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Dear friends, sharing an excerpt from a poem by Th Dear friends, sharing an excerpt from a poem by Thich Nhat Hanh on walking meditation:

Walk and touch peace every moment. 

Walk and touch happiness every moment. 

Each step brings a fresh breeze. 

Each step makes a flower bloom under our feet. 

.
Photo by Paul Davis at touching-peace-photography.com

#meditationcommunity #thichnhathanh #mindfulnesscommunity #walkingmeditation #plumvillage
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Marc Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, March 23rd (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,
 
Lately I’ve been thinking about aspiration and intentionality. I was rereading parts of The Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) when this sentence made me sit up straight and take notice: “If you don’t yet have an aspiration, you need to find it.”
 
Thay invites us to consider,
What do we want to do with our life? We have to sit down and look deeply to find out. Is your deepest desire to run after fame, power, success, wealth, and sensual stimulation, or is it something else? ...

Read full message from Connie and join us on Thurs. 3/23 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Marc Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, March 16th (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Sangha,
 
What is my true self? My true home? How do I access them?
 
My practice recently circled back to these basic questions. I appreciate that my path, my practice, is sometimes like peeling an onion; questions and insights continue to arise and lead me further in. As I continued to contemplate these questions, I remembered these two gathas by Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay).

Listening to the bell,
I feel my afflictions begin to dissolve.
My mind is calm, my body relaxed,
a smile is born on my lips.
Following the sound of the bell, my breathing guides
me back to the safe island of mindfulness.
In the garden of my heart,
the flower of peace blooms beautifully.
 
Listen, listen, this wonderful sound brings me back to my true self.

This recognition of the inter-connection of all life is the deeper understanding I was seeking! ...

Read full message from Linda and join us on Thurs. 3/16 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Dear friends, if you’re new to meditation or wou Dear friends, if you’re new to meditation or would just like to learn more about it, here are some books we recommend:

Pema Chodron, How to Meditate: A Practical Guide to Making Friends with Your Mind

Thich Nhat Hanh, How to Sit

Thich Nhat Hanh, How to Walk

Thich Nhat Hanh, Making Space: Creating a Home Meditation Practice

Thich Nhat Hanh, Silence: The Power of Quiet in a World Full of Noise

Thich Nhat Hanh, Peace Is Every Breath: A Practice for Our Busy Lives

Find more books and other resources on our website

#mindfulnessbooks #meditationbooks #thichnhathanhbooks #onlinemeditation
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Marc Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, March 9th (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,
 
Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) lived at the Tu Hieu Monastery for five years as a novice and returned there for the final four years of his life. I’ve made three trips to practice at Tu Hieu, because of its connection to Thay, because of the openness and kindness of the monks and nuns there, and because its aged elegance aesthetically nourishes me. This Thursday evening, after our meditation, I would like to share stories about Tu Hieu and Thay’s time there. I would also like to raise a question about what we mean when we say we are “at home.”...

Read full message from Mitchell and join us on Thurs. 3/9 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
“The practice of mindfulness, the practice of me “The practice of mindfulness, the practice of meditation, consists of coming back to ourselves in order to restore peace and harmony. The energy with which we can do this is the energy of mindfulness. Mindfulness is the kind of energy that carries with it concentration, understanding, and love. If we come back to ourselves to restore peace and harmony, then helping another person will be a much easier thing.”

— Thich Nhat Hanh, True Love, A Practice for Awakening the Heart

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Marc Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, March 2nd (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,

The other day I came across this question, “What gifts do I enjoy bringing to the Sangha?” Immediately, I felt a surge of delight. Even before any attributes came to mind, I was comforted by the thought that I possess qualities that benefit this community. It also struck me as a question that I rarely consider, and one that I wanted to share with others.

In my practice as a therapist, I witness so many sources of conditioning – ranging from various religious teachings to our propensity for self-help projects -- that dwell on our negative qualities. With so much attention to our failings, we may struggle with a nagging sense of unworthiness. ...

Read full message from Rachel and join us on Thurs. 3/2 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Dear friends, We are committed to co-creating incl Dear friends, We are committed to co-creating inclusive communities in which all belong and feel welcomed. Here are three organizations who are working on racial and social justice healing and learning through the practice of mindfulness. We invite individuals and communities to explore their work to nourish their understanding and capacity to be inclusive...

@arise_sangha 
@making_vislble_ 
@volarbmore

#socialjustice #racialjustice #engagedpractice #mindfulnesscommunity
Join us on Friday, February 24th. The Buddhist Ac Join us on Friday, February 24th.

The Buddhist Action Coalition has asked Still Water members Mitchell Ratner and Jindra Cekan/ova to speak at their February online meeting. They will talk about the Love in Action–Ukraine project created by the Still Water Mindfulness Practice Center, Opening Heart Mindfulness Community, and the Washington Mindfulness Community. The event is free and open to all. Register for this at the Buddhist Action Coalition webpage.
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. 23rd (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,
As I look forward to Spring, I find myself yo-yoing between having a lot of energy and feeling drained. I also notice that I am easily pulled off course and distracted.
 
