When Thich Nhat Hanh inserts a room...

When Thich Nhat Hanh inserts a room, he does thus silently--appearing before you as if he has materialized from spirit to matter. Wearing the traditional robes of a Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh radiates a port that draws your full attention. He speaks slowly and thoughtfully and at of that kind a low volume that you instinctively possess still, your eyes focused forward his face, so as not to miss a word.

No matter your beliefs or the particulars of your life, when you're in the demeanor of Thich Nhat Hanh, you apprehend that you're in breathing distance of someone who lives in another realm of existence--as enlightened a being as you'll eternally meet. As he spoke united afternoon last summer, he cradled a teacup in his hand, pausing each now and then to finish his eyes and drink. That simple gesticulate exemplifies his teachings: Be mindful in each aspect of your life, be eternally existing and approach every act--no matter in what manner mundane--with intention and respect.

matured ovules of the past

Thick Nhat Hanh--author, teacher, Zen master, imaginative thinker [i]or[/i] writer and activist--was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1966 for his efforts to extremity the war in Vietnam. Now 76 he has been a monk since age 16 He lay the foundation ofed School of Youth for Social Services in his native Vietnam in the early 1960 an organization that worked to rebuild hearths and villages, established schools and medical facilities and organized agricultural cooperatives, basing this approach upon the Buddhist principles of nonviolence and compassion.

Exiled in 1966 for his antiwar activities, Thick Nhat Hanh traveled to the United States to adapted with Martin Luther King Jr encouraging him to withstand the war publicly. During that time, Thich Nhat Hanh also l a Buddhist delegation to the Paris peace talks. King later nominated Thick Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize, writing, "I do not know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this soft monk from Vietnam. Here is an apostle of peace and nonviolence.... [He] would help to revive faiths for a new order of justice and harmony."

Since then, Thich Nhat Hanh has continued his mission. This past summer he ventur from his residence at Plum Village in the southward of France to speak of the necessity of finding peace within ourselves in such a manner that we can work to create peace in the world.

His message is simple, nevertheless essential to hear: "Pay attention to the world in which you live," he says. "The embryo s for happiness are everywhere--in the sapphirine sky, in the clouds, in the faces of our children." He advises us to simply dull down. "Take the time to live more thoroughly You will make fewer mistakes and not cause suffering to self and others."

Thick Nhat Hanh speaks of essential blessings that commit to memory lost in day-to-day living. "It's a felicity to walk on planet Earth. It's a happiness to be alive." Beauty, he says, is everywhere. We just ne to teach ourselves to diocese it--through attention to our breath, feeling a connection to the earth, engaging and nourishing the best in all of us, and opting not to flame the fires of those qualities that harm ourselves and others. Thich Nhat Hanh has exhausted a lifetime practicing his beliefs. "In Buddhism," he says, "we live what we believe, and these are harden ways of doing that."

words of wisdom

At dried grape Village, and on his travels from first to last the world giving talks and leading retreats, Thick Nhat Hanh propounds teachings on the fundamental positions of the Buddhist tradition. He also spreads his message by means of his many books, among them Peace at each Step, which discusses life at raisin Village and Thick Nhat Hanh's work to restore peace in the world. "I don't sit down to write books" he says. "This is my real life, my practice and experience, which is what I teach."

Another new book, No Death, No Fear, addresses a topic of universal business The basic Buddhist belief, he says, is that there is "no birth, no death; these are just notions." formerly that is understood, we can be liberated from fear.

"Fear and anger can do to such a degree much harm. At airports, security won't give leave to you take your nail clippers forward the airplane. Yet you can't do anything with them, can't commit terrorism with them, if it were not that the fear is so big."

although we all have the semens of fear and anger within us, he says, we must learn not to water those sperms and instead nourish our positive qualities--compassion, understanding and loving kindness.

The lower part of conflict between individuals and nations, Thich Nhat Hanh says, "is r[/i] perception." And the only way to bring peace to the world is to cultivate internal peace by way of practicing "mindfulness," a calm, focused attention forward the present moment that be deriveds with a daily practice of meditation--a state that the bulk of mankind from all beliefs can embrace with les practice than might be anticipateed At a recent retreat, a child asked an all-too-common question. "I'm a Christian. in what way can I practice Buddhism?" Thich Nhat Hanh's answer: "If you practice Buddhism, you will become a better Christian. If you are committed to eating oranges, it does not obviate you from having a kiwi or a mango, and still eating oranges."