"The Buddha did not foresee many of the modern-day problems that we face, but his teachings are timeless."
We invite you to embark on this mindfulness journey, just as others have over many generations, to help you end your struggle with weight and improve your health, the health of those around you, and the well-being of the world in which we live.
In the year 1010, one thousand years ago, the first king of the Ly dynasty founded Thang Long, the city now known as Hanoi. The Ly dynasty has been described as “the most compassionate, peaceful and harmonious in the history of Vietnam” by the eminent historian Hoang Xuan Han. This, he wrote, was “thanks to the influence of Buddhism”.
The first king of the Ly dynasty was Ly Thai To. From a very young age he had been trained as a Buddhist monastic aspirant at Luc To temple by Zen Master Van Hanh. When he ascended to the throne he organized political and cultural life in the spirit of openness, fearlessness and non-dualism as taught by Zen Master Van Hanh. The practice of Buddhism gave the nation a solid foundation of peace and happiness which lasted for centuries. Ly Nhah Tong, the fourth king in the Ly Dynasty, spoke of Master Van Hanh with great respect. “Master Van Hanh's actions embraced the whole of the past, present and future”, he said. “His words presaged events with extraordinary accuracy. In his hometown Co Phap, he needed only to plant his staff in the ground and sit in stillness, and the city of Thang Long could enjoy stability and peace for ever.”
Thursday, 05 November 2009 13:16 | Written by webmaster |
“If we want to end the war in the world, we need to end the war in our own hearts.”
Dear friends, Let us continue to send our energy of practice, our peace and calm to the Bat Nha Brothers and Sisters who are still under surveillance and without a clear resolution to their situation. Sangha Brother Velcrow Ripper has made this little film as a prayer to our BN Monastics. Let us also send our energy to the Abbot of Phuoc Hue Temple and his Sangha who has compassionately taken our young brothers and sisters in for refuge; to the many lay friends and supporters of Bao Loc who are fearlessly bringing food and coming to help with cooking and bringing the sick to the hospital at the risk of persecution; and to our elder Brothers Phap Hoi, Phap Sy, and Phap Tu, who can not return to their Bat Nha Community of younger monks and nuns; and to all beings who are still covered in the cloud of misunderstanding and suspicion.
“Love is born from understanding – understanding the suffering of the other person, his or her suffering and deep aspiration; and that understanding brings about true love. And in order to understand, we must have the time to look deeply and to listen deeply.” courtesy of: http://helpbatnha.org
Monday, 02 November 2009 20:12 | Written by webmaster |
Last night the brothers and sisters from Upper and Lower Hamlets got together to celebrate halloween – so what if we were one day late! It was a lot of fun! In the presence of Ghandi, an Egyptian mummy, a Japanese princess and other notable costumed characters, their was much laughing and being silly together to be had. Jack-o-lanterns decorated the room, brothers and sisters took turns introducing themselves in costume, singing and dancing, (as well as trying to scare each other – only occassionally successfully!)
Monday, 02 November 2009 03:30 | Written by webmaster |
On Sunday morning, 25.10.2009, Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) and the delegation returned to Plum Village after the US Tour which happens every two years. The fourfold Sangha of all three hamlets went to greet Thay at the Bordeaux airport. Everyone was filled with joy and happiness to see Thay and the delegation again.
Wednesday, 30 September 2009 21:55 | Written by webmaster |
TO BE FORWARDED TO ALL SANGHAS - A ETRE ENVOYE A TOUTES LES SANGHAS
Dear friends, Chers amis (en francais plus bas )
As you may know, our sisters and brothers of Ban Nha Monastery in Vietnam have fallen on hard times. Last Saturday, a mob attacked the monastic compound and brutally expelled our monks and nuns living there.
In a spirit of support and solidarity, we are organizing several actions world-wide in order to help the situation.
Our goal is not to condemn the instigators of violence. Experience teaches us that judging and demonizing are counter-productive. All human beings experience suffering and seek a way to attain well-being: some through power, others through spiritual pursuits. Without judging or imposing our point of view, we can legitimately affirm our need to live in peace and harmony and seek deeper understanding.
