We’re delighted to be able to share with you this special two-part installment, recorded in June 2024 at the recent Plum Village retreat, Ancient Path for Modern Times.
This is the first recording of a panel discussion based loosely around the 14 mindfulness trainings - Thich Nhat Hanh's ethical guidelines for living, a modern distillation of the traditional Bodhisattva precepts of Mahayana Buddhism. The trainings are followed by monastics and lay friends who have made a a formal vow to receive, study, and observe them.
In the panel, you will hear two of our frequent guests, Sister True Dedication (Sister Hien Nghiem) and Christiana Figueres, as well as Dharma teacher Shantum Seth.
These three panelists explore how the Buddha faced war and violence in his own time; the principle of ahimsa and Gandhian nonviolence; handling anger, despair, and burnout as activists; practicing in times of polarization and division; insights around the victim-perpetrator dynamic; sanghas as sanctuaries, and their role in activism; different aspects of engaged Buddhism and its evolution over time; the spiritual dimension of change; and much more. And does anger help?
Christiana Figueres, one of the architects of the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015, was a student of Thich Nhat Hanh and is a valued member of the Plum Village Sangha. Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) from 2010 to 2016, she is also the co-founder of Global Optimism, co-host of the Outrage + Optimism podcast, and co-author of the bestselling The Future We Choose: Surviving the Climate Crisis.
Shantum Seth, an ordained Dharmacharya (Dharma teacher) in the Buddhist Mindfulness lineage of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, teaches in India and across the world. A co-founder of Ahimsa Trust, he has been a student of Thich Nhat Hanh’s teachings for the past 35 years. Since 1988, he has led pilgrimages and other multi-faith, educational, cultural, spiritual, and transformative journeys across diverse regions of India and Asia. He is actively involved in educational, social, and ecological programmes, including work on cultivating mindfulness in society, including with educators, the Indian Central Reserve Police Force, and the corporate sector.
Thank you for listening, and enjoy!
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Timestamps:
00:00:00 Intro
00:03:26 How are the 14 mindfulness trainings guiding us in activism?
00:07:59 The power of the collective
00:11:18 Ahimsa - active nonviolence
00:15:22 Activism before and after meeting Thay
00:20:02 One path of activism
00:28:00 Sources of strength in activism
00:33:05 Does the anger help?
00:41:56 Practicing with strong emotions
1:22:13 Plum Village: center for refuge or for Engaged Buddhism?
1:36:43 Outro
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🎧 Listen to previous episodes on KZfaq ➛ pvapp.to/twoii-episodes
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🔔 The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living is a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives. 🔔
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The podcast is co-produced by the Plum Village App:
plumvillage.app/
And Global Optimism:
globaloptimism.com/
With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
thichnhathanhfoundation.org/
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🎧 Listen to the podcast on the (completely free) Plum Village App ➛ link.plumvillage.app/kbpy and other streaming services.
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Resources:
Plum Village Community ➛ plumvillage.org/
Thich Nhat Hanh ➛ plumvillage.org/about/thich-n...
🎙️ Christiana Figueres ➛ www.globaloptimism.com/christ...
🎙️ Shantum Seth ➛ ahimsatrust.org/dharmacharya-...
🎙️ Sister True Dedication ➛ plumvillage.org/people/dharma...
🎙️ Jo Confino ➛ / joconfino
Interbeing ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing
The Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings ➛ plumvillage.org/mindfulness/t...
Mahayana ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana
Bodhisattva vow ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisa...
Magadha ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magadha
Kosala ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosala
Ahimsa ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahimsa
Mahavira ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahavira
Patanjali ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patanjali
Jan Smuts ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Smuts
Sister Chan Duc ➛ plumvillage.org/people/dharma...
Sister Chan Khong ➛ plumvillage.org/about/sister-...
Paris Peace Accords ➛ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_P...
The European Institute of Applied Buddhism (EIAB) ➛ plumvillage.org/practice-cent...
Help us caption and translate this video: web.plumvillage.app/subs?yt=y...
#TheWayOutIsIn #ThichNhatHanh #PlumVillageApp #twoii