January 25, 2005
Dear Still Water Friends,
Two weeks ago Thich Nhat Hanh returned to Vietnam after an exile of 38 years. The lead paragraphs in Asia Time Magazine describes the moment of return:
It was a homecoming more fitting for royalty or a rock star than a monk. The 1,000 or more devotees who waited in the chilly dawn at Hanoi's Noi Bai Airport clutched bouquets of flowers, sang songs, and jostled for a better view. For a bunch of Buddhists, they were pushy: when Thich Nhat Hanh finally stepped out of immigration, they surged forward with a force that crushed people against doors and tore sandals, hats and gloves off dozens of others. "I touched him! I touched him!" shouted one woman, who then burst into tears.
Buddhist leader Thich Nhat Hanh's return to Vietnam last week inspired particular rapture because it was so long in coming. The 78-year-old monk, a prominent peace activist during the Vietnam War, was banned from returning from a speaking tour in the U.S. in 1966 by both the U.S.-backed South and communist North Vietnam. Exiled in France, he traveled to the U.S. frequently, helped inspire Martin Luther King Jr. to oppose the war, and led a Buddhist delegation to the 1969 Paris Peace talks. After the war, Nhat Hanh became a revered meditation teacher and a public face of Buddhism second only to the Dalai Lama. He founded three monasteries in the U.S. and one in France and taught tens of thousands his concepts of "engaged Buddhism," which emphasizes meditation, peace and social justice. His 80 published books have sold 1.5 million copies. "In the West, he's an icon," says James Shaheen, editor and publisher of the U.S. Buddhist magazine Tricycle. "I can't think of a Western Buddhist who does not know of Thich Nhat Hanh."
You can read the rest of the article at: www.time.com/time/asia/magazine/article/0,13673,501050124-1018137,00.html
Alissa Fleet, one of the American lay practitioners traveling with Thay, has managed, at internet cafes, to post photos and journal entries to her blog. You can see them at: www.geocities.com/alissafleet and www.wearehome.blogspot.com. They are quite wonderful.
Thay will be returning to the US for retreats this summer. The US tour schedule is available at the Plum Village Website or: www.greenmountaincenter.org/tnhtour/tourcalendar05.htm.
The two events on the east coast are:
August 11-16: Walking in Peace Today: Practicing Together in the Midst of Turmoil. Mindfulness Retreat @ Stonehill College, Easton, MA.
August 17: Refreshing Our Hearts: Understanding True Love. Public lecture in Boston area
I am very touched seeing Thay's huge smile and hearing of the overwhelming warm and supportive reception he is receiving in Vietnam. We at Still Water are there with him, in spirit, and through Annie and Chuck Mahon, in body as well.
Warm wishes,
Mitchell Ratner Senior Teacher