Thay who brought mindfulness to the Western world

When the young Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh was teaching Zen Buddhism at Columbia University in New York, a year or so after he arrived in the US in 1961, he lived on the Upper West Side. Last month, more than six decades later, on April 11, the city of New York named the street where he once lived, located at the corner of Broadway and West 109^th, ‘Thich Nhat Hanh Way’ in the presence of dozens of the monk’s followers.

Said New York City Council member Shaun Abreu on the occasion: “New Yorkers are not necessarily known for peace. We live with a lot of noise, a lot of stress. But Thich Nhat Hanh had a message for people like us. He knew that we can’t build a better world if we’re angry all the time, or if we lose sight of each other’s humanity. By putting his name right here, we’re creating a moment of pause and breath.”

Earlier, while securing the unanimous approval of the Manhattan Community Board 7 for the naming, CB7 Chair Mark Diller reportedly said: “Often we name a street to elevate a person. And at times, we name a street so that the person elevates us.”

Thich Nhat Hanh’s exile from Vietnam set his life course as a spiritual figure who changed the Western world with his practices of engaged Buddhism and mindfulness. In the decades that followed, ‘mindfulness’ became a buzzword and engaged Buddhism, the most sought-after branch of Buddhism by a laity at large that had no stomach for monastic practices.

Emissary of Zen Buddhism

Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh, during the 95 years that he lived, was an emissary of Zen Buddhism, an apostle of peace. It is significant that he was born in Vietnam, scene of one of the bloodiest episodes post-World War II – the Vietnam War. But before that, while he was in his twenties, Thich had already established himself as a teacher and a recognized social reformer in his homeland. He helped modernize Buddhist education and practice in Vietnam, advocating an engaged Buddhism that involved itself with resolving society’s contradictions. He subsequently studied at Princeton and taught Buddhism at Columbia University from 1961 onwards.

1966 was a watershed year for him, when he travelled to the US, met Martin Luther King Jr. and was denied re-entry into Vietnam, beginning a period of several decades of exile from his homeland. The US and Vietnam were also at war during that time and in January 1967, Dr King, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate of 1964, wrote to the Nobel Institute to nominate the 41-year-old monk for the 1967 Nobel Peace Prize. “I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam.” King described his friend as “an apostle of peace and non-violence, cruelly separated from his own people while they are oppressed by a vicious war which has grown to threaten the sanity and security of the entire world.”  

Perhaps by denying Thich re-entry into Vietnam, the Vietnamese government set his life-course as a spiritual figure who was to change the Western world with his practices of engaged Buddhism and mindfulness. In the decades that followed, ‘mindfulness’ was to become a buzzword first in America and then throughout the Western world, and engaged Buddhism the most sought-after branch of Buddhism by a laity at large that had not the stomach for monastic practices.

Almost anyone could follow the lay practice of Buddhism as propagated by Thich from his Plum Village monastery, which he set up in France. The Buddhism that Thich taught emphasized the value of being fully present in the moment in whatever activity one was involved in – washing dishes or walking the dog. He also taught that all things are interconnected, coining the term Interbeing, which was to influence writers and thinkers the world over.

Peace inside and outside

Thich also interpreted core Buddhist doctrines in accessible, modern language, emphasizing their practical value in reducing suffering. And among his foremost teachings were the methods to cultivate peace in one’s inner being, without which there can be no peace in the outside world.

Writes author and follower of Thich’s teachings, Rehena Harilall, herself a survivor of the brutal apartheid regime in South Africa: “In the late 1990s, seeking ways to process the emotional wounds apartheid had etched into my being, I came to the UK to begin practicing mindfulness seriously. At first, it was just breathing – simple, mindful breaths that helped calm the storm of memories and rage. Then came walking meditation, each step a conscious choice to stay present rather than flee into the past or future. Thầy’s (as Thich Nhat Hanh was affectionately called by his followers) writings became a gateway to understanding how mindfulness could address the complex layers of trauma, grief, and anger I carried…” She adds, “During the Vietnam War, Thầy exemplified how spiritual practice could foster resilience and love amid devastation. He responded not with bitterness but with profound acts of engaged action: he rebuilt villages, established schools, nurtured orphans, and spoke against harm.” 

A month after his 88th birthday and following several months of rapidly declining health, on November 11, 2014, Thich Nhat Hanh suffered a severe stroke. Although he was unable to speak and was mostly paralyzed on the right side, he continued to offer the dharma and inspiration through his peaceful and serene presence — until his last days, passing away on January 22,  2022.

By the time he passed, Thich had hundreds of thousands of followers the world over. His teachings, rooted in Buddhism, have transcended religious, ethnic and cultural boundaries, offering a path of peace and mindfulness to anyone who is prepared to receive them. Among the eminent personalities influenced by Thich are the Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron, who echoes his teachings of mindfulness and compassion even though she belongs to a different Buddhist tradition. Jon Kabat-Zinn, creator of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), credits Thay with deeply influencing his work. Mindfulness teachers Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield were shaped by his teachings. Oprah Winfrey has interviewed him and praised his teachings. Actors Angelina Jolie and Jeff Bridges have also been, at different times, proponents of mindfulness. Activists of climate and social justice movements the world over have adopted his peaceful, mindful approach to protest and change-making. And Thay’s teachings have helped spark programs for mindfulness in classrooms, prisons and hospitals in several countries.

 Martin Luther King, Jr, civil rights icon, recommended Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize, stating, “I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam.” 

Plum Village monasteries

Thay may no longer be in the physical body, but to his followers, he is a real presence. Under his spiritual leadership, Plum Village has grown from a small rural farmstead to one of the West’s largest and most active Buddhist monasteries, with over 200 resident monastics and over 10,000 visitors every year, who come from around the world to learn “the art of mindful living.” In the decade before he passed, Thay and his team at Plum Village opened monasteries in California, New York, Vietnam, Paris, Hong Kong, Thailand, Mississippi and Australia, and Europe’s first “Institute of Applied Buddhism” in Germany.

Thay was also a prolific writer; he published over 100 titles in English, ranging from classic manuals on meditation, mindfulness and engaged Buddhism, to poems, children’s stories, and commentaries on ancient Buddhist texts. Some of his well-known books are: ‘The Miracle of Mindfulness’, ‘Peace is Every Step’, ‘The Blooming of a Lotus’, ‘No Mud, No Lotus’, ‘The Sun My Heart’ as well as autobiographical accounts such as ‘At Home in the World’, ‘Fragrant Palm Leaves’, ‘My Master’s Robe’ and ‘Cultivating the Mind of Love’.

Plum Village, near Bordeaux in southwest France, is the first monastic community founded by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) in the West. Website: https://plumvillage.org