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He has been living in exile from his native Vietnam
because of his anti-war activities.
He stands strictly by the teaching of the Buddha.
His life has been dedicated to finding the key to happiness for the world
and the key is 'to live in the present moment'.
It is possible to suffer less
if you have the time to listen to your own suffering
and the suffering of the world.
An influential global spiritual leader,
who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Martin Luther King Jr.
This is the story of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay).
This is Southwest France, near Bordeaux.
Endless view of grapevines.
Rich soil and mild climate.
A terroir of vibrancy and vitality.
30 years ago, Thay was exiled from Vietnam
He moved to Thenac near Bordeaux with his disciples.
This is where they live and practise.
There were plenty of plum trees.
Hence, the community was soon known as "Plum Village".
30 years ago,
Plum Village began as a small, rustic farmstead.
Today, it has grown into a 100-acre practice centre that is
composed of 3 hamlets (monasteries).
It is the largest Buddhist monastery in Europe today.
Every year, over 10,000 retreatants
visit Plum Village from all over the world.
They are here to join Dharma talks
and seek inspirations.
This is the largest meditation hall of Plum Village.
Every morning at 9:00.
All retreatants are here
to join the Dharma talks given by Thay.
Though this meditation hall sits over 1,000 people,
retreatants are so aplenty that
they do spill over to the porches of the hall.
In every Dharma talk,
Simultaneous interpretation is provided
in languages including Italian, French,
German and Spanish.
It's important that every retreatant
understands the talks given by Thay.
Thay is not only a Zen Master
but a global spiritual leader who makes a difference.
His teachings go beyond religion.
His teachings are life-changing philosophy.
Dear friends, when you hear the bell,
our practice is to stop the thinking.
You stop the thinking and
begin to breathe in mindfully.
How can we find the inner peace and happiness?
How can we detach from the roots of sufferings?
Thay suggested 'mindfulness'.
Thay suggested 'mindfulness'.
Mindfulness is to learn to return to the here and the now.
Mindfulness is to learn to return to the here and the now.
To live in the present moment.
On the hilltop of Plum Village
is the panoramic view of the beautiful farmland.
It's serene and tranquil.
This is where Plum Village first started.
Here stands a simple small hut.
This is where Thay resides.
(Sister Chan Khong) At that time, there is no hut.
There only were all these slopes full of rocks.
But it's nice.
When you stand here,
you see the panoramic view.
In this right place,
our teacher Thich Nhat Hanh feels full of energy.
And he said, this is the right place for our practice centre.
Over the years, filming in this place has rarely been granted.
Decor in the hut is minimal and simple.
Bookshelves and bureau were filled with Buddhism and Philosophy books.
Thay has lived here for over 30 years.
Many publications of Thay were written here.
Many publications of Thay were written here.
Although Thay is Vietnamese,
he's well-versed in English, French and Chinese.
Thay has published over 100 titles.
He's a prolific Buddhist writer, only second to Dalai Lama.
"The Miracle of Mindfulness"
"The Miracle of Mindfulness"
is a globally influential work.
It has already been translated into 35 languages.
UNESCO has also included
Thay's teaching on mindfulness into its manifesto
for a culture of peace and non-violence.
Being a follower of the Buddha,
Thay has devoted his life
to help people to suffer less,
and to find the inner awakenings.
It is possible to suffer less.
If you have the time to listen to your own suffering
and the suffering of the world.
When you look deeply into your own suffering,
you'll find out the causes of your suffering.
They are causes within yourself.
Thay suggests that causes of suffering
are not external,
but come from within ourselves.
We must understand our sufferings,
face our sufferings,
in order to seek true peacefulness and happiness.
To have the time to look deeply
and listen to your suffering,
you come to understand the nature of your suffering.
Understanding will help you suffer less.
To have compassion for yourself.
How are we to seek the inner awakenings?
Thay suggests it can be done via meditation.
Mindfulness can be cultivated in our everyday life.
