A Spiritual Family without Borders

Brother Chân Trời Đức Hiền

The following are excerpts from a diary written during the 6-week Latin America tour in the spring of 2023 with five other monastic brothers and sisters from Plum Village.

Province of Santa Catarina, Brazil

We just spent the afternoon with sangha members, many of whom were meeting monastics for the first time. I feel that they were deeply touched by our presence and the fact that we had traveled so far to meet them. We began our session with some Plum Village songs in Portuguese. Immediately the atmosphere relaxed and the connection of hearts lit up each face with a sweet smile. Many of them had tears in their eyes. Their sharings and questions were imbued with deep solemnity, and a real quest for meaning in the face of their difficulties.

After a friendly and joyful dinner in a vegan restaurant run by a member of the sangha, they invited us to share our experience of practicing with the confronting realities of daily life. To our great surprise, the amphitheater was filled with around 400 people!

The organizer of this evening invited a group of young musicians to start off the evening with the chanting of mantras to the beat of local rhythms, which was met with much enthusiasm.

I was very touched by the communal energy which was slowly taking hold, giving us confidence to take turns sharing — with the help of a translator — about how the practice inspired us, and allowed us to welcome life as it manifested itself inside and around us. On the bus back to our accommodation we shared the wonder and deep gratitude that we felt after such an encounter.

I felt truly blessed and honored to be part of this group, and to become even more aware of the power of our commitment to “awaken humanity to love and the reality of interbeing.” I saw more clearly how the precepts and monastic robe offered me the opportunity to be, without needing to appear, to exist by myself. I could simply allow every moment of this multifaceted, collective movement to manifest and shine through, smiling to life.

A few days later, we facilitated a retreat with 80 people, including the group of young musicians who generously accompanied us for the five days of practice with their songs, guitars and percussion. Music, for me, is a vehicle of joy and prayer, of direct connection through the heart, so you can imagine my happiness. Of course, I joined them on several occasions to share Plum Village songs revisited with a Brazilian groove.

As was often the case in our retreats, we met in the afternoon for Dharma sharing. We had the great fortune to sit outside at the foot of a 60-meter high waterfall, which accompanied us with its powerful roar. Mother Earth watched over us, that was undeniable. Nature was abundant and I felt transported by this lush beauty. Little by little, everyone opened their hearts, suffering was expressed and embraced by the collective energy. As always, the alchemy of hearts did its work!

Just before closing the session, a young woman spoke with great intensity about her pain of having lost her big brother three years ago in an accident. For the first time, she allowed herself to cry and to feel the lack of his presence. She had locked everything up inside her heart. She told us that she was very surprised to find herself gradually opening up and finally let herself be embraced by the collective energy of compassion. Her body relaxed, her eyes softened, grief could finally be welcomed, and a wave of sweetness and tenderness ran through the entire group. I was deeply touched and happy to witness such a rebirth of life. It reminded me of my own journey with grief.

The next morning, her mother, who also participated, shared with us her joy of finally finding her daughter alive again. It is true that the transformation was striking! We saw her again a few days after the retreat and celebrated this little miracle together with eyes full of tears and hearts of gratitude.

Province of São Paulo, Brazil

After a few hours of traveling from the center of São Paulo with more than 12 million inhabitants, we got off the bus a little groggy. I couldn’t believe my eyes — we had arrived in Nazaré Uniluz, a paradise on Earth! The tropical vegetation is sumptuously extravagant, everything is a harmony of colors, shapes, scents and in beautiful collaboration with humans.

Located in Nazaré Paulista, in the countryside of São Paulo, this secular spiritual community was founded 42 years ago (the same year as Plum Village), inspired among others by Thay and the practice of mindfulness. Around 30 people lived there, not including the 50 some young volunteers who were there for long stays!