Monday, 28 September 2009 20:12 | Written by webmaster |
Yesterday morning, a 150-strong mob descended on Prajna Monastery, Lam Dong Province, Vietnam. The crowd violently evicted over 130 monks, followers of Venerable Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Plain-clothes police were known to be amongst the mob; uniformed police blocked all roads of access. Government officials refused to intervene, claiming that nothing was happening at the monastery site.
The crowd, armed with sticks and hammers, smashed doors and windows. The monks, some less than 18 years old, began sitting meditation and chanting in peaceful resistance. They were assaulted, removed by force and dragged out of their residence into the torrential rain. They were violently bundled into trucks and taxis, driven off and later dumped by the roadside. Some were marched up to 15 kilometers away from the monastery, being subjected to kicks and blows if they fell. The two most senior monks were beaten and arrested without charge. At this time, it is unknown where one, Brother Phap Hoi, is being held. After they had successfully attacked the monks, the mob set upon the two nuns’ quarters. Doors were smashed down and all 230 nuns and aspirants driven into one building. There they were held overnight, awaiting threatened violence the next day. Left with no alternative, the nuns and aspirants, the majority of whom are young girls and women under 25 years old, abandoned their home for an uncertain future.
Sunday, 27 September 2009 14:05 | Written by webmaster |
Thursday September 24th was the 49th day after the passing of our Uncle Teacher. The fourfold sangha came together to perform a ceremony to praise our Uncle Teacher and to read his biography. The altar was beautifully decorated with incense, flowers, fruits and other delicious food, most of which had been cooked in central-Vietnamese style. A lot of the food was wrapped in banana leaves that were grown in our own garden in Plum Village. It was a simple, beautiful and harmonious ceremony, yet at the same time very meaningful.
Friday, 25 September 2009 19:51 | Written by webmaster |
On the way home, the windows are wide open and the autumn air refreshes us. Everyone in the van is silently enjoying the Dordogne landscape. I feel so happy in this moment.
We are back from the Health Retreat! (and we survived!)
One week spent in New Hamlet, with 140 retreatants and 60 monastics. The idea: eat little and healthy, exercise and practice meditation.
Thursday, 17 September 2009 09:39 | Written by webmaster |
Dear Friends,
We are very happy to offer a new Plum Village website (plumvillage.org) that is more rich, convenient, and accessible for everyone. As you may be aware, the new website has been live for the past three weeks and we hope you have enjoyed it. With the new website comes new responsibilities - maintaining the site and keeping the site fresh and meaningful with new articles and other content. With this work, we humbly request your assistance. It is our hope that we may all - monks, nuns, lay women, and lay men - come together as a virtual community, a “fourfold Sangha”, to create and maintain this website for the benefit of all. In this light, we ask for your help in the following areas:
* Editing * Transcribing and editing Dharma talks by Thay and our Dharma Teachers [we can provide mp3s of the talks] * Sharing experiences of being at a retreat * Sharing experiences of practicing in your life * Contributing music and other dharma media * Helping us create animations, perhaps for stories and songs * Contributing in other ways in which you feel drawn to do so
If you would like more information or are able to assist in any way, please don't hesitate to write to us.
Thank you for your support, and may your days and nights be well
A deadline for followers of one of the world's most influential Buddhist monks to leave their Vietnam monastery appears to have passed peacefully and they remain in place, a community member said Thursday.
State-linked religious authorities had given about 400 monks loyal to Thich Nhat Hanh until Wednesday to leave the monastery in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, but they had refused to go and hoped to find a solution.
"They still carry out their religious activities and so far there have been no signs of a siege," Hong Kong-based Thich Phap Kham, a founder of the Bat Nha community, said after talking to the monks on Wednesday.
"We are not against the government. We just want to practise there," Kham, 47, said of the Bat Nha monastery.
Thursday, 11 March 2010 12:29 | 
Written by webmaster | 
