Most Popular Books by Thich Nhat Hanh

The Five Mindfulness Trainings (also referred to as “Precepts”)—not to kill, steal, commit adultery, lie, or take intoxicants—are the basic statement of ethics and morality in Buddhism. Zen Master and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh argues eloquently for their applicability in our daily lives and on a global scale. Nhat Hanh discusses the value and meaning of each precept, offering insights into the role that it could play in our changing society. Thich Nhat Hanh calls the trainings a “diet for a mindful society”. With this book, he offers a Buddhist contribution to the current thinking on how we can come together to define secular, moral guidelines that will allow us to explore and sustain a sane, compassionate, and healthy way of living. The Five Mindfulness Trainings offer a path to restoring meaning and value in our world, whether called virtues, ethics, moral conduct, or precepts they are guidelines for living without bringing harm to others.

“Among Buddhist leaders influential in the West, Thich Nhat Hanh ranks second only to the Dalai Lama.” —New York Times “Thich Nhat Hanh is a holy man…. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity.” —Martin Luther King, Jr., nominating Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. In this much-anticipated follow-up to his bestselling classic, Peace Is Every Step, Thich Nhat Hanh—one of the most revered spiritual leaders in the world today—offers an insightful guide to living a fuller life. In this deeply insightful meditation, the world-renowned Vietnamese Zen Buddhist master, poet, scholar, and peace activist illuminates how each of us can incorporate the practice of mindfulness into our every waking moment. In the tradition of The Art of Happiness and Living Buddha, Living Christ, Thich Nhat Hanh’s Peace Is Every Breath opens a pathway to greater spiritual fulfillment through its patient examination of how we live our lives.

This stunning commentary on the cultural and political background to the war in Vietnam resonates deeply as the first work of Vietnamese writer, peace activist, and Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh This rare book from 1967 is one of the very few written in English giving a Vietnamese perspective on the Indochina Wars. Many years ahead of its time, Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire will be welcomed by historians and readers of contemporary Vietnamese narratives. As war raged in Vietnam, the Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh became a leading figure in the Buddhist peace movement. With the help of friends like Catholic monk Thomas Merton, he published Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire in 1967 in the US (and underground in Vietnam as Hoa Sen Trong Biển Lửa), his uncompromising and radical call for peace. It gave voice to the majority of Vietnamese people who did not take sides and who wanted the bombing to stop. Thomas Merton wrote the foreword, believing it had the power to show Americans that the more America continued to bomb Vietnam, the more communists it would create. This was Thich Nhat Hanh''s first book in English and made waves in the growing anti-war movement in the United States at the time. Thich Nhat Hanh''s portrayal of the plight of the Vietnamese people during the Indochina Wars is required reading now as the United States and Europe continue to grapple with their roles as global powers—and the human effects of their military policies. Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire is of special interest for students of peace and conflict studies and Southeast Asian history. It also gives the reader insights into the thought of the young Thich Nhat Hanh, who would later go on to found--in exile--Plum Village in France, the largest Buddhist monastery outside Asia, and influence millions with his teachings on the path of peace and mindfulness.

In this sequel to A Pebble for Your Pocket, Zen teacher and poet Thich Nhat Hanh looks deeply at the issues that confront young people in today''s society. Applying his unique insights to anger, family conflict, drug use, and sexual responsibility, he makes the ancient teachings of the Buddha relevant to adolescents by offering mindfulness practices as tools to help transform the suffering in their everyday lives. Ages 10-13.

We can spend a lot of time looking for happiness when the world right around us is full of wonder. But our hearts and minds are so full of noise that we can''t always hear the call of life and love. To hear that call and respond to it, we need silence. In his beautiful new book, Buddhist monk and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh explains how mindfulness is the practice that stops the noise inside. With gentle anecdotes, simple Buddhist wisdom and practical exercises, he shows us how to live mindfully so that all the internal chatter ceases and we are left with the eloquent sound of silence. Now, at last, we can answer the call of the beauty around us. Through silence, Thich Nhat Hanh reveals, we are free to hear, to see - and just be.

The Hermit and the Well is a story from the time author, poet, and peace activist Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh was a young boy in Vietnam. When his class goes on a school trip to climb a mountain, he hopes to meet the hermit who lives near the top. Instead, he discovers a beautiful well and finds the secret to his own happiness. Each page is fully illustrated with lively and engaging paintings by renowned artist Vo-Dinh Mai.

A bestseller with over 250,000 copies sold, Being Peace is the seminal founding work by Zen Master and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh. With a new introduction by Jack Kornfield and the first update since its release over fifteen years ago, this eloquent meditation on "being peace in order to make peace" is more relevant than ever. A book for everyone concerned about the state of the world and the quality of our lives, it has lost none of its timeliness since it was first published in 1987. It is filled with practical suggestions how to create a more peaceful world "right in the moment we are alive." Contains Thich Nhat Hanh''s key practices, including a guide to the practice of reconciliation which has become a peacemaking tool in many other religious traditions. This beautiful, newly revised edition is the perfect starting point for those who are getting their first introduction to Buddhism as well as a must-have for those already engaged in the tradition. With illustrations by Mayumi Oda.

