Being Peace (Thich Nhat Hanh Classics)

by Thich Nhat Hanh

“Life is filled with suffering, but it is also filled with many wonders,” writes Thich Nhat Hanh.

youth movement, Roots & Shoots,

every individual makes a difference, every day, and you can choose what difference you make.

to attain our true human potential, head and heart must work in harmony.

as Thich Nhat Hanh teaches, we must be the peace we wish for in the world.

To change the hearts of others, says Thich Nhat Hanh, first you must change your own.

To all who read this book, may its message empower your own journey, give you the assurance that your life matters, and may you become ever more “in touch with the wonders of life.”

To suffer is not enough. We must also be in touch with the wonders of life. They are within us and all around us, everywhere, any time.

If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can smile and blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace.

Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is a wonderful moment.

A smile can relax hundreds of muscles in your face, and relax your nervous system.

When you smile, you realize the wonder of the smile.

We need people who can sit still and be able to smile, who can walk peacefully. We need people like that in order to save us.

The root word budh means to wake up, to know, to understand; someone who wakes up and understands is called a Buddha.

The capacity to wake up, to understand, and to love is called Buddha nature.

In Buddhism, there are three gems: Buddha, the awakened one; Dharma, the way of understanding and loving; and Sangha, the community that lives in harmony and awareness.

To develop understanding, you have to practice looking at all living beings with the eyes of compassion. When you understand, you love.

feelings are of three kinds: pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral.

Practicing Buddhism is to be alive in each moment.

Irritation is a destructive energy.

Forgiveness is a constructive energy. Understanding is a constructive energy.

Anger is born from ignorance, and is a strong ally of ignorance.

“Sometime, somewhere you take something to be the truth.

If you cling to it so much, when the truth comes in person and knocks at your door, you will not open it.”

a meditation center is where you get back to yourself, you get a clearer understanding of reality, you get more strength in understanding and love, and you prepare for your reentry into society.

Hien means “the present time.”

Hien also means “to make real, to manifest, realization.”

I am, therefore you are. You are, therefore I am. That is the meaning of the word interbeing. We interare.

Truth is found in life, and we will observe life within and around us in every moment, ready to learn throughout our lives.

We should make every effort to avoid the pressures and anxieties that fill most modern lives. The only way out is to consume less.

By contemplating impermanence, we will be able to look with the eyes of compassion at ourselves and at those we think are the cause of our anger, and to recognize the preciousness of our relationships.

Words can travel across thousands of miles. May my words create mutual understanding and love. May they be as beautiful as gems, as lovely as flowers.

If I lose my direction, I have to look for the North Star, and I go to the north. That does not mean I expect to arrive at the North Star. I just want to go in that direction.

“Let peace begin with me.”

let me begin with peace.

Walking meditation is really to enjoy the walking.