For Lion’s Roar’s new collector’s edition, Thich Nhat Hanh, we asked readers and fans to share their stories of appreciation for the Vietnamese Zen teacher and founder of Engaged Buddhism. You’ll find those stories collected in the publication under the title “Thank You, Thay.” (Thay being a name Thich Nhat Hanh’s students affectionately call him.)
Unsurprisingly, there were many, many responses. What was surprising, to us at least, was how many of them came in as poems. Those, we’ve collected here. Enjoy.
Thich Nhat Hanh. Photo by Duc.
What Thay means to me:
A man of peace
Generates a warmth felt miles away
Many thanks for his teachings
A courageous practitioner
—Michele Simko, North Carolina
Connection
the sound of the bell
breathing in and breathing out
stillness presence peace
—Frances Kelly, far west Victoria, Australia
Arriving at a concert hall…
Arriving at a concert hall in Boston on the back of a motorcycle, all charged up and enthused. It’s 1989.
The crowd mirrors my excitement.
As He glides like a silent cloud into the hall there is a cognitive dissonance.
What is this trouble I feel in front of such soft presence?
Discernment begins!
The rose is garbage and a rose again.
—Shoba Satya, Portland, OR
Thay means…
Thay means welcome to Dana
All-inclusive bodhisattva
Here is your home whoever you are
Here is food
Here is shelter
Here you are
Here we inter-are
Here we walk together
Thay is the father of Maison de l’Inspir
where I stepped in when i just came
back to France after 12 years in India
Thay is the father of Plum Village where I go now
every summer to welcome family and children
from all over the world
Thay is Commitment and love
Endurance and Confidence
Breath and Movement
Clearing Space
for Joy to manifest
—Estelle Guihard, Plum Village, France
a continual…
a continual
drop of fresh
and clear
water
in the Long and Wide River
of Earth’s JOY and sadness…….
‘p e a c e’
IS
every step’,
and i
WALK
daily, with great gratitude
for watered com passion,
—Leonora Orr, Kaua’i, Hawai’i
Dews from the Palm Leaves
[Thoughts from reading Thich Nhat Hanh’s Fragrant Palm Leaves in a course: Creative Writing through Reading at University of Toronto Continuing Studies taught by Dr. Ranjini Philip]
On my five-thousand-year-old feet
I tread over last night’s fresh snow
My heart beats with an ancient rhythm
Heard through ageless waves
Slapping against a future shore
The fragrance of palm leaves follows me
The plum bridge leads me
To wherever I make my home
The stars, the moon remain
In the nightly sky
Shining on my path
Just as LOVE remains
Wherever
Whenever
Forever
—Lynn Xu
A gentle voice in the midst of pain
A gentle voice in the midst of pain,
Soothing words that bring us all in together,
Wisdom that is timeless and current at the same time,
A life worth living, an ethical foundation, a way into ancestral knowledge,
Just a fraction of what Thich Nhat Hanh means to me.
—Shelia Canal (location unknown)
Thich Nhat Hanh
Breast cancer. Deep suffering. Holy book. “Peace is Every Step.”
Cool water eases flame. Thay’s voice. Buddha bells. True self.
Climate crisis. “Fall in love with Mother Earth again.” True home.
“Call Me By My True Names.” Viet Nam pilgrimage. Healing war wounds.
“There is no annihilation!” Plum Village Monastery. Relief.
“Hornets as terrorists.” Deer Park Monastery. Insight.
“You are already what you want to become.” Ordination. Bodhisattva vows.
100 words are not enough.
Thich Nhat Hanh. Love and wisdom.
Good medicine. Svaha!
—Rev. Jayna Gieber, Battle Ground, WA.
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh benefited my life…
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh benefited my life…
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh is my light in some of the dark places I meet on my way…
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh brings my smile back in some sad days in the right moment…
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh let me understand what really matters in life…
Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh pointed me the way to go ….
Thank you Arjarn Thich Nhat Hanh from the bottom of my heart
—Michelangelo Di Giorgio (Mic Thuansing Sityodtong)
