|
ABOUT OUR TEACHER
Zen Master, poet, peace
and human rights activist, Thich Nhat Hanh was born in central Vietnam in
1926 and joined the monkhood at the age of 16. In Saigon in the early
1960's, he founded the School of Youth for Social Services (SYSS), a grass
roots relief organization that rebuilt bombed villages, set up schools and
medical centers, resettled homeless families, and organized agricultural
cooperatives. Rallying some 10,000 student volunteers, the SYSS based its
work on the Buddhist principles of non-violence and compassionate action.
Despite government denunciation of his activity, Nhat Hanh also founded a
Buddhist University, a publishing house, and an influential peace activist
magazine in Vietnam. Exiled from Vietnam, he traveled to the U.S. where he
made the case for peace to federal and Pentagon officials including Robert
McNamara. He may have changed the course of U.S. history when he persuaded
Martin Luther King, Jr. to oppose the Vietnam War publicly, and so helped
galvanize the peace movement. The following year, King nominated him for the
Nobel Peace Prize. Subsequently Nhat Hanh led the Buddhist delegation to the
Paris Peace Talks.
Often referred to as
the most beloved Buddhist teacher in the West, Thich Nhat Hanh's teachings
and practices appeal to people from various religious, spiritual, and
political backgrounds. Nhat Hanh offers a practice of "mindfulness" that is
beneficial for people of all faiths, by helping us resist and transform the
speed and violence of our modern society. His life and teachings have deeply
influenced millions of people, including scores of luminaries in different
fields: politician Jerry Brown, civil rights champion Martin Luther King,
Jr., eco-activist Joanna Macy, and Catholic mystic Thomas Merton - to name a
few.
He has published more
than 100 titles, including more than 40 in English: Peace is Every Step,
Being Peace, Touching Peace and many more. His books are published by
Parallax Press. |
