Monday, June 29, we will meet in person.
Go to calendar for our schedule
Address for OHMC meditation space:
3812 Northampton St. NW, Washington DC 20015
Please arrive a few minutes early so we can invite the bell on time. You may also arrive 15 minutes early to practice working meditation by helping us set up cushions.
Dear friends,
This week, we will meet Monday evening, June 29, from 7-8:30PM ET in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, July 1, from 7-8AM ET online; Thursday morning, July 2, from 7-8AM ET online; and Friday, July 3, 12-1PM ET online/in person (Hybrid).
This week, Camille will guide our meditation. She shares:
Welcome to our Monday evening sangha. As you may know, we are beginning our Monday evening summer reading of Thich Nhat Hanh’s book At Home in the World. Tonight, we will begin our discussion with the introduction and will continue discussions on the book through August 31. Feel free to read along with the book this summer if you have it, or if not, please just come and enjoy as we share aspects of this lovely book full of “lessons on compassion, love, endurance, and resilience.”
In the introduction of the book, Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) talks about his being exiled from his native country, Vietnam. At first, he shares that his exile was very hard. His first couple of years, he spent traveling to different countries and lecturing on the practice of Buddhism, and yet he felt he had not really arrived. He had not found his “true home.” He would dream at night about his beloved Vietnam and wake, never really remembering where he was. He was not living in the here and now.
As time went on, Thay became active working with children and spiritual leaders of different countries and began to appreciate the natural environment that was quite different from Vietnam. His practice eventually brought him back to his true home in the here and now. He stopped suffering and learned to live joyfully in the present moment.
Here is an excerpt from the introduction of the book:
The expression, “I have arrived, I am home,” is the embodiment of my practice. It is one of the main Dharma seals of Plum Village. It expresses my understanding of the teaching of the Buddha and is the essence of my practice. Since finding my true home, I no longer suffer. The past is no longer a prison for me. The future is not a prison either. I am able to live in the here and now and to touch my true home. I am able to arrive home with every breath and with every step. I don’t have to buy a ticket; I don’t have to go through a security check. Within a few seconds, I can arrive home.
When we are deeply in touch with the present moment, we can touch both the past and the future; and if we know how to handle the present moment properly, we can heal the past. It was precisely because I did not have a country of my own that I had the opportunity to find my true home. This is very important. It was because I didn’t belong to any particular country that I had to make an effort to break through and find my true home. The feeling that we are not accepted, that we do not belong anywhere, and have no national identity, can provoke the breakthrough necessary for us to find our true home.
I have thought a lot lately about where my true home is. I just returned from a lovely trip to the West Coast to participate in and enjoy my son’s wedding. It was a beautiful wedding, set amongst an old growth forest with mountains and water all around. I have become quite enamored with the area, which is now home to two of my four children. Often wondering if this could be my new home, I had left for the wedding searching, feeling somewhat anxious about challenges at home. Was I searching for a new place or some new thing to bring me more happiness and joy? When I was there, I found that being around family and friends, around the beautiful trees and wildlife, I was able to be more present and in the here and now. I even stayed for a long while after the wedding to be with my kids and enjoy nature. However, when it was time to get ready to leave, I wasn’t sleeping; I was fearful, sad, and worried about going to my home in DC. My mind kept going back to the wedding and nature, and wanting everything to happen all over again. This looking and searching for something is a habit of mine, which leads me to not be fully in the present moment. I am a creature of habit, and holding on to the past is one of those unwholesome habits.
As Thay has suggested, coming back to the simple practice of mindfulness, to always arrive in the present moment, is really where our true home is. As we walk and breathe in the present moment, we can get the nourishment we need to live life fully. When I came home to DC, at first I felt the pang of missing my kids and the beauty of the wild West. Then I spent some time walking to my community garden. When I arrived, I immediately felt at home. My plants were exploding with color, and the greens expanding wildly through the fence: they had grown so much while I was gone. It was as if they were my children, with open arms waiting to share their excitement. And I was so excited! I got down on my hands and knees and began harvesting, eating, weeding, and even talking to my plants. I wasn’t thinking about the past, and I wasn’t planning for the future. In that moment, I had arrived and found my true home, enjoying the wonders of life.
I invite you to reflect on what allows you to arrive in the present moment and how you might find nourishment in life in the here and now. What practices might help you stay present, and what challenges might prevent you from living in the here and now?
I look forward to seeing you in person on Monday night.
Much love,
Camille
A mantra from Thich Nhat Hanh:
Waking up this morning I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.