The Art of Mindful Living: Gratitude for Thich Nhat Hanh and His Teachings

Thich Nhat Hanh is not only a zen master but a true catalyst for the change in the world we are trying to create. His teachings have carried an essence of love and understanding throughout the world to all people regardless of gender, race, or religion. He is a true example of love and mindfulness in the world. He is someone who represents the elements of nature but stays in the sky, watching everything pass. He has become what he has taught, and it will stick with everyone who decides to listen for centuries to come. However, even though I have never met him personally, he has touched upon my life more than anyone else in the world. Thich Nhat Hanh is the guiding force I have to write, to speak, and become my real true self, he’s a grounding force in my life. I would like to share with you the most important things I have learned from Thich Nhat Hanh and how they can change the way I perceive life as well. I believe it is a great honor to reach out to whoever I can and spread his awareness as he did for many who were lost, fearful, sad, anxious, or empty.

The Lessons I have carried within my heart: Thich Nhat Hanh

1. To love someone is to understand them.

I think a lot of people I come across ask me what love is, and this is always what I answer. The weight of the words made me realize that I in fact love someone when I understand them. That is what led me to make a blog, to really pick people’s brains, to lessen my judgment on everyone. It’s these words that have changed me in a million and one ways. When I understand someone, I’m learning what they love, what they fear, what they do that makes them joyful, at peace, or sad. I’m learning the bits of someone that they might not have shared unless asked, making them realise their own true potential and love, and appreciation for themselves and who they are.

2. Mindfulness/Presence in everyday life.

To bring more joy in my own life, I recognise it is the awareness of just being alive, it comes with no tools. It begins with my breath and to bring awareness into the way I walk, the way I speak, from the way I eat my food and blessing it before, once I bring awareness into what I’m doing, there is no such thing except this present moment. No worry, no fear. I am here with myself, aware of everything and it’s so beautiful that sometimes I tear up, I can take life for granted and this takes me back to myself and I can sink into the earth again.

3. Simplicity in all Things

This teaching can go hand in hand with mindfulness. Once I become absolutely aware with no distractions, everything else becomes heightened. I can see things more vividly, more clearly, with details I might have missed before, like the colors of the forest, the skies everchanging positions of clouds, and even how colorful someone’s eyes are and how detailed they can become depending on their mood, as with the seasons. In addition to seeing more clearly, my hearing also expands when I listen more closely, it becomes deeper. I can hear the rhythm of my own heart, the birds in the morning and night, I can pinpoint my intuition rather than others people’s voices in my head. The way people speak they give away little parts of themselves and how they talk about certain subjects as well, if their voices become higher or lower. Smelling becomes more open and intimate in itself, I like to walk around places that have gardens or libraries because I know those certain smells can trigger an emotional response that makes me feel safe or joyful and thankful. Even more so, touch and taste become an experience filled with serenity and gratitude. I can feel the way my body reacts to the food I am eating, which helps me figure out what is good for me or not. When I’m aware of something I am touching or tasting, hearing, or seeing…I am, in that same moment, blessing it with love. The senses are all an experience we can partake in every day. the simple act of being aware of each one that can let me dive deeper into life and myself. Let’s not take it for granted!

4. Intention changes the way we respond to the world and how the world responds to us

Nothing has changed my life as dramatically as the intention has. Intention has brought about new experiences, friendships, and the way I live my life every day. Once I started to set an intention for yoga, eating, speaking to someone, the day I have upon me or the night… everything shifted, and not to mention it makes me feel alive, putting me in a space of grace and love. Not only does it shift outwards, but internally I feel myself respond in my true self, to the way I want to speak to people, do things and is also a safe space to help myself recognise what I actually want in life, instead of acting on autopilot, chasing desire.

5. Becoming the essence of love and understanding.

How beautiful is it that once we understand ourselves, it’s easier to understand others and the way they live their lives? People make other people suffer because they are suffering themselves, and how can we stay mad at the fact that people are trying their best with the knowledge that they have now. Understanding my feelings and the feelings of others is more a realisation, than a reaction, towards any of the emotions I carry within me. They do not have the strength as they once did or the effect. I see life as this enchanting journey where I’m learning about what it means to live a true life for me and others are doing the same. Not everyone is meant to live a life I understand and that’s okay, as long as they are happy, then why does it matter? That’s how love becomes who I am, that’s where love starts- in understanding, and is what I have learned throughout my life.

Thich Nhat Hanh says,

“You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.”

This is definitely one of the most moving words I have heard him say. It is not about having these expectations of another, fitting them in what we want them to be, but letting them express who they truly are at the soul/heart of themselves. It might not make sense to us, but it’s the sole act of appreciating it that sets ourselves, and them free. Therefore, To accept who they are, we must be okay that they might change their mind on something, or someone like us, or even about themselves and who they thought they were. We’re always expanding and learning new things about ourselves in this life and that everyone is on their own path and sometimes our paths might not lead up to the same journey we ourselves are on and there is nothing wrong with that. We can be happy that such a beautiful person crossed our path, for the time being, teaching us things we might not have thought of before, or showing us a new way to look at something. It’s never about the ending of what we expected but the journey of what came about during that time and how we can integrate that.
 

I want to say an immense thank you and show my love and appreciation to Thich Nhat Hanh, and what a miraculous and humble figure in my life he will continue to be for me to live by. Since I have heard of his passing, I was broken into pieces, but I realise more than ever at this moment, so many parts of myself have bloomed with gratitude and love for him and how important words can change the world, as long as we use those words as an anchor and live through them.

“Through my love for you, I want to express my love for the whole cosmos, the whole of humanity, and all beings. By living with you, I want to learn to love everyone and all species. If I succeed in loving you, I will be able to love everyone and all species on Earth… This is the real message of love.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh

If you would like to donate to PlumVillage in Gratitude and thanks for Thich Nhat Hanh and his teachings you can do so here:

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I have no affiliation with this nor do I get any percentage, this is to show my love for what he has done for me and others,

Thank you,

Neena