Mindfulness is the kind of energy
you generate by the practices of sitting, walking and breathing.
you generate by the practices of sitting, walking and breathing.
Mindfulness, cultivated from our everyday breathing exercises,
Mindfulness, cultivated from our everyday breathing exercises.
help salvage us from the hectic lifestyle
to live solidly in the present moment.
When we live in the present moment,
we are mindful of our sufferings.
Only when we are mindful of our sufferings,
can we seek the happiness of living.
The energy of mindfulness will help you
to be in the here and the now.
bringing your mind home to your body.
When everyone is attached to the past,
and feels lost about the future,
Thay hopes everyone can live in the present.
Only the present is solid and real.
Only the present is solid and real.
Present moment, wondrous moment.
Be free where you are.
This circle symbolises our sufferings.
This circle symbolises our sufferings.
We must be mindful, find our compassion,
and transform.
If you are in the present moment,
you may notice many wonders of life.
There are many conditions of happiness that are available to you.
You can be happy right here and right now.
You don't have to run into the future to look for conditions of happiness.
The Buddha confirmed that
it is only possible to be happy in the here and the now.
War. It reveals the ugliest and cruelest of mankind.
The goal of war is fear and anger.
Thay has been in exile for 50 years for his anti-war activities.
Why is Thay nominated by Martin Luther King Jr for
the Nobel Peace Prize?
We'll continue the "wanderer" story of Thich Nhat Hanh in a little while.
Away from the worldly frenzy,
immersed in the peace and quiet of Plum Village,
retreatants are led by Thay to return to the here and the now,
to feel the presence of ourselves and our world.
During the retreats,
Thay personally leads the walking meditation
with retreatants from all over the world.
Walking meditation is a mindfulness training.
There's no talking during walking meditation.
Just relax, breathe, and
enjoy the surrounding nature.
Breathe in and breathe out. It's not only relaxing but
train the mindfulness.
When you focus on the breathing,
the worries and concerns are left behind,
and you solidly feel the present.
We all have all sorts of worries, and
sometimes, emotional distresses.
Thay suggests we deal with our problems
by practising mindfulness.
by practising mindfulness.
To meditate means to have the time to look back at yourself, and
to look back at your situation.
To understand our sufferings is the prerequisite of
loving ourselves, loving others, and loving the world.
We have to go home to ourselves,
and try to understand our own suffering.
That is the only way to suffer less.
If you do not suffer less,
you cannot help another person to suffer less.
He loves the world, loves all beings.
87-year-old Thay
has dedicated his life for everyone.
Thay was born in 1926 in Vietnam.
Thay was born in 1926 in Vietnam.
He was ordained at 16 at Tu Hieu Temple.
Thich Nhat Hanh is his Dharma name.
He's affectionately and respectfully referred to as Thay (our master/teacher).
At only 23, Thay received the 'lamp transmission'
becoming the dharma teacher of the Lieu Quan Dharma Line
in the 42nd generation of Linji Chan (Zen) school.
In 1960s, in Vietnam,
Thay founded the School of Youth and Social Service,
to help the poor and the children.
Sister Chan Khong, who has been practising with Thay for over 50 years,
was one of the volunteers.
I am amongst the first leaders of the group,
we came to the poor farm with no schools.
We taught children under the tree.
People were moved.
Finally we had a school.
We have cooperatives for agriculture and hygiene for the poor.
In 1962, Thay went to the US to further his Buddhist studies.
He later taught Buddhism in universities.
Vietnam War also peaked in the same year.
Vietnam War also peaked in the same year.
Fear no war, Thay decided to return to his homeland,
to play his part saving fellow Vietnamese.
In 1964,
then 38-year-old Thay established
the "Little Peace Corps",
carrying out anti-war activities.
Thay recognised wars stem from fear and hatred of mankind.
Thay recognised wars stem from fear and hatred of mankind.
The goals of war is fear and anger.
With fear and anger,
you go on with the war forever.
There's a lot of wrong perceptions.
