Being Peace

Description

A bestseller with over 250,000 copies sold, Being Peace is the seminal founding work by Zen Master and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh. With a new introduction by Jack Kornfield and the first update since its release over fifteen years ago, this eloquent meditation on "being peace in order to make peace" is more relevant than ever. A book for everyone concerned about the state of the world and the quality of our lives, it has lost none of its timeliness since it was first published in 1987. It is filled with practical suggestions how to create a more peaceful world "right in the moment we are alive." Contains Thich Nhat Hanh's key practices, including a guide to the practice of reconciliation which has become a peacemaking tool in many other religious traditions. This beautiful, newly revised edition is the perfect starting point for those who are getting their first introduction to Buddhism as well as a must-have for those already engaged in the tradition. With illustrations by Mayumi Oda.

Thich Nhat Hanh was a world-renowned spiritual teacher and peace activist. Born in Vietnam in 1926, he became a Zen Buddhist monk at the age of sixteen. Over seven decades of teaching, he published more than 100 books, which have sold more than four million copies in the United States alone. Exiled from Vietnam in 1966 for promoting peace, his teachings on Buddhism as a path to social and political transformation are responsible for bringing the mindfulness movement to Western culture. He established the international Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism in France, now the largest Buddhist monastery in Europe and the heart of a growing community of mindfulness practice centers around the world. He passed away in 2022 at the age of 95 at his root temple, Tu Hieu, in Hue, Vietnam.

"The monk who taught the world mindfulness." -TIME "Thich Nhat Hanh shows us the connection between personal inner peace and peace on earth." -His Holiness the Dalai Lama "Thich Nhat Hanh is a holy man, for he is humble and devout. He is a scholar of immense intellectual capacity. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity." -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "Thich Nhat Hanh's work, on and off the page, has proven to be the antidote to our modern pain and sorrows. Here is a monumental, life-giving mind, preserved as textual force. And that's what I feel reading and practicing his teachings: that I am being acted on by a compassion equal to and pervasive as gravity itself. His books help me be more human, more me than I was before." -Ocean Vuong, author of On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous "A glass of water in the desert for those interested in both Buddhism and the world." -San Francisco Chronicle "Thich Nhat Hanh is a great teacher. I have studied him, his work, his passage through life, with gratitude and joy. Through his writings, his public offerings, his insights, I've gained vision and clarity; I've often felt it would be impossible to find a more lucid, determined, and courageous soul." -Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple "For spiritual seekers and social activists, this is it, the bible of Engaged Buddhism." -Inquiring Mind "Being Peace is one of the most important books ever written." -Pilgrim's Way Catalog "Thich Nhat Hanh does not merely teach peace; Thich Nhat Hanh is peace." -Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love "Thich Nhat Hanh is among the most revered leaders in the world. His teachings and mindfulness practices have deeply influenced my journey through life. He is a torch of wisdom lighting the path ahead, generating the compassion, love, and understanding we need to create peace for ourselves and the world." -Marc Benioff, chair and CEO, Salesforce "Thich Nhat Hanh's words are like water. Simple, pure, transparent, and absolutely indispensable for life." -Alejandro Inarritu, director of Birdman and The Revenant "This book is a treasure. If you look deeply, you will see in it the seeds of all of Thich Nhat Hanh's most important teachings, and the seeds of your own awakening as well." -Jack Kornfield, author of A Path With Heart "How is it that a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who teaches mindfulness could inspire Martin Luther King and become one of the great nonviolent activists of the twenty-first century? Like no other teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh shows us the revolutionary possibilities of building social movements based on compassion, for both ourselves and others." -Professor john a powell, director of the Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley "I first met Thich Nhat Hanh in 1968 in Paris. That was the time of rising counter culture, protest against the Vietnam war and student uprising. At that time his presence in Paris was like a soothing rain in dry heat. Ever since, for more than fifty years, he has been the conscience of humanity. He has been a compassionate catalyst of spiritual awakening, social harmony and ecological awareness. He has nurtured the human spirit with dedication, determination and delight. He is humble and gentle yet powerfully persuasive and strong willed. It has been a joy of my life to know him and follow his teachings." -Satish Kumar, editor emeritus of Resurgence & Ecologist magazine and founder of Schumacher College "It is as though Thich Nhat Hanh has pared down the voluminous teachings of Buddhism to their innermost core....This book reflects the heart of a remarkable human being, one who has emerged from Vietnam's nightmare with his soul not only intact but radiant." -Resurgence "Being Peace is a jewel of love and wisdom, a mirror reflecting our own happy Buddhahood... a recognition that will inspire everyone, regardless of previous religious persuasion, with the unexpected joy of smiling." -East West Journal "An exquisite meditation on being peace in order to make peace. A book for everyone concerned about the state of the world and the quality of our lives." -In Context