Thich Nhat Hanh

My spiritual teacher has passed away at age 95. He has been with me for a very long time. I feel gutted and yet he did not believe in death. 

"This body is not me; I am not caught in this body, I am life without boundaries.”

“Tomorrow, I will continue to be. But you will have to be very attentive to see me. I will be a flower or a leaf. I will be in these forms and I will say hello to you. If you are attentive enough, you will recognize me, and you may greet me. I will be very happy.”

"I am a continuation like the rain is a continuation of the cloud."

I don't remember exactly how I discovered Thầy (means teacher in Vietnamese) but I think it was when I became a vegetarian and was learning about non-violence. That would have been in the '90's. I have several of his books and CDs, and I have a quote of his taped above my computer.  My email signature is something I heard him say that was so profound; I've heard nothing better since:

My actions are my only true belongings.

I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.
My actions are the ground upon which I stand.

You will see it in the list of quotes to the right, sixth one down. 

When I hear his gentle voice something comes over me, a calmness, a soothing salve that flows over me no matter what he's saying. Like a mother's voice to her baby. Fortunately, there are many recordings and I can listen to him whenever I want. 

Rather than write about his life, I will paste a link to his biography here. What quickly becomes clear is that he was an activist; he used his practice to make a difference in this world. I'm not sure he coined this term but it's called Engaged Buddhism. Martin Luther King, Jr. nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize. 

Before Thầy died I was following his sangha on the internet (Plum Village) as well as a podcast (The Way Out is In) hosted by the abbot of Plum Village and Thầy's personal attendant for many years, Brother Pháp Hũu. I will continue on my path to learn about Thầy's teachings and am so grateful for the abundance of information available to me. 

Perhaps less writing in this post is best. Thầy said things simply. Every word counted. I will end with one of his sayings and leave it at that. 

Awareness is like the sun.

When it shines on things,

they are transformed.