Thich Nhat Hanh Healing in Vietnam The Wonderful World of Gathas

healing in VIETNAMHealing in VietnamIIn early 2007 Thich Nhat Hanh led a ninety-day pilgrimage to Vietnam.Fifty monks and nuns from the monasteries in the U.S. and Franceaccompanied him, along with a hundred lay Westerners, in each of fourthree-week segments. On this second historic visit to his homeland, Thaywas also accompanied by Vietnamese monks and nuns numbering inthe hundreds, from the three monasteries in Vietnam that practice in thetradition of Plum Village.As of this writing, Thay has offered two Great Ceremonies of Healing, alsocalled Grand Requiem Masses, for the souls of those who perished duringthe Vietnam War. Never before has Vietnam seen such ceremonies. Inthe first ceremony in Ho Chi Minh City, as many as ten thousand peopleparticipated.Here are writings and photos from two lay participants. David Nelson,Compassionate Guidance of the Heart, recently retired after eighteen yearsworking in public health on Indian reservations in the southwestern U.S. Henow practices with the Organic Garden and Ripening Sanghas in southernCalifornia. Madeline Dangerfield-Cha from Cleveland, Ohio, will enterColumbia University next fall; she has four half-brothers and one half-sisterunder the age of seven. Look for more about this historic trip in the nextissue of the Mindfulness Bell, and view additional photos by David Nelsonat www.flickr.com/photos/rezdog/. Hear Dharma talks and interviews fromthe Vietnam trip at www.dpcast.org.Arrival Day in Ho Chi Minh CityAt the Quang Duc Temple, there was a great welcoming ceremonyfor Thay and the sangha. After a long formal procession,Touching the Earth was offered to the temple’s venerables for along life to the patriarch that may continue to benefit many. Themost venerable offered warm greetings and wishes for a successfultrip. Next we took buses to An Quang temple. Thay sharedthat at this temple he became a Dharma teacher, giving hundredsof Dharma talks in that hall. Afterwards our procession slowlypassed by smiling and bowing crowds and made its way to a mostdelicious Vietnamese feast. We dined to the sounds of up-beatpopular music. That night at Phap Van, Thay gave his first talk ofthe trip. We in the lay sangha were fortunate to witness the talkfrom directly behind Thay, and to see the faces in the audience.Thay encouraged us to practice coming back to our breath as taughtby the Buddha in the Anapanasati Sutra on mindful breathing.[Read part of this Dharma talk on page 4.]—David NelsonAll photos in this section by David Nelson and Madeline Dangerfield-Cha10 Summer 2007