A00110 - Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial

 


"People have a hard time letting go of their suffering.  Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar."

Thich Nhat Hanh
A Year of Zen (Page A Day Calendar)
Sunday, April 10, 2022

*******

For over a decade now, I have begun the new year by buying A Year of Zen Page A Day Calendar.  In the course of reading the daily sayings, parables, meditations, and haiku, invariably, over the year, there will be a number of sayings by Thich Nhat Hanh that are included in the calendar.  

Over the course of ten years or more, I have been blessed with reading dozens of Thich Nhat Hanh's meditative sayings. I suppose one might say that he is now part of my meditative history.  Given this connection, when I learned that The Deer Park Monastery -- a monastery which Thich Nhat Hanh founded -- was holding a memorial service for him on Sunday, January 8, 2023, I felt that I had a spiritual obligation to attend. 

Indeed, I did attend the Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial Service at The Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, California, on Sunday, January 8, 2023.  The monastery is in the mountains located just north of Escondido. The monastery is a gated complex of structures on what looks like a former ranch.  There are bungalows sprinkled on the complex which house the monks both male and female.  As befitting a Buddhist monastery, there was nothing fancy about any of the structures.  They all seemed rather rustic.  The monastery is located on the side of a mountain and for the first hour and half, the memorial service attendees (some 450 strong) walked in silence (in meditatiion) on the road leading to the top of the mountain where a large white stone Buddha sat to receive prayers.  From this perch, one could look over the valley wherein the City of Escondido lay.  It is a strikingly spectacular view.

Off on the side of the mountain, a little below the Buddha, a prayer pagoda had been erected.  I went down to it and observed that the pagoda was built for only one person at a time.  I envisioned that the monks and nuns would periodically go up to the pagoda when they were seeking spiritual solace.  I could only imagine what if was like being at that site in the evening as the sun was setting and illuminating the valley below in gold.  Just thinking about it makes one tingle.

There is more to report, but my time for today has come to an end.

Peace,

Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Fairfield, California
January 10, 2023



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