Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Jan. 6th, from 7-8:30PM EST online; Wednesday morning, Jan 8th, from 7-8AM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, Jan. 10th, 12-1PM EST online.

On Monday night Camille will facilitate. Camille shares:

Breathing in, I calm my body and mind. Breathing out, I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment, I know this is the only moment.
I have arrived. I am home, in the here and in the now.
Happiness is available in the present moment.
Awareness of impermanence allows us to touch deeply the reality of life and live deeply in the present moment.

These mantras of Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) are some of the many mantras that I repeat to myself often, especially when feeling lost or not very grounded. Like many of us, I experienced much suffering in this past year, both emotionally and physically–in my loved ones, in myself, and in the world. My practice of mindfulness–walking, sitting, eating, singing, going to sangha, and hearing the words of my sangha and Thay–helps me slow down, take better care of myself, and nourish myself by coming back to my body, breath, and mind.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Dec. 30, from 7-8:30PM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Jan. 1, from 7-8AM EST online; and Friday, Jan. 3, from 12-1PM EST in person & online (hybrid).

This Monday evening, Annie will facilitate. Annie shares:

Dear Friends,

This week we will read the Five Mindfulness Trainings and focus on the Second Training: True Happiness (full text below). Annie will facilitate.

As we head into a new year, and when gift giving and receiving, we may be reflecting on what we think we need to be happy. Some years ago, at a retreat with Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay), I purchased this piece of his calligraphy:
Samstusta
You Have Enough

Samstusta, or the related sanskrit term, Santosha, may be defined as contentment or feeling satisfied, or not needing something outside of ourselves to run after. This concept shows up in the Yoga Sutras as one of the niyamas, or practices, as well as in Buddhist writings. It’s something we humans have known was a source of our well-being for at least two centuries.

‘What you are looking for is not outside of you; it is already here. You already are what you want to become. Concentrating on aimlessness releases your longing and craving for something in the future and elsewhere. (Thich Nhat Hanh, Lion’s Roar)

I have written about and reflected on contentment for a while. (2019 blog post here.) That’s because, for me, finding contentment can be a challenge in a world full of delicious addictions, surrounded by advertisements and suggestions. And don’t we all get caught in the habit of comparing what we have to what others have? Yet, those precious moments and days when I feel completely content are the most wonderful gifts of ease and bliss. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 23th, from 7-8:30PM EST online; Wednesday morning, Dec 25th, from 7-8AM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, Dec 27th, 12-1PM EST online.

On Monday night Susie will facilitate. Susie shares:

When a friend asks for help in a challenging situation or complains about something in their life, I listen deeply and ask if they want my input. If they do, I will likely respond with a suggestion, which sometimes my friend resists because they only want to repeat their story. They may be unaware that they are repeating the same story and the acting out of the same habit energies. They may have a blindspot.

I think about my own blindspots: What am I resistant to? What suggestion has a friend offered that I couldn’t receive because I wasn’t ready, and I just wanted to repeat the story I have told for decades?

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Dec. 16, from 7-8:30PM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Dec. 18, from 7-8AM EST online; and Friday, Dec. 20, from 12-1PM EST in person & online (hybrid).

This Monday evening, Camille will facilitate. Camille shares:

At a recent Plum Village retreat in a sangha group sharing, we was “What waters your bodhicitta?” and the other “What keeps you going?”  Bodhicitta refers to the “mind of enlightenment” in Buddhism. The essence of bodhicitta is to have a good and kind heart and to help and serve all beings with compassion. In essence it is like the mind of loving kindness.  For me, the two questions were interrelated, and in my mind, I want to be kind and feel joy and happiness.I want others to feel joy and happiness and to do whatever it takes to relieve our suffering. The actual “doing,” which can be challenging, is what I try to water and what keeps me going.

One of my daughters has been suffering deeply with anxiety, depression, a deep lack of self-worth and many other challenges. When I experience the suffering of others, I can easily go to the habit energy of worry and fear. For a long time, I found that my daughter’s suffering was weighing deeply on me and causing me to lose my grounding and create more suffering.  As I worked at deepening my practice and making more space in my heart for myself, I discovered that her suffering had actually watered my bodhicitta. I was inspired to have a stronger practice with more awareness and space to understand, find compassion, and really hear her struggles.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, December 10th, from 7-8:30PM EST online; Wednesday morning, Dec 12th, from 7-8AM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, Dec 14th, 12-1PM EST online.

On Monday night, Magda will guide us in exploring how we can cultivate the seeds of hope, sharing her experiences at the European Institute of Applied Buddhism and the events that followed her visit.

Most people are afraid of suffering. But suffering is a kind of mud to help the lotus flower of happiness grow. There can be no lotus flower without the mud.   

Thich Nhat Hanh, No Mud, No Lotus (2014)

Last month, I attended the No Mud, No Lotus class at the European Institute of Applied Buddhism (EIAB) in Waldbröl, Germany. The EIAB exemplifies Thich Nhat Hanh’s (Thay’s) transformative vision, turning a site once associated with Nazi atrocities into a sanctuary of peace, mindfulness, and reconciliation. Its work in interfaith dialogue and social justice demonstrates how suffering can be transformed into compassion.

While there, I explored the Healing Hearts Exhibit, which honors the psychiatric patients who lived in that building before they were murdered by the Nazi "euthanasia" program. Over 1,250 handmade hearts from around the world are displayed alongside Nazi-era mosaics, conveying a message of remembrance and reconciliation. The EIAB holds weekly ceremonies to send love to those who have suffered, embodying Thich Nhat Hanh’s vision of transforming suffering into understanding.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Dec. 2, from 7-8:30PM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Dec. 4, from 7-8AM EST online; and Friday, Dec. 6, from 12-1PM EST in person.

This Monday evening, Annie will facilitate. Annie shares:

While in Plum Village this fall, I had the opportunity to listen to several dharma talks, including some recordings of Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) from 2012. 

The day before Halloween, we listened to a talk in which Thay shared that we all have the capacity to become someone who can perform miracles, someone with a magic wand who can magically bring happiness to ourselves and others. I thought this was an apt Halloween metaphor and a reminder of the power of our mindfulness practice. Thay shared that once we see the roots of suffering, ours and others’, we will know how to help and we will be motivated to help.

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 25th, from 7-8:30PM EST online; Wednesday morning, Nov 27th, from 7-8AM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, Nov 29th, 12-1PM EST online.

Please register here and mark your calendars for our very special guest facilitator leading our ONLINE sangha gathering on Monday November 25.

Katie Loncke (they/them) will be leading our discussion on the First Mindfulness Training, Reverence for Life. Katie has been a Buddhist practitioner for over 15 years. They are a former Buddhist Peace Fellowship co-director, an intimacy coach who holds a Harvard degree in Studies of Women, Gender & Sexuality, and a keeper of mischievous attitude that's part nature, part nurture. 

Katie shares: 

I invite you to *slowly,* carefully re-read the first Mindfulness Training, Reverence for Life [below], and notice what your reaction is.

Mine was an impulse to laugh. Ruefully. (Laugh to keep from crying, my ancestors might say.)

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Nov. 18, from 7-8:30PM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Nov. 20, from 7-8AM EST online; and Friday, Nov. 22, from 12-1PM EST in person.

On Monday night, Annie will facilitate.

Whatever your political views are, if you are in the U.S., these past weeks and months may have felt like a rocky road of division fueled by the media and often based on anger, hatred, and delusion. It can be difficult to keep our stability and continue to find understanding and love during times like these. Sangha can really be helpful. 

In our Plum Village tradition of practice, we have many courageous and nonviolent ancestors we can look to as examples of groundedness during difficult times.

I met a nun at New Hamlet during my recent stay who was part of the Bat Nha temple in Vietnam that was raided by the government and violently attacked in 2009. She told me how she was able to sit calmly in meditation during the violence. (See letter to the Bat Nhat monastics by Thay below.)

Another nun told me about a time before ordaining when she was part of protests of government crackdowns in Asia (specifics withheld for her safety). She was part of a group nonviolently protecting the lives of other students. 

Dear Thay, dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, November 11th, from 7-8:30PM EST online; Wednesday morning, Nov 13th, from 7-8AM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); and Friday, Nov 15th, 12-1PM EST online.

On Monday night, Marie will facilitate, and we will continue with the theme of our last virtual gathering, remembering that paradise is (still) here. Marie shares: 

I am writing this on election day; the winds are ablowing, the sea feels turbulent and sometimes, my boat rocks. Other times, it doesn’t. What makes the difference? 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Nov. 4, from 7-8:30PM EST in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Nov. 6, from 7-8AM EST online; and Friday, Nov. 8, from 12-1PM EST in person.

In the first part of this write-up, I reflected on my visit to Tú Hiéu Monastery in Vietnam, where I participated in ceremonies honoring Thich Nhat Hanh as an ancestral teacher. The event began with a long chanting ritual, during which offerings were made, highlighting Thay's humility as one among many beings. I connected this experience to the Buddhist idea of dedicating merit to all beings, recalling my earlier skepticism about this inclusive perspective. Drawing from Taoist, Confucian, and Jain teachings, I explored the idea of universal interconnectedness through the concepts of Qi, the Tao, and Ahimsa, all of which emphasize empathy and the unity of life.

