By Khanh Le Van The University of California at Santa Barbara campus was huge. "Wait till you see the gym," said my Dharma brother Arnie. Indeed, for the next five days we 1,300 retreatants would sit together in that gym for meditation and Dharma talks. A team beaded by Wendy Johnson was busy arranging the…
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Woulda Coulda Shoulda
A Lot of Suffering By Brother Pham Hanh Be-In during Monastic Day on Thay’s 92th Continuation Day, Upper Hamlet, Plum Village, 2018; photo courtesy of monastic Sangha As I sat in front of my tent and the sun was slowly rising, I looked at a spider web reflecting the sunshine.…
Mindfulness in Marriage
By Lynda Bidlake and Lewis BrightHeart Headrick photo by Renee Burgard I join my husband for a late lunch in a local restaurant. The waitress comes back again and again to refill our water glasses, even though we’ve only sipped. At our booth by the window, we are softly reading…
Here Is the Pure Land. The Pure Land Is Here.
One day, Queen Vaidehi asked the Buddha, "Is the place with no suffering very far away?" The Buddha replied, "No, it is not far away." And then the Buddha taught the queen how to touch the land of Great Happiness in her own heart and in her own mind. We talk about "the Pure Land." In…
Full Moon Ceremony with Plum Village
By Joann Malone and Patrick Smith calligraphy by Thich Nhat Hanh; photo by David Nelson Ten years ago this summer, my husband and I learned a mindfulness practice at Plum Village that has since nourished our home and our marriage. The leader of our Avatamsaka family group, Shantum Seth, suggested…
Witnessing a Birth
Reflections on Forming the Wake Up Collectivity of Ambassadors By Nhu-Mai Nguyen and Elli Weisbaum Photo by Rob Walsh It all started during a Wake Up Order of Interbeing (OI) Skype call. These monthly calls began in 2013 as a way for OI members and aspirants to discuss the Fourteen…
Always at the Beginning
My First Retreat Experience By Haven Tobias A friend and I set out from Oklahoma, bound for the Rocky Mountains, and my first mindfulness retreat. Two years before I knew nothing of Buddhism or Thich Nhat Hanh. Now, I still feel uninformed, but trust my friend, Marla, and my well-intentioned…
Redwood Sangha
By Wendy Johnson Many years ago Thich Nhat Hanh walked through the filtered light of the redwood trees in Muir Woods National Monument and reminded us that West Coast Dharma students were practicing in the protection of a true "Redwood Sangha." Just as the stately sugar maple of eastern Canada gives color and form to…
The Twelve Steps Meet the Eightfold Path
By Jim Tillman In October of 2014, Magnolia Grove Meditation Practice Center hosted the first mindfulness retreat for people in twelve-step programs and their extended community. The retreat was called “True Nourishment and Healing” in reference to the Fifth Mindfulness Training, establishing common ground with people in twelve-step programs who…
Family Day at Deer Park
On December 17, 2006, Deer Park held its first family day of mindfulness. The intent was to offer a full day of activities for both parents and children to enjoy together. Since January 2006, we have offered a regular children’s program at Deer Park, on every first and third Sunday.…