Engaged Action - Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet

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Category: Connect
Published: Thursday, 27 January 2022 19:01
Written by Cherry
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'When you wake up and you see that the Earth is not just the environment, the Earth is us, you touch the nature of interbeing. And at that moment you can have real communication with the Earth ...'

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'Thay teaches that to practice meditation is "to look deeply into the heart of reality, to see things that others can't see." And, as he says, "Once there is seeing, there must be acting. Otherwise, what's the use of seeing?"

A monk for nearly eighty years, Thay has found remarkable ways to combine his practice of meditation and mindfulness with extraordinary actions for peace and social justice, investing his life energy in training the next generation of engaged Buddhists, and building healthy communities of mindful living that can continue to be catalysts for change in the world.

In the 1960s, Thay created a movement of thousands of young social workers in Vietnam before leaving for the West to call for peace. A leading voice for nonviolent social change, he collaborated with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., with whom he shared a vision for building a "beloved community" that could transcend division, discrimination, and hatred - a community in which true reconciliation can be possible, among all people and among all nations. In the 1970s, together with friends and colleagues, Thay rescued boat people from the high seas off Singapore and  initiated one of the very first environmental conferences in Europe. Over the following decades, Thay created a way of teaching and applying mindfulness in everyday life that could be accessible to millions. He has shared his vision for compassionate leadership with politicians, business people, teachers, activists, and more recently, Silicon Valley CEOs. And from his direct - and often painful - personal experience of unstable and polarised times, he has developed a simple yet powerful code of global ethics that offers a bright compass to guide our way forward.'

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From:  Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet (2021) - Thich Nhat Hanh (11/10/26 - 22/1/22).