Developed during a summer retreat in Plum Village, Thich Nhat Hanh''s meditation center in France, these poetic verses were collected to help children and adults practice mindfulness. The result is a handbook of practical, yet down-to-earth verses. These gathas, or mindfulness verses, poetic verse designed to use ordinary daily activities such as washing the dishes, driving the car, or standing in line, as an opportunity to return to a state of mindfulness. Reciting these poetic, yet practical verses can help us to slow down and enjoy each moment of our lives. When we focus our mind on a gatha, we return to ourselves and become more aware of each action. When the gatha ends, we continue our activity with heightened awareness. As exercises in both mediation and poetry, gathas are very much in keeping with the Zen tradition. When you memorize a gatha, it will come to you quite naturally, for example, when you turn on the water or drink a cup of tea.

Beloved Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh offers 79 meditations to help you through your daily routines in a peaceful and mindful way and connect to the joy of the present moment Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. This beautifully illustrated book shares a simple verse with an enlightening commentary that will give you the space and heart to live each day in a connected and calm way. Developed during a summer retreat in Plum Village, Thich Nhat Hanh''s meditation center in France, these poetic verses were collected to help people practice mindfulness. The result is a handbook of practical, down-to-earth verses. These gathas, or mindfulness verses, are poetic verse designed to turn ordinary daily activities such as washing the dishes, driving the car, or standing in line, into opportunities to return to a natural state of mindfulness and happiness. Reciting these poetic yet practical verses can help us to slow down and enjoy each moment of our lives.

The heart of the Prajñaparamita Sutra is regarded as the essence of Buddhist teaching, offering subtle and profound teachings on non-duality and the letting go of all preconceived notions, opinions, and attachments, and so becoming open to all the wonders of our life. The Heart Sutra is recited daily in Mahayana temples and practice centers throughout the world. Thich Nhat Hanh’s translation and commentary are the fruit of the author’s more than sixty years of monastic study and practice. He describes the sutra as “a precious gift to us, the gift of fearlessness.” Based on a historic lecture at the Green Gulch Zen Center, Muir Beach, California on April 19, 1987, this is one of the most simple, clear, concise, and understandable commentaries on this very important Buddhist sutra. In the Heart Sutra, the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara describes how to train in the perfection of wisdom by seeing through the illusory nature of all things. The Heart Sutra is Buddhism in a nutshell, containing only 632 characters in the traditional Chinese translation. Despite its brevity, it covers more of the Buddha’s teachings than any other scripture and has had the most profound and wide-reaching influence of any text in Buddhism. This revised edition celebrates the 20th anniversary of the initial release and features a new introduction by Peter Levitt and a new afterword by Thich Nhat Hanh. Edited by poet and Zen teacher Peter Levitt, author of Fingerpainting on the Moon.

Lessons on love and Dharma, with commentaries on 3 essential sutras of Mahayana Buddhism—from the celebrated monk who introduced mindfulness to the Western world “Just might be my favorite book of [Thich Nhat Hanh].” —Natalie Goldberg, author of Writing Down the Bones In Cultivating the Mind of Love, Thich Nhat Hanh gives a most unusual Dharma teaching: the story of his first love. He pairs these personal memories with his insightful commentaries on classic Buddhist teachings, including the Diamond Lotus, Avatamsaka, and Vimalakirti Sutras. In combining personal experience and Dharma teachings, Nhat Hanh allows his readers to experience and to appreciate what is human and wonderful in all of us. He shows us how to cultivate our own “mind of love”—and how to bring joy and hope to ourselves and those around us.

A revised and expanded edition of Thich Nhat Hanh’s classic introduction to guided meditation for a world in search of mindfulness In this revised edition of The Blooming of a Lotus, one of the world’s great meditation teachers offers an expanded collection of exercises for practicing mindfulness meditation that will bring both beginning and experienced practitioners into closer touch with their bodies, their inner selves, their families, and the world. In this new edition, readers will find: • A grounded introduction that provides readers with an immersive understanding of mindfulness, and includes guidance on how to use this book for mindful meditative practice • A new chapter of 30 guided meditations from Thich Nhat Hanh’s 3-month Rains’ Retreat, which guide readers into silent meditation rooted in directed mindfulness • A fresh organization, which groups the meditations thematically, focusing on our relationship with the body, with feelings and emotions, with existential commitment to the self and to others, and with the environment we share with living and nonliving things • A hardcover edition featuring a place-marker ribbon and a paper over board binding for easy use Compassionate and wise, Thich Nhat Hanh’s healing words help us acknowledge and dissolve anger and separation by illuminating the way toward the miracle of mindfulness.

