About Unified Buddhist Church

The Most Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh (Thây), our spiritual teacher, founded the Unified Buddhist Church (Eglise Bouddhique Unifieé) in France in 1969, during the Vietnam war. Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, a poet, a scholar, and a peace activist. His life long efforts to generate peace and reconciliation moved Martin Luther King, Jr. to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. He founded the Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon and the School for Youths of Social Services in Vietnam. When not travelling the world to teach “The Art of Mindful Living”, he teaches, writes, and gardens in Plum Village, France, a Buddhist monastery for monks and nuns and a mindfulness practice center for lay people.

The Unified Buddhist Church established Sweet Potatoes Community in 1975, Plum Village in 1982, the Dharma Cloud Temple and the Dharma Nectar Temple in 1988, and the Adornment of Loving Kindness Temple in 1995. Thich Nhat Hanh’s sangha (community of practice) in France is usually referred to as the Plum Village Sangha. During the course of the year, Plum Village welcomes thousands of retreatants from all over the world. Due to its rapid expansion in recent years, the community now comprises seven hamlets: Upper Hamlet, Middle Hamlet, West Hamlet and Lower Hamlet, New Hamlet, Gatehouse New Hamlet and Hillside New Hamlet. The Unified Buddhist Church also has a mindfulness practice center called Intersein in Bavaria, Germany. A sangha of about 150 monks, nuns and resident lay-practitioners live permanently in Plum Village.

Since 1994, we have been exploring opportunities to establish our presence in the United States of America. In May 2007, Blue Cliff Monastery set in the lush green Hudson Valley of New York was established and is an extension of Plum Village meditation center in France, founded by the Venerable teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. Like our root monastery Plum village and sister monastery Deer Park (in Escondido, California), Blue Cliff welcomes anyone who wishes to learn and cultivate the art and practices of engaged Buddhism through mindful living. Blue Cliff’s 80 acres of woodland and open space, offers a peaceful sanctuary for our guests. Its proximity to NYC and its setting in the beautiful mountains of NY State makes it an ideal location for the cultivation of the path of peace, reconciliation, and happiness. The monastic community of monks and nuns welcomes you to join us in our daily life of mindful practice. 

Deer Park Monastery is a community in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh & the Plum Village Practice Center. This 400-acre sanctuary rests peacefully in the chaparral mountains of southern California, surrounded and protected by oaks and the natural landscape. It was established in July 2000 by the Plum Village four-fold Sangha. Now, it is a safe and serene refuge for many practitioners to come and learn the art of mindful living and practicing with a community, or Sangha. At Deer Park, the residential monastic community and lay Sangha practice together year round under the guidance of our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh (Thây), in the tradition of engaged Buddhism and mindfulness practice in everyday life. There are two hamlets: Solidity Hamlet (for monks and laymen) and Clarity Hamlet (for nuns and laywomen). The two hamlets come together several times a week to practice. At Deer Park, we are nourished not just by the formal sitting meditation sessions, but also by the practice of meditation in our daily activities outside the meditation hall. We are guided by the teachings of Thây on mindfulness and peace-making. We learn to live together as a community and to take refuge in the wisdom of the Sangha. Each week we receive teachings (CD, DVD or video) sent to us from Plum Village, France and/or listen to the teachings given by resident monastic Dharma teachers.

The Unified Buddhist Church Inc. (UBC), a non-profit corporation, was founded in 1998 to officially represent Thich Nhat Hanh and his Sangha in the United States of America. It is a sister organization of Unified Buddhist Church (Eglise Bouddhique Unifieé) founded in France. The UBC in America is represented Blue Cliff Monastery. Blue Cliff Monasteryacts as the headquarter of the Unified Buddhist Church in the U.S.

The official name and address of the Unified Buddhist Church, Inc. is:

Unified Buddhist Church, Inc.
C/O Blue Cliff Monastery
3 Mindfulness Rd.
Pine Bush, NY. 12566 USA

Unified Buddhist Church, Inc. is qualified by the IRS as a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization.