iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Berit Talan

Plum Village App @plumvillageapp.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

In his book 'Good Citizens', Thich Nhat Hanh shares words of encouragement to build an international solidarity movement based on a shared sense of compassion, mindful consumption & right action. 🌍 👉🏽 www.parallax.org/product/good... @parallax.org 👉🏽 Discover more teachings via plumvillage.app 🌞

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

I just listened to a Dharma talk by Marisela Gomez, a Dharma teacher in the Plum Village tradition. She reminded us that our purpose here is to be love. Not be loved and not to love. But to be love. Embody love. That this is particularly important .. 1/4 #ThichNhatHanh #Mindfulness #Buddhism #Zen

Calligraphy by Thich Nhat Hanh on rice paper in traditional Chinese black ink mixed with some of his tea. A zen circle and in the circle the writing: Love like a Buddha and Thay's red seal, which bears his lineage name and Dharma title, Trung Quang Nhat Hanh

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 30/11/2024

I created a feed for posts that mention Plum Village or Thich Nhat Hanh over the last 7 days and displays them based on the Hacker News ranking algorithm. bsky.app/profile/did:... #ThichNhatHanh #Buddhism #feeds #PlumVillage #Zen

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

There is a lot going on in the world. We determine what it is that we can do to take action and do it. And we also need to take care of ourselves. Sometimes we may feel shaky, unstable, and afraid. It feels difficult to... www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHZ0... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness 1/2

youtube.com

Taking Refuge | Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh

YouTube video by Plum Village App

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 02/02/2025

Christiana Figueres is a student of Thich Naht Hanh and member of the Plum Village sangha. I had the good fortune of attending a retreat with her in June of last year. It is a blessing to listen to her speak. I can't make this session below today, but absolutely would if I could. #climate 1/2

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 31/01/2025

I just signed up for the Sound of Zen retreat (2/19 - 2/23) at Magnolia Grove Monastery, a Mindfulness Practice Center in the tradition of Plum Village, in Batesville, MS. Anyone want to meet up in person? 😀🙏🪷 magnoliagrovemonastery.org/the-sound-of... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness

Photo of the grounds of Magnolia Grove Monastery, a retreat center in the Plum Village tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. A pond with a foot bridge across it leading to a white statue of the Boddhisatva Avalokiteshvara, the bell tower behind the pond and the meditation hall in the background.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

Breath Awareness When we follow our breath, there are different parts of our bodies, where we can experience the breath. The rising and falling of our abdomen, the air cool at our nostrils as with breathe in and warm as we breathe out, the throat. #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness 1/3

Calligraphy in black traditional ink on rice paper. A Zen circle with Breathe you are alive written inside

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

"It only takes one breath." When I heard Thay say this in a podcast 18 years ago it filled me with such hope. My mind was in chaos. Meditation was impossible. But I thought I can do 1 breath. It didn't matter if it was ragged or short or painful - as it 1/2 #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness

Calligraphy in black ink on rice paper by Thich Nhat Hanh. Zen circle with the writing Breathe inside it

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Reposted by Berit Talan

Plum Village App @plumvillageapp.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

This is a quote from Thich Nhat Hanh's book 'Love in Action - Writings on Nonviolent Social Change' published by Parallax Press 👉🏽 www.parallax.org/product/love... Discover more teachings by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village community via the Plum Village App plumvillage.app 🙏🏽

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

The Island of Self: One of the foundational practices is to take to refuge in our breath. Thay instructs us  „Breathing in, I know I am breathing in. Breathing out, I know I am breathing out.“ (1/6) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Buddhism #meditation

Gatha to readjust the posture while meditating

Feelings come and go
like clouds in a windy sky.
Mindful breathing
is my anchor.

breathe
A Thich Nhat Hanh Meditation Journal

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

What a beautiful, heartfelt wake up call on how to live fully. Not in denial about the difficulties. And at the same time fully awake to the wonders of life. We may not have a cancer diagnosis but we are all dying every moment.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

How do we manage in these challenging times? Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us of the Buddha's teaching of taking refuge in the island of self. "When the Buddha was in his 80th year and knew that he would soon pass from this life, he felt a lot of compassion .. 1/6 #PlumVillage #Buddhism #Zen #Mindfulness

Thich Nhat Hanh in a brown robe sitting in deep concentration his hand in a mudra after inviting the bell.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Plum Village needs our help. Last night the Purple Cloud building in Lower Hamlet burned down. Purple Cloud was the hearth and home of Lower Hamlet since PV’s founding in 1982. Please donate to help the community rebuild! Thay’s room was there—... (1/3) plumvillage.org?form=PVLHFir...

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Reposted by Berit Talan

Gurdeep Pandher of the Yukon @gurdeep.ca · 21/01/2025

While joy emanates from within, managing external influences is crucial for maintaining it. This doesn't mean turning a blind eye to global issues— it's about disconnecting regularly to reconnect with our inner selves. Joy is precious. Nurture it before time slips away. gurdeeppandher.substack.com

youtu.be

From My Snow-Covered Environment In The Yukon, I'm Sending Joy, Hope, And Positivity

YouTube video by Gurdeep Pandher

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 21/01/2025

Thich Nhat Hanh about meeting MLK: "On June 1, 1966, I met the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. in person for the first time in Chicago. From the first moment, I knew I was in the presence of a holy person. Not just his good work but his very being was a source of great inspiration for me... (1/2)

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Reposted by Berit Talan

Plum Village App @plumvillageapp.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

In this short video, Thich Nhat Hanh explains how we can cultivate ‘wonderful', positive karma. 😊 Visit the Plum Village App for more shorts 👉🏾 link.plumvillage.app/eynC and short teachings 👉🏾 link.plumvillage.app/P9eB

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

Tea meditation is such a lovely practice. It feels easy to be present: the smell of the tea, the warm cup against my hand, the liquid running down my throat. And it's a deep practice. There is a cloud in my tea. (1/2) #Buddhism #Mindfulness #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #meditation

Calligraphy by Thich Nhat Hanh in black ink mixed with a little bit of his tea on rice paper. The writing inside the zen circle reads "there is a cloud in your tea"

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

"These words and music have been composed to serve as Dharma instruments helping us come back to the deepest place in ourselves, the place where we are most awake and alive. Chanting is often the most direct and immediate way to reconnect... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Buddhism (1/3)

Photo of lotus leaves in the background with the opening gatha for The Lotus of the Wonderful Dharma: Universal Door Chapter in white text: Chanting the Lotus Sutra by night,
the sound shook the galaxies.
The next morning when planet Earth woke up,
her lap was full of flowers.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 14/01/2025

I take refuge in songs, poetry, and somatic exercises. This poem was written by Thay during the Vietnam war after the bombing of Ben Tre and the comment made by an American military man, “We had to destroy the town in order to save it.” #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Buddhism #poetry 1/3

Framed calligraphy by Thich Nhat Hanh:

For Warmth

I hold my face in my two hands.
No, I am not crying.
I hold my face in my two hands
to keep the loneliness warm—
two hands protecting,
two hands nourishing,
two hands preventing
my soul from leaving me
in anger.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 13/01/2025

As I sit down to eat lunch today, I get in touch with the miracle that is this food. All the causes and conditions that made this food available to me. I also get in touch with the suffering contained on these plates. The working conditions of farm #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness 1/3

Lunch served on four plates on a white table. Plates contain quesadilla, and various vegetable, fruits and tofu.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

This is such a beautiful album. Released on Thay's birthday as a tribute. I recommend listening to it as an album vs picking out tracks. Truly a piece of art. I feel really touched by it. plumvillageband.bandcamp.com/album/a-clou... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Buddhism #music (1/3)

plumvillageband.bandcamp.com

A Cloud Never Dies, by Pirate's Blend Records

9 track album

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 10/01/2025

I have started to say this gatha out loud as I enter my meditation space. It helps me transition to the cushion, focuses my mind, and is a vow of how I want to spend the next moments. #Buddhism #Meditation #Mindfulness #Zen #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage

A gatha for Entering the Meditation Room

Entering the meditation room,
I see my true self.
As I sit down,
I vow to cut off all disturbances.

Thich Nhat Hanh

Present Moment, Wonderful Moment:
Mindfulness Verses for Daily Living

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

I have a little menu taped to our refrigerator for when it's time to practice to "change the peg" because it's often difficult for me to think of a "different CD" as Thay called it in the moment. I'll add this. earth.fm #Buddhism #Mindfulness #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #nature (1/3)

earth.fm

Earth.fm: Listen to nature sounds, fall in love with the Earth

A non-profit, growing library of immersive nature sounds from all over the world. Become part of our family and help preserve the planet.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

The Plum Village App is on bluesky now!

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

Returning to "enjoy sitting" after listening to Br Phap Huu Q&A Part 2: You don't only sit when it's pleasant. Sometimes it is excruciating. That is not a failed sit. There is no perfection in practice. That is the insight of non-duality. #Buddhism #Mindfulness #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage (1/2)

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 02/01/2025

Thay asked musicians to put music to the 5 breathing and walking gathas in the guided meditation I shared. Here is my favorite version. youtu.be/3xCqx2dsFx8?... #Buddhism #Mindfulness #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Meditation #Zen

youtu.be

Breathing and Walking

YouTube video by Release - Topic

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 01/01/2025

As we approach the time of New Year's resolutions, Br Phap Huu invites us to change the language, not have a fix it approach, but curiosity "where does this thinking come from?" To offer ourselves acceptance. www.youtube.com/live/x4JM0i2... #Buddhism #Mindfulness #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage (1/3)

youtube.com

YouTube

Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 31/12/2024

Anapanasati.Sutta: "The Buddha is always there within you. One way to reach the Buddha, anytime and anywhere, is through your breath." Here's a beautiful guided meditation by Thay on this. tiny.cc/TNHbuddhabre... #Buddhism #Meditation #Mindfulness #Zen #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage (1/3)

Thich Nhat Hanh holding the hands of two children is leading a public walking meditation in a French city

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 27/12/2024

What is the acupuncture point in your life, where, when you infuse the practice into it, it will ripple out and start changing the whole system of your life? plumvillage.org/podcast/bein... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism (1/5)

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 24/12/2024

Seven self-care practices for the festive period A selection of Plum Village practices to keep in your back pocket if you will be spending time with family. From mindfulness bell to second arrow. plumvillage.org/articles/sev... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

plumvillage.org

Seven self-care practices for the festive period | Plum Village

A selection of Plum Village practices to keep in your back pocket if you will be spending time with family for Christmas or another holiday.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 24/12/2024

This postcard with Thay’s calligraphy is in my meditation corner. The purpose of sitting meditation is to enjoy. Don’t try to attain anything! Sitting itself is healing. Sometimes I don't want to sit. Too busy, too tired, too scattered. (1/3) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

Postcard with a calligraphy by Thich Nhat Hanh that says "enjoy sitting"

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 22/12/2024

The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing (Anapanasati Sutta) is a foundational text for the Plum Village tradition. I've started to practice with it. Music is so helpful for me to remember. youtu.be/A2XdK75HdlM?... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

youtu.be

The 16 Breathing Exercise Song

YouTube video by Plum Village App

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 21/12/2024

Solstice: Lighting three candles for blood, spiritual and land ancestors. Reciting this poem. Remembering dear ones who passed in 2024. Going for walking meditation in the dark. Giving to the flames my notes of what calls to me in the refuge of ... (1/2) #poetry #solstice #mindfulness #PlumVillage

Photo of snow covered pine trees with a starry sky above and the first light on the horizon.

A poem: How the Light Comes

I cannot tell you
how the light comes.

What I know
is that it is more ancient
than imagining.

That it travels
across an astounding expanse
to reach us.

That it loves
searching out
what is hidden,
what is lost,
what is forgotten
or in peril
or in pain.

That it has a fondness
for the body,
for finding its way
toward flesh,
for tracing the edges
of form,
for shining forth
through the eye,
the hand,
the heart.

I cannot tell you
how the light comes,
but that it does.
That it will.
That it works its way
into the deepest dark
that enfolds you,
though it may seem
long ages in coming
or arrive in a shape
you did not foresee.

And so
may we this day
turn ourselves toward it.
May we lift our faces
to let it find us.
May we bend our bodies
to follow the arc it makes.
May we open
and open more
and open still

to the blessed light
that comes.

by Jan Richardson

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 20/12/2024

This evening was our sangha's annual tea ceremony. I almost didn't go as I'm in a Chronic Fatigue flare and feel crappy. I am glad I went. Practicing is always nourishing but practicing together is so powerful. Co-regulation is medicine. #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness

Photo of Thich Nhat Hanh's simple tea pot and glass tea cup on a wooden tray.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

As I mindfully eat my lunch, tomato and peppers, hummus and carrots, kiwis and grapes, I marvel that all this is just sunlight and star dust. I have such gratitude for plants that have found such ingenious ways to spin these two together. #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

Photo of Thich Nhat Hanh in his brown robes standing at a wooden table chopping carrots. He looks with full concentration at the vegetables and chopping board.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 17/12/2024

This article reminded me of this 2 min clip. "The insight of non-duality, non-discrimination: that the enemy is not man, the enemy is discrimination, violence, hate." Such an important practice, especially now. youtu.be/gk5EomaVWuI?... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

youtu.be

Thich Nhat Hanh: Not Choosing Sides in Conflicts

YouTube video by The 5 Powers Movie Reboot

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michaeledward @michaeledward.bsky.social · 16/12/2024

"People normally cut reality into compartments, and so are unable to see the interdependence of all phenomena. To see one in all and all in one is to break through the great barrier which narrows one's perception of reality." ~Thich Nhat Hanh~

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 15/12/2024

Someone shared this poem with me yesterday and I keep going back to it. I particularly like the lines The days are nouns: touch them The hands are churches that worship the world #poetry #mindfulness

Daily

These shriveled seeds we plant,
corn kernel, dried bean,
poke into loosened soil,
cover over with measured fingertips

These T-shirts we fold into
perfect white squares

These tortillas we slice and fry to crisp strips
This rich egg scrambled in a gray clay bowl

This bed whose covers I straighten
smoothing edges till blue quilt fits brown blanket
and nothing hangs out

This envelope I address
so the name balances like a cloud
in the center of sky

This page I type and retype
This table I dust till the scarred wood shines
This bundle of clothes I wash and hang and wash again
like flags we share, a country so close
no one needs to name it

The days are nouns: touch them
The hands are churches that worship the world

Naomi Shihab Nye

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 14/12/2024

I was never a tea drinker until I went to Blue Cliff Monastery. In this 5 min video Thay teaches that the tea is only fully present if you are fully present. And that we need to find joy in the practice so... youtu.be/7Hz2q42muhk?... #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism (1/2)

youtu.be

Tea Meditation | Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh

YouTube video by Plum Village App

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 13/12/2024

Slow walking meditation is a formal practice that you do for 10 min unlike walking meditation, which you can do anywhere. In Plum Village you take one step with your inbreath, one step with your outbreath. #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism (1/3)

Brother Phap Huu in the dark brown robes of Plum Village monastic is pictured from the back in the Still Water Meditation Hall practicing slow walking meditation.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

This poem spoke to me this morning. In what way can I be a light today? #poetry

“The Buddha’s Last Instruction”
by Mary Oliver

“Make of yourself a light,” said the Buddha, before he died.
I think of this every morning
as the east begins
to tear off its many clouds
of darkness, to send up the first
signal — a white fan
streaked with pink and violet,
even green.
An old man, he lay down
between two sala trees,
and he might have said anything,
knowing it was his final hour.
The light burns upward,
it thickens and settles over the fields.
Around him, the villagers gathered
and stretched forward to listen.
Even before the sun itself
hangs, disattached, in the blue air,
I am touched everywhere
by its ocean of yellow waves.
No doubt he thought of everything
that had happened in his difficult life.
And then I feel the sun itself
as it blazes over the hills,
like a million flowers on fire —
clearly I’m not needed,
yet I feel myself turning
into something of inexplicable value.
Slowly, beneath the branches,
he raised his head.
He looked into the faces of that frightened crowd.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

Today I remembered the second practice of Right Diligence. "Changing the CD" or as the Buddha taught it "Changing the Peg". Consciously bringing up a positive mental formation to take the place of a negative one. (1/4) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

