About Thich Nhat Hanh

Plum Village website, www.plumvillage.org

Thich Nhat Hanh is one of the best known and most respected Zen masters in the world today, and the New York Times has acknowledged him as “the Buddhist leader who introduced mindfulness to Westerners.” [November 1, 2013 “Mindfulness: Getting Its Share of Attention,]” By David Hochman. 

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967, calling him “an apostle of peace and nonviolence.” A humble monk and poet, as well as being a leading international voice for peace and human rights,  Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (called Thây by his students) has led an extraordinary life.

He is perhaps most known for his prolific writings on meditation, mindfulness, and peace. He has published over 100 titles on meditation, mindfulness and Engaged Buddhism, as well as poems, children’s stories, and commentaries on ancient Buddhist texts. Over 70 of these books are in English, including the best-selling Peace Is Every Step, The Art of Power, True Love, Old Path White Clouds and Anger. Thich Nhat Hanh’s key teaching is that, through mindfulness, we can learn to live happily in the present moment—the only way to truly develop peace, both in one’s self and in the world.

Born in central Vietnam in 1926 Thich Nhat Hanh entered the monkhood at the age of sixteen at Tu Hieu Temple, Hue, and received the full ordination there in 1949. The Vietnam War confronted Buddhist monastics with the question of whether to adhere to the contemplative life and remain meditating in the monasteries, or to help the villagers suffering under bombings and other devastation of the war. Thich Nhat Hanh was one of those who chose to do both, helping to found the “Engaged Buddhism” movement, coining the term in his book Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire. His life has since been dedicated to the work of inner transformation for the benefit of individuals and society.

In 1961 he travelled to the United States to study Comparative Religion at Princeton University and the following year went on to teach and research Buddhism at Columbia University. He returned to Vietnam in 1963, and his work to renew Buddhism and work for peace in Vietnam led him, in 1964, to found Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon and the La Boi publishing House.

That same year he also founded the School of Youth Social Service, a grass-roots relief organization that trained young people practically and spiritually to be sent out to rebuild bombed villages, set up schools and medical centers, resettle homeless families, and organize agricultural cooperatives. Rallying some 10,000 student volunteers, the SYSS based its work on the Buddhist principles of non-violence and compassionate action. In 1966 he established the Order of Interbeing, a new order based on the traditional Buddhist Bodhisattva precepts.

On May 1st, 1966 at Tu Hieu Temple, Thich Nhat Hanh received the ‘lamp transmission’ from Master Chan That, becoming a dharma teacher of the Lieu Quan lineage in the 42nd generation of the Lam Te Dhyana school (Lin Chi Chan in Chinese or Rinzai Zen in Japanese). Soon after receiving the lamp, he travelled once more to the U.S. and Europe to make the case for peace and an end to fighting in Vietnam. At the same time, both North and South Vietnam denied him the right to return to Vietnam because of of his peace work, and he began a long exile of 39 years.

In early 1969 Thich Nhat Hanh travelled to Paris to begin peace work at the Paris Peace Talks, and was soon nominated by Unified Buddhist Church to head Vietnam’s Buddhist Peace Delegation. This work continued until the end of the war 1975, and during these years he also taught and researched Buddhism at the University of Sorbonne, Paris.

Later in 1975 he established the Sweet Potato community near Paris, and in 1982 the community moved to South-West France and established Plum Village Practice Center. Under the spiritual leadership of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, Plum Village has grown from a small rural farmstead to become today Europe’s largest and most active Buddhist monastery, with associated monasteries in four continents and lay sanghas in over forty countries worldwide. Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh continues to lead meditation retreats on the art of mindful living across the world, including special retreats for psychotherapists, teachers, businessmen, politicians, scientists, police officers and, more recently, for Israelis and Palestinians.

In September 2001, just a few days after the suicide terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, he addressed the issues of non-violence and forgiveness in a memorable speech at Riverside Church in New York City. In September 2003 (and again in 2011) he gave a retreat for US Congressmen and Congresswomen; in October 2006 he addressed UNESCO in Paris, calling for specific steps to reverse the cycle of violence, war and global warming; in 2007 he was a keynote speaker at UNESCO’s International Wesak celebration in Hanoi; and in October 2008 he addressed the Parliament of India. In 2009 he gave addressed the World Parliament of Religions, and in 2012 was invited to speak in both the UK Parliament in Westminster and the Northern Ireland Assembly in Stormont.

Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh is based in Plum Village, France, the meditation community he founded, where he teaches, writes, and gardens. He is now the Elder and spiritual head of the lineage of Tu Hieu Temple, Hue, and its associated monasteries. Today he has ordained over six hundred monastic disciples, and over one hundred and fifty dharma teachers (lay and monastic). He has transmitted the Five Mindfulness Trainings to tens of thousands of lay students, and the Order of Interbeing has grown from its six members in Saigon in 1966 to over 4,500 members worldwide today.

THICH NHAT HANH’S HEALTH

Nhat Hanh suffered a brain hemorrhage in November 2014. He was taken to a stroke rehabilitation clinic at Bordeaux University Hospital, where he was able to recover enough to enjoy sipping tea outdoors and listen to the sounds of the outside world.

In October 2018, he returned to his home country of Vietnam to “live his remaining days” at the temple where he trained as a youth.  “Thay’s health has been remarkably stable, and he is continuing to receive Eastern treatment and acupuncture,” wrote Plum Village representative Sister True Dedication. “When there’s a break in the rains, Thay comes outside to enjoy visiting the Root Temple’s ponds and stupas, in his wheelchair, joined by his disciples. Many practitioners, lay and monastic, are coming to visit Tu Hieu, and there is a beautiful, light atmosphere of serenity and peace, as the community enjoys practicing together there in Thay’s presence.”

Check plumvillage.org  “Where is Thay” for updates.