I also contemplated the Buddhist teaching of Anatta, the doctrine that the self is an illusion, envisioning my spiritual path as concentric circles moving away from the ego and toward oneness with all beings. This insight deepened during my visit, where the natural environment of Thay’s sanctuary became a spiritual guide. The Qi connecting all things brought me a profound sense of peace and belonging, culminating in my deep connection with the land and the elements around me, symbolized by my taking of a pinecone as a memento of the sanctuary's timeless energy.

Dear Friends,

This week: we will meet Monday evening, October 28th, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Oct 30th, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Nov 1st 12-1PM EDT online.

On Monday night, Marie will facilitate, and we will share our experiences with recognizing and feeling that paradise is here.

She shares: I recently returned from a visit to my elderly mother, who was surprisingly well and oh-so present with everything. Being with her nourished my practice in ways I hadn’t noticed before. Whether she was delighting in the dappled sunlight filtering through tangerine-colored trees, extolling the crispness of fish’n’chips, or reflecting on her aging and “uncooperative” body, she was fully in the moment.

Dear Friends,

This week we will meet Monday evening, Oct. 14, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Oct. 16, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Oct. 18, 12-1PM EDT online.

Our Monday night sangha will be facilitated by Susie.

Susie shares: 

“Love is the capacity to take care, to protect, to nourish. If you are not capable of generating that kind of energy toward yourself—if you are not capable of taking care of yourself, of nourishing yourself, of protecting yourself—it is very difficult to take care of another person. In the Buddhist teaching, it’s clear that to love oneself is the foundation of the love of other people. Love is a practice. Love is truly a practice.” – Thich Nhat Hanh from the Plum Village website. Full interview is here.

I can be my own coach, my own healer, my own friend. 

If I sit quietly, I can listen to my needs and emotions, calm my breath, and tap into the resources within. Writing helps my mind unwind, my body unfurl, my heart open.

There are times I seek help and expertise from coaches, doctors, and friends. But I realized I can be my own best coach, potentially my own best healer, and the one who speaks kindly to myself, as a good friend or caring person would.

I hired a business coach earlier this year. It was great. I received insights and suggestions for how to work smarter. I learned from the experience, but I found that I was working too hard on the assignments, and it was pulling me off track. I use the skills she gave me to be better at what I do. Now I am my own best coach – listening to the voice inside to get the next assignment. 

Dear Thay, dear Sangha:

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Oct. 7, from 7-8:30PM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Oct. 9, from 7-8AM EDT online; and Friday, Oct. 11, from 12-1PM EDT in person.

Jill will facilitate. She shares:

The first time I saw Thay’s calligraphy “Dwelling Happily in the Present Moment,” I felt that it expressed my deep aspiration to live a happy life. And yet, how could I achieve this precious state? That was my question.

The Venerable Master Linji, a root Patriarch of our lineage, exhorted us not to become ambitiously complicated in our practice. Rather, we simply need to wake up to our true nature, which is the Buddha within, and live as “an ordinary person doing nothing.” The words are simple, but achieving it is not. Why is it so difficult?  Why do we make everything complicated? Is it because we feel our worth is tied up in our achievements?  

To be an ordinary person doing nothing doesn’t seem special, and yet it is the very essence of freely dwelling happily in the present moment. Even if we want to become such a person, the mountain of obstacles seems overwhelming. How and where do we begin? 

Dear Friends,

This week we will meet Monday evening, Sept. 30, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Oct. 2, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Oct. 4, 12-1PM EDT online.

Our Monday night sangha will be facilitated by Ellen.

Ellen shares:  I am so glad to facilitate this Fourth Mindfulness Training. It brings me back to one of Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay)’s teachings about deep listening, which is something I value but also struggle with.  

Thay writes, “The roots of a lasting relationship are mindfulness, deep listening and loving speech” and “In the Lotus Sutra, we are advised to look and listen with the eyes of compassion. Compassionate listening brings about healing. When someone listens to us this way, we feel some relief right away. A good therapist always practices deep, compassionate listening. We have to learn to do the same in order to heal the people we love and restore communication with them." (quotes from How to Love and The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching).

Dear Thay, dear Sangha:

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Sept. 23, from 7-8:30PM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Sept. 25, from 7-8AM EDT online; and Friday, Sept. 27, from 12-1PM EDT in person.

Listen to a short video talk by Thay on how to live in community

What does community mean to you and, most importantly, how do you show up in community? 

The last chapter of the online course Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet offered by Plum Village is dedicated to creating communities of resilience. In one of the videos, Brother Pháp Dung introduces the concept of community as a verb: to be in community. He says that community offers us the chance to practice every moment precisely because community is not perfect, as They pointed out in this short talk.