To stop the war, Thay went to the US
to lobby the US government directly.
He wrote a letter
to the most compelling civil rights leader
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,
calling for an end to the hostilities in Vietnam.
The letter was entitled "In Search of the Enemy of Man".
Real enemies of mankind
are fanaticism, cupidity, hatred and discrimination
which lie within the heart of man.
Help us to avoid engaging ourselves more in mutual slaughter
because of the will of others to power and to predominance.
Martin Luther King Jr was deeply moved.
He openly opposed the Vietnam War.
He also nominated Thay
for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967,
recognising Thay's contribution to world peace.
As an effort to end the War,
Thay also led a delegation to the Paris Peace Talks.
Unfortunately in 1973,
on verge of a Paris peace treaty,
Thay was sent in exile by
the Communist Vietnamese Government.
During exile,
Thay continued to lead the efforts
to save the boat people fleeing Vietnam.
He also continued to lecture in the US and in Europe,
on the message of peace.
Reporter: Thay, being the follower of the Buddha
How do you see your mission as a monk in this world?
I don't see it... I don't look in terms of mission.
We happen to be here as human beings.
He (the Buddha) wanted to find a way
to transform his own suffering, so that he can help other people to suffer less.
and to increase their joy of living.
That was the desire of the Buddha.
To practise in order to suffer less
and to enjoy more the life of human beings.
And to help other species, including man
to suffer less, and to enjoy more life.
Upholding the teachings of the Buddha,
Thay looks for the key to happiness for everyone.
Thay looks for the key to happiness for everyone.
In 1982,
Thay decided to establish a practice centre
near Bordeaux in France.
He and his disciple, Sister Chan Khong,
as well as some Vietnamese refugees,
transformed a run-down farmstead
into a simple meditation hall and living quarter.
That is the first big meditation hall we built
You see the characteristic of Plum Village
that we don't build big buddha statue.
We try to help people to touch their own statue,
their own buddha in their body and in their mind.
They transformed the wilderness
into a simple practice centre,
and began to receive different visitors.
At Plum Village, there are 6 Golden Cypress Trees.
30 years ago, whilst there was no proper meditation hall,
Thay gave his Dharma talks right under these Cypresses.
Thay is very small.
Over there, we sang at night.
At that moment,
we had quite a number of laypeople who are French, English.
It was a time when the Western World
are not familiar with Eastern Philosophy.
Lots of westerners came to listen to Thay
out of curiosity.
During their first year, a group of teenagers
with mental illnesses were brought to Plum Village.
Their psychologists were at their wits' end.
The group of teenagers
practised meditation for a while.
It helped with their emotional problems, and helped them return to society.
The year after,
many psychologists, social workers,
and university lecturers came to Plum Village
to follow the teachings of Thay and to seek inspiration.
They came, they practised, and they went back
transformed themselves.
They became a source of understanding and love to their partners and children.
And next summer,
their children and partners came.
Today, the practice centre has spanned over 3 hamlets.
Today, the practice centre has spanned over 3 hamlets.
Over the 30 years, over 100,000 people
have made their trips here,
to learn meditation and mindfulness with Thay.
Thay has also set up practice centres
in the US, Germany, Vietnam and Thailand since.
Influencing over a billion people in the world,
Thay "wanders" for anyone and everyone.
Wherever people need us,
we are ready to come and help.
Everywhere, people suffer.
It is a joy to share your life, to share your happiness,
and to share your way of practice.
They are the disciples of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
They are all "wanderers" because of Thay.
A mathematics graduate from Cambridge University,
he found his purpose at Plum Village.
he found his purpose at Plum Village.
Brother Phap Linh: >From inside, it started to wake up in me,
which is the desire to help.
He was once a prominent architect in the US.
He is the youngest Dharma teacher in the Sangha.
They are all inspired by Thay
to devote their lives to mankind.
We'll continue the story of the "wanderers" in the next episode.
Subtitles by the Amara.org community