Thich Nhat Hanh (Thây)

Thich Nhat Hanh is
the 'gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam'
and today's best known Buddhist teacher after the Dalai Lama.

Thich Nhat Hanh is affectionately known as Thây (pronounced 'tie'), which is Vietnamese for Teacher. He is one of the best known and most respected Zen masters in the world today, also a poet, peacemaker and human rights activist.

Engaged Buddhism

Thây has led an extraordinary life. Born in central Vietnam in 1926, he became a monk at the age of sixteen. The Vietnam War confronted the monasteries with the dilemma of whether to adhere to the contemplative life and remain meditating in the monasteries, or whether to help the villagers suffering under bombings and other devastation of the war.

Thây was one of those who chose to do both, helping to found the Engaged Buddhism movement. His life has since been dedicated to the work of inner transformation for the benefit of individuals and society.

The Order of Interbeing

He established the Tiep Hien Order or the Order of Interbeing, at a time when the war was escalating and the teachings of the Buddha were desperately needed to combat the hatred, violence, and divisiveness enveloping his country. At this stage the Order comprised a small number of dedicated followers who were involved in social work and were committed to the principles of Engaged Buddhism. The Order was founded on the Fourteen Precepts or, as they are now known, Mindfulness Trainings.

School of Youth for Social Service

He founded the School of Youth Social Service (SYSS) in Saigon in the early 1960s. This was a grassroots relief organization that rebuilt bombed villages, set up schools and medical centres, resettled homeless families, and organized agricultural cooperatives. Rallying some 10,000 student volunteers, the SYSS based its work on the Buddhist principles of non-violence and compassionate action. Despite government denunciation of his activity, Nhat Hanh also founded a Buddhist University, a publishing house, and an influential peace activist magazine in Vietnam.

Working for peace in the US and Europe

After visiting the U.S. and Europe in 1966 on a peace mission, he was banned from returning to Vietnam in 1966. On subsequent travels to the U.S., he made the case for peace to federal and Pentagon officials. He may have changed the course of U.S. history when he persuaded Martin Luther King, Jr. to oppose the Vietnam War publicly, and so helped to galvanize the peace movement. The following year, King nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize , saying,

'this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam is a scholar of immense intellectual capacity. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity.'

In 1969, Thây led the Buddhist Peace Delegation to the Paris Peace Talks and founded the Unified Buddhist Church.

Plum Village

Word spread about his teachings and a community grew. In 1982, Plum Village was set up in Southern France. Plum Village is a meditation centre and home to the Order of Interbeing, with a sangha (community of practice) of about 150 monks, nuns and lay-practitioners. Every year, thousands of people from different faiths come from all over the world to attend retreats at Plum Village.

Thich Nhat Hanh continues to live in Plum Village, where he teaches, writes and gardens. He also leads retreats worldwide on the Art of Mindful Living.

Thây's teachings

Thich Nhat Hanh's key teaching is that, through mindfulness, we can learn to live in the present moment instead of in the past and in the future. Dwelling in the present moment is, according to Thây, the only way to truly develop peace, both in one's self and in the world.

His teaching is notable for its emphasis on joy, engagement in the world, and integrating the practice of mindfulness into daily life. To be mindful is to become aware of what is going on in our bodies, our minds, and the world around us. His teaching centres on conscious breathing and the mindful awareness of each breath. He reminds his students that any act is an opportunity to touch the sacred, whether it is washing the dishes or driving a car. He asks us to stop the war inside ourselves, to quiet our distracted minds and to return to the present moment.

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

This allows us to discover, that

'there is no way to happiness - happiness is the way'.

Thây's writing

With the exception of the Dalai Lama, Thây is today's best known Buddhist teacher. He is the author of more than one hundred books including bestsellers Peace Is Every Step, The Miracle of Mindfulness, Living Buddha, Living Christ and Anger. His most recent books include The World We Have – A Buddhist Approach to Peace and Ecology and Calming the Fearful Mind – a Zen Response to Terrorism. See Bookshop.