If we think of community as a verb, then there is an action involved. Community is not static. It is ever-evolving, changing and shifting – just like a flock of birds in the sky that keeps on expanding, contracting, and realigning. Brother Pháp Dung says that the community is reciprocal. I asked myself, what does this mean exactly? I think he means that community is a constant give and take. Sometimes, we take more from it and other times we step in and give more.

This week we will meet Monday evening, Sept. 16, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Sept. 18, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Sept 20, 12-1PM EDT online.

Our Monday night sangha will be hosted by Magda with guest facilitator John Bell.

John shares:  Ever since I was a boy growing up in a small working class shipyard town in the great Pacific Northwest, near Seattle, I have experienced jaw-dropping beauty of the natural world and human kindness overflowing, right alongside of heart-numbing horror of human cruelty, war, racism, and environmental damage. It never made sense to me, so I found myself on a life’s mission to find ways of helping to heal my own brokenness and reweave a broken world. 

I came to social justice work through the civil rights and peace movements of the 1960s, and over the past 50 years I have had the good fortune of helping to create several national organizations engaging low income youth in self-development and leadership service to their communities. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Sept. 9, from 7-8:30PM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Sept. 11, from 7-8AM EDT online; and Friday, Sept. 13, from 12-1PM EDT in person.

Last week Marie shared the topic of exploring and nourishing joy and happiness. It was a lovely evening as we listened to a teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay), where he shared how easy it can be to generate joyful happy feelings in the present moment, right here, right now, without worrying about the past or the future, and how this practice can help reduce suffering.

A practice that helps me access those joyful happy feelings is smiling. When I smile, I bring more calm and peace into my body, and I release tension. When I feel anger or worry or regret coming on and my body tenses, I know that is the time to smile, and that is the time it can be difficult to smile. I was recently looking at some photos of myself as a child and noticed that I smiled a lot. Was it easier then than now? 

Dear Friends,

This week we will meet Monday evening, 9.2, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Sept 7th, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Sept 9th, 12-1PM EDT online.

On Monday night, Marie will facilitate, and we will explore the practice of nourishing joy and happiness.

She shares:  When last we gathered, we finished reading our summer’s book, Fragrant Palm Leaves by Thich Nhat Hanh. Over the weeks, several people shared how they felt moved and inspired by Thay’s insights and actions both in this book and in others. 

One of the teachings that resonates with me is the power of nourishing joy and how this practice can strengthen our ability to hold difficult emotions and to engage mindfully in the face of suffering.

With summer behind us, fall beckoning, and the bevy of intentions, actions, and emotions this change of season can bring, I feel like a “shot of Thay in action” (if you’ll pardon the expression) might be helpful. So, on Monday night we’ll watch part of a Dharma talk about Nourishing Joy and Happiness (from 1:58 - 10:50) and then have time to share from our lived experience of nourishing joy & how that affects us. 

Dear friends,

This week, we will meet Monday evening, Aug. 26, from 7-8:30PM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW); Wednesday morning, Aug. 28, from 7-8AM EDT online; and Friday, Aug. 30, from 12-1PM EDT in person.

This Monday, we'll focus on the third mindfulness training. Ellen will facilitate. Ellen writes:

I have found this particular training to be a very challenging one in trying to understand its full breadth.  I listened to a 5-minute video from the Plum Village website in which Thay reads the training.  He also says that this training is "... about learning to love ourselves, and learning to take care of our bodies."   

Dear Friends,

This week: we will meet Monday evening, Aug. 19, from 7-8:30PM EDT online, Wednesday morning, Aug. 21, from 7-8AM EDT in person at our meditation space (3812 Northampton Street NW), and Friday, Aug. 23, 12-1PM EDT online.

On Monday night, we will finish our summer book club reading of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Fragrant Palm Leaves. We will be reading through to the end. 

Camille will facilitate and we will be discussing pages 179 - 212. 

Please note there is no need to own the book or read the section in advance to enjoy the practice with us. Nor is there a need to attend every practice to benefit from the readings, as each Monday practice will continue to be a stand alone and complete practice. For an introduction to the book, read this. 

In this section of the book, Thay moves between living in Saigon and in the “self-help villages” in rural Vietnam, which he has helped create along with the School of Youth for Social Service (SYSS). 

While life in the villages continues to be challenging, the villagers are supported and encouraged by Thay, his friends, the monks, and many volunteers at the SYSS.  The projects that the workers have started support the educational, health, and social needs of the villagers. Communication goes well in these villages as the SYSS encourages the villagers to be fully engaged in their own wellbeing and that of their neighbors.