The host who welcomed us spoke French very well. He had traveled a lot and ended up settling there. He is now one of the coordinators of this practice center. Like Plum Village, they also welcome retreatants throughout the year. There reigned an atmosphere of beauty, serenity, united in joy. I very quickly felt a deep synergy with this place and its inhabitants.

Early Sunday morning, 70 people, including 10 young residents, received the Five Mindfulness Trainings. On average, 80% of participants in our retreats in South America made this commitment. As usual, the space was charged with spiritual intensity that connected our hearts and dissolved the boundaries of the mind. Moving testimonies of gratitude follow the ceremonies.

I met two women activists committed to indigenous populations. Deep in their eyes shone a spark of determination and love that warmed the hearts of the most deprived. The youngest of them shared with us her admiration for Sr. Chan Khong and aspiration for monastic life. In fact, she arrived in Plum Village at the start of the Rains Retreat with the intention to join the aspirant program. How wonderful!

Another moment of pure grace happened during walking meditation. I was hand-in-hand with a little girl, accompanied by her mother, who was so happy to be able to join us. The little girl sent me a drawing which now hangs above my bed. A smile is guaranteed when I wake up!

Buenos Aires, Argentina

After an hour and a half of traveling in traffic jams, we arrived at a Catholic university and were welcomed by the local sangha in a small room. There were around 30 people practicing here once a week! We bowed reverently and right away I felt a deep warmth in my heart. There was something intensely familiar and comforting. I hardly knew anyone and yet the deep and joyful sense of being part of this spiritual family allowed me to feel at home. The atmosphere of brotherhood and sisterhood was authentic and reassuring.

I realized the extent of Thay’s transmission which allows us to be at home in any community in the world — a bell, a few cushions, a photo of our master, a candle, a little incense, flowers, caring smiles and the depth of the practice brought us together that evening. We shared a deep aspiration to cultivate mindfulness, to learn, to understand and love better. Most people had never met Thay, or even had the chance to come and stay in Plum Village. Yet I could feel the presence of our beloved teacher in the looks, the words, the quality of listening, the heart vibrating with compassion and the bodhicitta of the members of this beautiful assembly.

The following Sunday, we met for a Day of Mindfulness in a park, near a 6-lane road, which was rather noisy. Fortunately, there was a space with very beautiful trees to welcome the participants. To our great surprise, nearly 250 people joined, including a few families with their children. We quickly forgot the urban atmosphere that surrounded us and practiced together with enthusiasm. I was amazed to see that within a very short time our small group managed to generate an atmosphere of attentive presence, calm, joy, relaxation, depth and togetherness.

At the end of the day, the smiles were generous and abundant, and many people came up to us to express their gratitude for this precious moment of communion and simplicity. I realized how touched I was by these magical moments that happen when our differences fade away and reveal a great pure heart that radiates love for all beings. As a Zen monk and disciple of Thay, I feel honored to be able to embody this ancestral wisdom, and am impressed by the simple conditions needed for happiness to manifest.

Santiago, Chile

We concluded our tour with a multitude of meetings, public events, workshops and a beautiful 4-day retreat, all organized by the Chilean sangha. A group of young teachers who teach mindfulness in public schools shared their enthusiasm with me. There are eight government-funded teachers involved. Amazing! I was deeply inspired by the depth of their practice and the beauty of their commitment for future generations.

A few days later, we visited a mindfulness based school, created by another bodhisattva more than 10 years ago, for immigrant children from a disadvantaged neighborhood. Without this initiative, most of them would have had great difficulty integrating. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by the smiles and curiosity of the children. I took out the guitar and we happily shared some Plum Village songs. They invited us to dance and we were off into an endless round of happiness. Spontaneously a small group took me by the hand, showed me all the classes, and then invited me to have lunch in the canteen. I was jubilant with gratitude and my inner child was in nirvana.

We returned to Plum Village with a happy heart accompanied by our young driver, who took care of us from the beginning of our stay in Brazil. He has since joined the Happy Farm program in the Upper Hamlet and his presence among us is truly enchanting.