from a master?

Basic Concepts of Buddhism: The Sangha

The basic act of Buddhist devotion is taking refuge in the Three Jewels: Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

Monks at Tinh Xa Trung Tam, Saigon

The Buddha is the person of the most enlightened one, the Dharma is the body of the Buddha's teachings - but what is the Sangha?  

Buddha shrine at Vien Giac Temple, Bui Thi Xuan St, Tan Binh district, Ho Chi Minh City.

Sangha is a Sanskrit and Pali word meaning "Assembly" or "Community." Traditionally the Sangha has been interpreted to mean the monastic community of dedicated religious practitioners living together in a community devoted to the Buddha's teachings.

But Vietnamese Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh has taken the concept further. In his book Joyfully Together: The Art of Building a Harmonious Community, he explains Sangha in this way:

"Any group of people can practice as a Sangha, as a community that is determined to live in harmony and awareness. All we have to do is commit ourselves to going together in the direction of peace, joy, and freedom. Together, we benefit from each other's strengths and learn from each other's weaknesses. A family is a Sangha, the members of a monastic and lay practice centre are a Sangha; even the United Nations is a Sangha! A Sangha is a family, a spiritual family connected by the pactices of mindfulness, concentration, and insight.  The Sangha may be Buddhist, or even non-Buddhist, so long as it is a community that walks the path of liberation together."

These days the Sangha is normally spoken of as "the community that follows the Dharma," thereby incorporating all Buddhists, lay and monastic.

Thich Nhat Hanh

One of the people I acknowledge in the beginning of Destination Saigon is Thich Nhat Hanh.
He is one of the great influences on my life and on my spiritual outlook, and I revere him as a great monk, a wise man and surely a Bodhisattva.
Master Nhat Hanh has reached a grand old age, but he still seems sprightly and ready to do new things.
He recently appeared on Oprah, for example, talking about his latest book, an examination of mindful eating written with a Harvard-trained dietitian. He really is amazing.
He wasn't able to make it to the Parliament of World Religions in Melbourne last year (Australia is a long way away for a man of his advanced years), but he did record an extraordinary video address which excited and inspired many.
For me, Master Nhat Hanh's simple and unpretentious approach to meditation is his richest teaching. He encourages us to always keep a smile on our faces as we practice, so as top avoid taking ourselves and our religious goals too seriously.
May he be blessed, and may he continue to live a long, happy and healthy life.