What are the roots of our personal sufferings and the pains of the world?
We bring our mind home to re-examine our sufferings, to find a path. How to act. What we ought to do. What we ought to be.
Join us in reflecting and applying Thay’s 2008-09 teachings on a Buddhist contribution toward a Global Ethic – made available for the first time with English subtitles.
I Ethics, Mindfulness and the Four Noble Truths (Vietnamese)
This is the first talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 25th of October 2023.
Short excerpt of the talk (English) https://plumvillage.org/articles/seei…
0:01:02 Start of the talk
0:02:03 Spirit of a Rains Retreat – Buddha’s time and today
0:04:11 Practice each moment to transform the pain and difficulties in your heart
0:07:38 A place of refuge
0:08:45 Gratitude and mindfulness of water 💦 (gāthā) can bring happiness
0:12:17 Vietnamese Poem ‘home is the kite flying in the blue sky
0:14:21 To be happy is one thing but to be aware that we are happy is another
0:18:09 The sangha is everywhere, the sangha is our joy
0:22:21 New world order needs a new Global Ethics
0:26:00 What does buddhism have to offer
0:30:58 Our emphasis is on looking deeply
0:32:45 Parliament of World Religions – “Declaration Toward a Global Ethic”
0:43:59 The qualities that bring happiness and do not bring suffering to others
0:46:27 Becoming enlightened – what does it mean?
0:49:29 A tradition of teachings – not a religion
0:53:29 “Discourse on Turning the Wheel of the Dharma” – foundational material for Buddhist ethics
0:58:21 The essence of the Four Noble Truths or Four Holy Truths (Catvari Arya Satyani)
1:02:00 Taking refuge in the Truth – an encounter with the President of the Indian Council for International Cultural Relations
1:07:03 Recognising the real sufferings in our hearts and in society and finding a path
1:15:19 The intelligent way to understand the Buddha’s teachings on suffering
1:17:00 Insight and wisdom from growing old, illness, and dying
1:21:40 The sufferings of our time – collective (climate change, violence, division…) and personal (mental illness, despair, hatred…)
1:25:49 To find a path, we must see the roots of our suffering: the Second Noble Truth – the making of ill-being
1:29:41 The Four Noble Truths as a Buddhist contribution to a global ethic
1:34:12 Working together across spiritual traditions – insight and experience
II Redefining the Four Noble Truths (Vietnamese)
This is the second talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 1st of November 2023.
0:01:03 Start of the talk
0:03:41 Sovereignty over body and mind = freedom
0:10:05 The more powerful mindfulness and concentration, the greater the freedom
0:18:45 ‘’Let the Buddha breathe, let the Buddha walk’’ – practicing with short poems
0:23:51 Happiness is now or never
0:30:16 Master each breath and each step, these are essential practices
0:38:16 Aware of the ill-being in our body and mind: tension, anxiety, and anger that lead to illness and violence
0:47:27 War, terrorism, global warming – the ill-beings of our time
0:53:40 Re-organize our day so that when we walk, breathe, work, we relax and do not accumulate tension
0:58:24 The interconnected nature of ill-being
1:00:35 The making of ill-being is our way of living
1:14:16 Mindfulness, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path
1:21:41 The cessation of ill-being
1:28:10 Practicing mindfulness and the Noble Eightfold Path we can have free will
III Transcending Dualism in Ethics (English)
This is the third talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 8th of November 2023.
0:01:06 Start of the talk
0:01:39 Three kinds of approaches to ethics (Religious, Scientific, Buddhist)
0:10:55 The Buddhist approach: both subject and object of perception manifest from consciousness
0:14:00 Right view and The Noble Eightfold Path
0:18:31 The value of our life depends on the value of our thinking, speech and action (triple action)
0:32:51 Nothing is born, nothing can die and that is the nature of everything
0:37:43 Right thinking is free from fear and discrimination
0:43:15 Right mindfulness leads to insight
0:46:50 Wrong mindfulness: the suffering that comes from watching the film of the past in our mind
0:50:27 Original fear, original desire and their continuation
1:06:14 Right view transcends both notions of being and non-being
1:16:35 Pairs of opposites – bases for wrong view
1:27:41 Double grasping
1:45:05 Killing someone is killing yourself
1:48:28 Our ethic should be an ethic without dogmas
IV The Journey Through Mindfulness, Compassion and Difficult Choices (Vietnamese)
This is the fourth talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 15th of November 2023.
0:01:03 Start of the talk
0:01:05 The art of breathing as a practice
0:08:40 Invite the Buddha to breathe with your lungs
0:14:01 The body begins to heal itself
0:19:33 Calming the body, feelings, mental formations
0:25:21 The criteria of pleasure and pain
0:27:14 Utilitarianism
0:32:14 Similarities between Buddhism and Utilitarianism
0:36:12 Examining the decision to use an atomic bomb on civilians to end a war
0:47:33 What is Right thinking, Right view?