Returning to Thay’s teaching on practicing with unpleasant emotions. The quote continues „…if you continue with your practice of mindfulness, you understand the roots, the nature of the suffering, and you know the way to transform it.“ #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism (1/5)

Quote by Thich Nhat Hanh: It's like a mother, when the baby is crying, she picks up the baby and she holds the baby tenderly in her arms. Your pain, your anxiety is your baby. You have to take care of it. You have to go back to yourself, to recognize the suffering in you, embrace the suffering, and you get a relief.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

Eating - final thoughts Practicing eating meditation had unforseen consequences. There are certain foods I once liked that I don't enjoy eating anymore because I'm deeply in touch with what they do to my body, other beings or the Earth. (1/4) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

Thich Nhat Hanh is sharing a meal with his monastic disciples, sitting at a long table, on which vegan food and flowers are beautifully arranged. Everyone has their palms together in gratitude for this food.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 08/12/2024

I joined Rohatsu Session at Clouds in Water a local Soto Zen Center today and will go back tomorrow. Rohatsu celebrates the Buddha's enlightenment and culminates in Bodhi Day tomorrow. Back here on Monday. #Buddhism #Zen

A tied up Oryoki set. Oryoki is a highly choreographed ritual of serving and eating food in Japanese Zen.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

Eating Meditation Part 7 At the end of the meal I still for a moment and then recite this gatha. It feels as important to give thanks at the end of the meal as in the beginning. It also connects me again with the 5th contemplation. (1/2) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

Finishing Your Meal

My bowl is empty.
My hunger is satisfied.
I vow to live
for the benefit of all beings.

Thich Nhat Hanh
Present Moment Wonderful Moment
Mindful Verses for Daily Living

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Reposted by Berit Talan

Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

This is the book that changed my life. I bought it after I found this episode on NPR podcast in 2007. It came to me in a time of great suffering. I quit my job and went to Blue Cliff Monastery for the next 9 months. Very Eat Pray Love - like 🙂 No regrets, only gratitude. onbeing.org/programs/rem...

onbeing.org

Remembering Thich Nhat Hanh, Brother Thay | The On Being Project

We visited Thich Nhat Hanh at a retreat attended by police officers and other members of the criminal justice system; they offer stark gentle wisdom for finding buoyancy and “being peace” in a world o...

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

Eating Meditation Part 6 Sometimes I recite this gatha while eating. Visualizing myself as part of a lineage, blood or spiritual, as a line of countless people before and after me, helps me with the insight of no-self. (1/3) #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillage #Mindfulness #Zen #Buddhism

Gatha for Mindful Eating by Thich Nhat Hanh:

In the dimension of space and time
We chew in rhythm with our breath
Maintaining the life of all our ancestors
Opening an upward path for descendants.

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Berit Talan @bberit.bsky.social · 04/12/2024

Such a lovely poem. May we all treat ourselves with such gentleness and love. #poetry

A poem

The Most Important Thing
Julia Fehrenbacher

I am making a home inside myself. A shelter
of kindness where everything
is forgiven, everything allowed—a quiet patch
of sunlight to stretch out without hurry,
where all that has been banished
and buried is welcomed, spoken, listened to—released.

A fiercely friendly place I can claim as my very own.

I am throwing arms open
to the whole of myself—especially the fearful,
fault-finding, falling apart, unfinished parts, knowing
every seed and weed, every drop
of rain, has made the soil richer.

I will light a candle, pour a hot cup of tea, gather
around the warmth of my own blazing fire. I will howl
if I want to, knowing this flame can burn through
any perceived problem, any prescribed perfectionism,
any lying limitation, every heavy thing.

I am making a home inside myself
where grace blooms in grand and glorious
abundance, a shelter of kindness that grows
all the truest things.

I whisper hallelujah to the friendly
sky. Watch now as I burst into blossom.

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Reposted by Berit Talan

michaeledward @michaeledward.bsky.social · 04/12/2024

“A cedar tree doesn't have any desire to be a pine or a cypress or even a bird. It's a wonderful manifestation of the cosmos just as it is. You are the manifestation of the cosmos. You are wonderful just like that.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

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