Formulated by Thich Nhat Hanh during the Vietnam War, the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings of the Order of Interbeing are a penetrating expression of traditional Buddhist morality coming to terms with contemporary issues. In this new third edition, Thich Nhat Hanh introduces the term “mindfulness trainings” for “precepts.” Thich Nhat Hanh is a Zen master, scholar, and peacemaker. He was nominated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for the Nobel Peace Prize and is author of over thirty books, including Being Peace, Living Buddha Living Christ, and Teachings on Love. He is the founder of Plum Village, a meditation community in France that leads retreats on “the art of mindful living.”

Be inspired by 21 key writings on nonviolence and reconciliation by Vietnamese peace activist and refugee advocate Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh "The essence of nonviolence is love," Thich Nhat Hanh says. "Out of love and the willingness to act selflessly, strategies, tactics, and techniques for a nonviolent struggle arise naturally." Collecting essays written by Thich Nhat Hanh at crucial moments of social transformation, Love in Action is an important resource for anyone engaged in social work, community organizing, political action, and cause-oriented movements. Reflecting on the devastation of war, Thich Nhat Hanh makes the strong argument that ethics and altruistic love based on mindfulness and insight are the only truly sustainable bases for political action. Having played a central role in the Buddhist nonviolent movement for peace in Vietnam during the 1960s and serving as Chair of the Buddhist Peace delegation to the Paris Peace Accords in 1973, Thich Nhat Hanh speaks with the voice of experience: "There is no way to peace. Peace is the way." Together with essays on the connections between outer engagement and the inner work for peace, this anthology also features poetry and the script of the hauntingly beautiful 1972 play, The Path of Return Continues the Journey. The play''s characters are drawn from the author''s own life, the young men and women of his School of Youth for Social Service--many of whom were killed for their social actions. "At 12:30 a.m. on July 5, 1967, in the village of Binh Phuoc, Gia Dinh Province, a group of strangers abducted five young men, brought them to the bank of the Saigon River, and shot them," reports Thich Nhat Hanh. "All five were volunteer workers in the School of Youth for Social Service, a nonviolent organization that sought only to heal the wounds of war and reconstruct the villages." An elegy and a prayer for peace, the script shows a less-known side of the young Thich Nhat Hanh: grieving, profoundly in touch with his sorrow and pain, and channeling his anguish into art, inspired by love.

Learn how to do all the things you do in daily life with mindfulness, not just while “formally” meditating 50 short, simple, and profound meditation practices you can do anytime to cultivate happiness, from world-renowned spiritual teacher Thich Nhat Hanh Whether you’re new to Buddhist teaching or you’re a more experienced practitioner, this quintessential resource of Thich Nhat Hanh’s most essential teachings will show you how to walk, sit, work, eat, and even drive with full awareness. In one accessible and easy-to-use volume, you’ll find many kinds of meditations, including: Daily Practices: walking meditation, taking refuge, telephone meditation Eating Practices: kitchen meditation, mindful eating, tea meditation Physical Practices: resting and stopping, deep relaxation, mindful movements Relationship & Community Practices: deep listening and loving speech, peace treaty, hugging meditation Extended Practices: touching the earth, lazy day, traveling and returning home Practices With Children: helping children with anger, the cake in the refrigerator, pebble meditation The only way to truly develop peace both in oneself and in the world is to learn to live in the present moment instead of the past or the future. Integrating these practices into daily life will allow you to cultivate peace and joy within yourself, leading to freedom from fear, misunderstanding, and suffering.

In this provocative book, noted Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh offers a dramatic vision of the future of a planet overheated by rapidly disappearing fossil fuels, degraded by massive overconsumption, and besieged by unsupportable population growth. Hanh finds answers to these critical problems in the Buddhist teaching of the impermanence of all things. He demonstrates how this teaching can offer inner peace and help us use our collective wisdom and technology to restore the Earth''s balance. Mixing inspiring insights with practical strategies, Hanh cites projects his own monastic community has undertaken that can serve as models for any community. Both his " No Car Day," observed once a week, and the "Earth Peace Treaty Commitment Sheet" can impact our ecological footprint on the Earth. Above all, he shows how acceptance of problems is that first critical step toward a deeper understanding of the best way to care for our Earth. Includes Thich Nhat Hanh’s speech at UNESCO from October 2006 introducing his proposal for a global "No Car Day." Foreword by Alan Weisman.

Old Path White Clouds presents the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha. Drawn directly from 24 Pali, Sanskrit, and Chinese sources, and retold by Thich Nhat Hanh in his inimitably beautiful style, this book traces the Buddha''s life slowly and gently over the course of 80 years, partly through the eyes of Svasti, the buffalo boy, and partly through the eyes of the Buddha himself. Old Path White Clouds is destined to become a classic of religious literature. ''''I have not avoided including the various difficulties the Buddha encountered, both from his own disciples and in relation to the wider society. If the Buddha appears in this hook as a man close to us, it is partly due to recounting such difficulties.'' This edition is in two volumes. The second volume ISBN is 9781458768254.