A00113 - A Most Profound Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial

After walking down from the mountain top, the attendees quietly convened in the Big Hall.  The Big Hall is the size of a high school gymnasium.  It had an arched semi-circular ceiling supported by eight foot tall walls.  The side walls had extensive glass panels and the doors were left open to accommodate the overflow crowd.  The floor of the Big Hall was a hardwood floor.  However, while one might expect the floor to have chairs.  The only chairs were the ones lining the walls and located outside on the surrounding sidewalks.  As for the center of the Big Hall, the floor was covered by hundreds of individual brown mats with individual pillows on each one.  Each of these mats and pillows were labeled with the phrase "Ocean of Peace".

As the crowd came in, these individual brown mats were soon occupied first by the brown clothed monks and nuns and then by the more limber attendees.  Soon all were seated on these mats, most assuming the lotus position in what for the next hour appeared to be an "ocean of peace".      

Now this was supposed to be the Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial so I expected that there would a great deal of discussion about the man and his career.  After all, Thich Nhat Hanh is considered to be a Zen Master and if you read the following wikipedia listing you should be able to ascertain why

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Th%C3%ADch_Nh%E1%BA%A5t_H%E1%BA%A1nh

However, to my surprise the accomplishments of Thich Nhat Hanh were not highlighted at his memorial service.  Indeed, I do not recall that there was any discussion about the man and his accomplishments.  What there was was a great deal of discussion about how Thich Nhat Hanh taught the eulogizing monk how to walk and how to breathe. Indeed, in listening to the monk whose Vietnamese was translated by a nun into English, it seemed as though Thich Nhat Hanh was not dead. From the monk's perspective, he had learned how to walk, he had learned how to breathe, he had learned how to be because of Thich Nhat Hanh and so as long as he could walk, as long as he could breathe, as long as he could be, the master was always with him.

I came away from this memorial service with a deeper appreciation of the legacy of Thich Nhat Hanh.  In this rather stark abode, the words of the humble monk made this memorial the most profound memorial I have ever attended and ever heard.

Peace,

Everett "Skip" Jenkins

Carlsbad, California

January 19, 2023

 

-----Original Message-----
From: skipjen2865@aol.com
To: 
Sent: Mon, Jan 16, 2023 3:19 am
Subject: Thich Nhat Hanh and Martin Luther King, Jr.: Spiritual Brothers

There is more to report concerning the Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial Service that was held at the Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, California, on January 8, 2023.  However, yesterday was Martin Luther King's actual birthday, and today is the day that the nation pauses to remember.

On this day of service, I bring attention to the connection between Thich Nhat Hanh and Martin Luther King, Jr.  Please read the blog post set forth in the link below

https://usfblogs.usfca.edu/fierce-urgency/2021/10/12/thich-nhat-hanh-and-dr-martin-luther-king-jr-spiritual-brothers-partners-in-nonviolence/

and wonder what both would say about the events that dominate the world today.

Peace,

Everett "Skip" Jenkins

-----Original Message-----
From: skipjen2865@aol.com
To: 

Sent: Thu, Jan 12, 2023 4:53 am
Subject: Thich Nhat Hanh Memorial: Walking Meditation and the Miracle of the Now

Walking Meditation

"We have to awaken ourselves to the truth that we are here, alive.  We are here making steps on this beautiful planet.  This is already performing a miracle.  But we have to be here in order for the miracle to be possible.  We have to bring ourselves back to the here and the now.  Therefore, each step we take becomes a miracle.  If you are able to walk like that, each step will be very nourishing and healing.  You walk, as if you kiss the earth with your feet, as if you massage the earth with your feet.  There is a lot of love in that practice of walking meditation."  Your True Home: The Everyday Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh, Lesson 5.

***** 

Just as the walk up the mountain was done in silence so too was the descent. I suspect that those most familiar with the lessons taught by Thich Nhat Hanh were abiding by his lesson concerning a walking meditation. I noticed that the nuns and the monks were all dressed in brown, but so too were many of the regular attendees. I suspect that it was a fitting tribute to the Zen master, that on his memorial day, 450 people would be walking in meditation up a mountain to view the beautiful scenery provided by this beautiful planet. Perhaps there could be no greater legacy than to have 450 people experience the miracle of the now. 

Perhaps all who read this can experience a similar miracle of the now of their own.

Peace,

Everett "Skip" Jenkins

-----Original Message-----
From: skipjen2865@aol.com
To:
Sent: Tue, Jan 10, 2023 5:57 am
Subject: 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

 

More tomorrow. I am getting sleepy.