Interbeing and the Gift of Generosity

Interbeing and the Gift
of Generosity
T H Í C H N H ẤT H ẠN H FO U N DAT I O N
.Thầy taught that when we injure our right hand,
our left hand immediately moves to care for its
sibling and offer support.
This teaching illustrates the practice of interbeing, in which we are intrinsically aware of our deep
interconnectedness to all beings. We understand
that because of interbeing, our fates are intimately
bound together and when one of us suffers, we all
suffer.
At the same time, when one of us responds
selflessly to suffering, we all benefit from that act of
kindness. From this place, compassion and generosity can flow effortlessly.
Some of our monasteries are struggling right
now, especially Plum Village Monastery in France
and Blue Cliff Monastery in New York, US. They’re
facing considerable challenges with aging infrastructure, inadequate housing, building code violations, and insufficient event space for monastics
and guests, as well as other capital needs.
Because they vow to live simple, communal
lives, our dear monks and nuns don’t generally give
voice to these needs, however urgent. They put
deep trust in the practice and are happy to get by on
the bare minimum. At this moment, however, they
are hurting hands in need of our helping hands.
As an organization committed to supporting
our monastics and Thầy’s continuation, the Thích
Nhất Hạnh Foundation is sharing this information
with you.
It’s helpful to remember two things as we sit
together with the question of how best to respond
to this situation.
The first, which we wrote about in the last issue
of The Mindfulness Bell, is the ancient Buddhist
practice of dāna, a Sanskrit word meaning
Monastics, aspirants, and lay friends
help move a storage unit to make way
for the construction of the new monks’
residence in Solidity Hamlet of Deer
Park Monastery in California, US

“generosity.” Dāna, the first of the Six Pāramitās,
takes three forms: material gifts, the Dharma, and
the gift of non-fear.
“These great givings are the practice of The
Five Mindfulness Trainings,” Brother Pháp Hải said
once in a Dharma talk. “By doing so one gives fearlessness, love, and kindness to all beings. If one
human being can give security and freedom from
fear to others by his behavior, that is the highest
form of dāna, of generosity one can give.”
Our monastics share dāna with the lay community all year long through retreats and Days of
Mindfulness, Dharma talks, and guided meditations. Many of these and other such offerings are
available for free online.
For those fortunate to attend a monastery or
off-site retreat in person, you’ll see that the monks
and nuns also embody generosity of spirit in the
way they engage with retreatants, move mindfully,
invite the bell, eat their meals, and hold space for
all the energies that can arise when retreatants
gather to look deeply at their suffering.
The second thing to consider is that monasteries are not only retreat centers that provide a
service to guests. They are homes, academies,
sanctuaries, and laboratories where both aspiring
and senior monastics rest and renew themselves,
study, and devise fresh ways to share the Dharma,
whether through books, teaching tours, online
courses, or other means.
In his book Love Letter to the Earth, Thầy writes:
“When we are in love with someone or something,
there is no separation between ourselves and
the person or thing we love. We do whatever
we can for them and this brings us great joy and
nourishment.”
Many of you gave generously to help Deer Park
Monastery in California, US add living quarters
in Solidity Hamlet. This will not only create more
space for our monks but also allow Deer Park to
house the (happily) growing number of aspirants
and novices devoting themselves to monastic life.
You see, dāna isn’t only an act of generosity.
It’s an act of love.
If you feel moved to help our monks and nuns create monasteries
that are more safe, spacious, and welcoming, we invite you to
consider making a donation. Please visit tnhf.org/donate.
T H Í C H N H ẤT H ẠN H FO U N DAT I O N

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The practice centers and monasteries listed
here all practice in the Plum Village tradition of
Thích Nhất Hạnh. The centers are generally open
throughout the year, for short or long stays, to
help us learn the art of mindful living. In addition
to in-­person and online retreats, the practice centers offer regular Days of Mindfulness and other
events. Please visit their websites for information
and resources.
Blue Cliff Monastery, New York, US
bluecliffmonastery.org
Deer Park Monastery, California, US
deerparkmonastery.org
Magnolia Grove Monastery, Mississippi, US
magnoliagrovemonastery.org
Plum Village, France
plumvillage.org
Healing Spring Monastery, France
healingspringmonastery.org
Maison de l’Inspir, France
maisondelinspir.over-­blog.com
European Institute of Applied Buddhism,
Germany
eiab.eu
Stream Entering Monastery, Australia
nhapluu.org
Mountain Spring Monastery, Australia
mountainspringmonastery.org
Asian Institute of Applied Buddhism,
Hong Kong
pvfhk.org
Plum Village Thailand
thaiplumvillage.org
We can deepen our practice with the many resources in the Plum Village tradition available
online: the Sangha directory, community initiatives, guided meditations, Dharma talks, books,
articles, news, songs, and much more:
mindfulnessbell.org
Parallax Press
parallax.org
The Plum Village App
plumvillage.app
The Way Out Is In Podcast
plumvillage.org/podcasts/the-­way-­out-­is-­in
The Raft
thichnhathanhfoundation.org/the-­raft
Thích Nhất Hạnh Dharma Talks
tnhaudio.org
ARISE Sangha
arisesangha.org
Happy Farm
thehappyfarm.org
Earth Holder Community
earthholder.training
Wake Up
wkup.org
Wake Up Schools
wakeupschools.org
Thích Nhất Hạnh Foundation
thichnhathanhfoundation.org
Plum Village
Practice Centers & Resources

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IN THE PLUM VILL AGE TR ADITION OF THÍCH NHẤT HẠNH
The Radiant Insight of Nonduality
Issue 94 - 2024
MindfulnessBell.org: Our website includes new and expanded digital content updated weekly, an archive with
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