logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2021
54m 51s

The Beginning of a Mindful Journey (Epis...

PLUM VILLAGE
About this episode

Welcome to The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and creating more happiness and joy in our lives.

Meet your hosts, Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and lay Buddhist practitioner and journalist Jo Confino, as they introduce themselves and share their aspirations for this series. In this episode, they discuss choosing the title and its meaning, the art of calligraphy, the work of the Plum Village zen monastic community, discovering the practice of mindfulness in the tradition of Plum Village, and their first encounters with Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay).

Brother Phap Huu also shares stories from his seventeen-year period as Thay’s personal attendant, and glimpses of life in the monastic community. You’ll also hear a short history of Thay’s early years as a monk in war-torn Vietnam, his travels to other parts of the world, and how he joined forces with civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. to call for global peace, and started “the beloved community.”

Phap Huu remembers his first encounter with the mindful art of calligraphy, how the title of the podcast was inspired by a calligraphy, and Thay’s fondness for this art. 

Jo shares his first experience interviewing Thay, an unexpected introduction to mindful walking, how he truly came home to the here and now during his Plum Village visits and retreats, and why he currently resides in the vicinity of the monastery, in the south of France.

The discussion also touches upon the ideas behind applied or engaged Buddhism, the interconnection between suffering and happiness, Sangha (community), Samatha, and Vipassana.

The episode ends with a guided meditation by Brother Phap Huu. 

Co-produced by the Plum Village App:
https://plumvillage.app/

And Global Optimism:
https://globaloptimism.com/

With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/


List of resources

Plum Village Community
https://plumvillage.org/

Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation
https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/

Parallax Press – Publishing House
https://www.parallax.org/

Tu Hieu PagodaThe Root Temple
https://plumvillage.org/tag/tu-hieu/

The Hero with a Thousand Faces
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hero_with_a_Thousand_Faces

The Hare and the Tortoise
https://fablesofaesop.com/the-hare-and-the-tortoise.html


Quotes 

“One Buddha is not enough.”

“‘The way out is in’ is telling us that a lot of the answers that we are looking for actually begin from within us.”

“The great mystery is to explore within to find the answers, because we now have come to a place in society where we recognise that this is a dead end and actually we are not going to progress as a civilisation or be at peace with ourselves or with nature if we don’t actually go deep into ourselves for the answers.”

“There’s only one style of walking in Plum Village and that is mindful walking, and mindful walking is to enjoy each step.”

“If we know how to suffer, we will suffer much less.”

Up next
May 15
The Three Jewels (Episode #89)
Welcome to episode 89 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives ... Show More
1h 22m
May 1
The Four Immeasurable Minds (Episode #88)
Welcome to episode 88 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives ... Show More
1h 33m
Apr 17
The Noble Eightfold Path (Episode #87)
Welcome to episode 87 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives ... Show More
1h 31m
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2022
A meditation in memory of Thich Nhat Hanh
Rohan Gunatillake recounts his 2005 trip to Plum Village, the monastic community founded by the great Zen teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. Author of over 100 books across mindfulness, Buddhism, activism, and nonviolence, Thich Nhat Hanh inspired generations of people all around the world ... Show More
16m 4s
Jun 2024
The Buddhist Case For Laziness (And How It Can Make You More Productive) | Brother Chân Pháp Hữu
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. --- What if one of the often overlooked keys to being productive is being lazy? That’s the case you will hear made today by Brother Pháp Hữu, a very impressive y ... Show More
1h 3m
Mar 2024
Finding Peace: A Buddhist Monk's Journey
Embark on a transformative journey with Tenzin as he explores the ancient teachings of Buddhism within the serene walls of a Buddhist monastery. Delve into the peaceful atmosphere of the monastery, where Tenzin discovers profound lessons of compassion, mindfulness, and inner peac ... Show More
8m 30s
Jan 2023
The Dalai Lama’s Guide to Happiness - Part 1 - with Dan Harris
Tara shares a podcast from Dan Harris: The Dalai Lama’s Guide to Happiness - Part 1 - Dan Harris (host of Ten Percent Happier) flies to Dharamsala, India to spend two weeks in the orbit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. This is the first installment of a five-part audio documentary ... Show More
5m 12s
Jun 2023
The Buddha’s Four-Part Strategy for “Ultimate Happiness” | Sally Armstrong
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. --- “Mindfulness” has become a buzz phrase. There are books on mindful parenting, mindful lawyering, even mindful sex. But what does the word even mean? And how ... Show More
1h 6m
Jul 2022
How a Buddhist Monk Deals With Anxiety | Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. Anxiety has long been a massive societal issue that has spiked during the pandemic. In this episode, renowned Buddhist monk Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche talks in deta ... Show More
54m 16s
Mar 2022
How to Suffer Well | Brother Pháp Dung
New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. -- In January 2022, Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese Zen master, peace activist, poet, and author passed away. He was the founder of the International Plum Villag ... Show More
1h 3m
Apr 2021
Why Buddhism Is Inherently Hopeful (Despite All the Talk of Suffering) | Oren Jay Sofer
Buddhism can get a bad rap as being hopelessly pessimistic -- in no small measure because one of the Buddha’s first principal pronouncements was, “Life is suffering.” But if you listen to the rest of his spiel, you will hear that the Buddha acknowledges that life can be hard, but ... Show More
50m 12s