I’ve been playing with three simple ways to come back from distractions and stay with myself when I experience waves of strong emotions. The first is to repeat a few times to myself as I breathe in and out “I’m aware.” This is a shortened version of Thay’s (Thich Nhat Hanh’s) meditation phrase, “Breathing in, I’m aware of breathing in. Breathing out, I’m aware of breathing out.” As I say “I’m aware,” I begin to notice a pulse of energy, the subtle return of my focused attention. ...

Read full message from Eliza and join us on Thurs. 2/23 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Thay shared the following about walking meditation Thay shared the following about walking meditation in a 1996 Dharma talk at Plum village:

"With each step you have to say: I have arrived. I have arrived. Whether your home is in Washington, D.C. or New Delhi, you have to come home to this moment. You have to be here with each blade of grass. This is Nirvana. This is the Kingdom of God … You have to be your own hero. No one else can do it for you. You need determination. You need concentration … This is the essence, the heart. If you can take one step, you can take two. The present moment is a teacher that will always be with you, a teacher that will never fail you.”

#walkingmeditation #onlinemeditation #mindfulnesscommunity
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. 16th (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,
In 1942, when Thay (Thich Nhat Hanh) was sixteen, he began monastic training at Tu Hieu Temple, in Hue. Japanese control and then occupation during the world war caused many hardships for Tu Hieu and for all of Vietnam, especially the Great Famine of 1945 when an estimated 600,000 to 2,000,000 Vietnamese died. Thay’s Extended Biography notes:

Stepping out of the temple [Thay] saw bodies out in the streets of those who had died of hunger, and witnessed trucks carrying away dozens of corpses. When the French returned to reclaim Vietnam in 1945, the violence only increased. Although many young monks were tempted by the Marxist pamphlets’ call to arms, Thầy was convinced that Buddhism, if updated and restored to its core teachings and practices, could truly help relieve suffering in society, and offer a nonviolent path to peace, prosperity, and independence from colonizing powers, just as it had during the renowned Ly and Tran dynasties in medieval Vietnam. ...

Read full message from Mitchell and join us on Thurs. 2/16 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Recognizing True Love True love gives us beauty, Recognizing True Love

True love gives us beauty, freshness, solidity, freedom, and peace. True love includes a feeling of deep joy that we are alive. If we don’t feel this way when we feel love, then it’s not true love.

— Excerpt From How to Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. 9th (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Still Water Friends,
In late December, 2022, I traveled to Vietnam to be part of an 18-day “In the Footsteps of Thay” pilgrimage, and to explore Vietnam on my own for 12 days. Many Still Water practitioners have asked me to talk about what I saw and learned. This Thursday evening I would like to focus on one thread: our visit to Chua Dau, the oldest Buddhist Temple in Vietnam, and how Tang Hoi, a monk who was trained and taught there, influenced and inspired Thay’s (Thich Nhat Hanh’s) teaching and practice. ...

The pilgrimage increased my understanding of how deeply and emotionally Thay experienced his relationships with his blood, land, and spiritual ancestors. Master Tang Hoi was only one of many historical figures who influenced and inspirited him. Because of his fluency in Vietnamese and Sino-Vietnamese, if there still existed something that a teacher had written, he could read it. ...

Read full message from Mitchell and join us on Thurs. 2/9 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. Join us for our weekly program this Thursday, Feb. 2nd (7 pm-8:30 pm Eastern).

Dear Friends, 
Recently, I had a rare weekday morning with no meetings or appointments. As I lingered extra-long in bed, I reflected on aimlessness. In the Buddhist tradition, aimlessness is considered the Third Door of Liberation, or gateway to awakening. Thich Nhất Hanh (Thay) describes it in his book The Art of Living:
“Aimlessness does not mean doing nothing. It means not putting something in front of you to chase after. When we remove the objects of our craving and desires, we discover that happiness and freedom are available right here in the present moment.”
As I lay in bed this particular morning, I wondered, “Am I being aimless at the moment?” While from the outside, it may have appeared that I was being aimless, I realized that I was clinging to the warmth and comfort of my bed and also struggling with the conflicting desire to be productive. This was hardly aimlessness. So, as I arose and went through my day, I periodically asked myself, “How can I bring the qualities of aimlessness to this moment?”...

Read full message from Rachel and join us on Thurs. 2/2 - link in bio

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
One way we can look at these words from Thich Nhat One way we can look at these words from Thich Nhat Hanh is to remind us that we are not separate from the world. 

In The Heart of Understanding, Thay writes:

“When you produce peace and happiness in yourself, you begin to realize peace for the whole world. With the smile that you produce in yourself, with the conscious breathing you establish within yourself, you begin to work for peace in the world.”

#thichnhathanh #thichnhathanhquotes #buddhistwisdom #meditationcommunity #mindfulnesscommunity #mindfulness
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This week’s discussion topic

  • What Do I Want to Do with My Life? March 22, 2023

Topics are posted on Tuesdays for discussion during our Thursday evening online programs.

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  • What Do I Want to Do with My Life? March 22, 2023
  • Taking Refuge within My Self March 15, 2023
  • Tu Hieu Monastery and Finding Our True Home March 8, 2023

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