0:59:49 Ethical dilemmas through the first criteria of ill-being and well-being in Buddhism
1:17:40 The second criteria of ‘beneficial and un-beneficial’ in Buddhism
1:25:58 The third criteria of ‘delusion and awakening’
1:36:57 What is right and good needs to be based on the criteria, in line with the teachings and the mentality of that society
1:41:15 The ultimate criteria is to transcend all notions
V Right View is No View: Letting go of Rigid Beliefs (Vietnamese)
This is the fifth talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 22nd November 2023.
1:04: 📚 The Dharma talk discusses the concept of precepts in Buddhism, emphasizing the importance of understanding it as limitless and boundless.
• 3:16: The analogy of precepts being like the boundless ocean and the mountain of treasures is used to emphasize its limitless nature.
• 7:30: The significance of concentration and insight within precepts is explained.
• 8:42: The relationship between concentration and insight in the development of precepts is discussed, highlighting their role in its growth.
8:52: 🧠 Our teacher shares about the concept of Right View and its relation to the interconnectedness of all things.
• 10:02: The interconnectedness of all things is highlighted, with the analogy of the left hand and the right hand.
• 14:16: The relationship between Right View and the perception of the world is explored, emphasizing the need for true understanding.
• 15:29: The segment concludes with the statement ‘You are the environment’, emphasizing the interconnectedness of individuals and their surroundings.
15:40: 🌎 Thay discusses the concept of precepts in Buddhism, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all living beings and the environment.
• 15:57: Harming the environment is equivalent to harming oneself.
• 17:55: Thay emphasizes the importance of developing compassion and wisdom within the concept of precepts.
27:27: 🙏 The talk discusses the importance of non-attachment in Buddhist philosophy and the need to avoid being trapped in rigid beliefs or ideologies.
• 27:37: Thay highlights the need to open the mind and not be trapped in any particular belief system
• 30:04: Thay calls for collaboration and contribution from the audience to create a new framework for the coming years
• 31:19: The importance of maintaining a broad perspective and avoiding rigid beliefs is reiterated
34:11: 📚 Thay talks about the concept of Buddhism and its relationship with spirituality and science.
• 34:11: Buddhism is referred to as a philosophy more than a religion because it does not focus on a creator deity.
• 34:25: The discussion explores the perception of God and spirituality within Buddhism.
• 35:37: The concept of a creator deity is not central to Buddhism, and the perception of God varies among individuals.
• 37:37: The video emphasizes the need for exploration and reinterpretation of Buddhist beliefs in light of scientific advancements.
• 40:47: The interconnectedness of humans and the environment is highlighted as a fundamental belief in Buddhism.
• 41:25: The discussion touches on the non-dualistic nature of existence and the concept of birth and death in Buddhism.
• 41:33: Thay encourages further study and practice of Buddhism, acknowledging the potential for diverse interpretations.
42:18: 🧠 The talk discusses the intersection of science and Buddhism, emphasizing the importance of consciousness and perception.
• 42:18: New scientists are starting to see similarities between their work and Buddhist concepts.
• 43:56: The importance of consciousness and perception in both science and Buddhism is highlighted.
• 44:52: The dynamic nature of consciousness and its impact on suffering and happiness is discussed.
• 48:08: The relative nature of good and bad, and the concept of Nirvana are explained.
• 48:56: The segment concludes by discussing the concept of Nirvana and its transcendence of dualistic views.
• 49:30: The discussion of perception and consciousness extends to the realms of science and human existence.
49:39: 🧠 Thay discusses the concept of transcending traditional beliefs and embracing new knowledge and growth.
• 49:39: Discussion of cultural differences in perception of direction
• 51:30: Emphasis on the ability to let go of old beliefs and embrace new knowledge
56:47: 🧘 The Dharma talk discusses the importance of practicing compassion and empathy in Buddhism, and the relationship between the five precepts.
• 58:11: The second precept involves sharing one’s resources with those in need and avoiding greed and injustice.
1:04:37: 💡 Thay shares on the pursuit of happiness and the importance of understanding and love in achieving true happiness.
• 1:04:37: True happiness is not possible without understanding and love.
• 1:05:53: Running after wealth, fame, power, or sex can bring about suffering and despair.
• 1:07:16: Observing our ancestors’ practices of voluntary poverty and understanding the mental condition of happiness.
• 1:08:00: The importance of practicing understanding and love in achieving true happiness.
VI Can Morality be Rooted in Non-Duality and Interbeing? (English)
This is the sixth talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 29th of November 2023.
0:00:00 Three sounds of the bell
0:01:09 Start of the talk
0:02:23 The 5 Mindfulness Trainings: a path of understanding and love
0:14:16 Mindfulness is concentration and enlightenment
0:29:09 Touching insights beyond philosophies and notions
0:37:08 Right thinking is in the direction of non-fear, non-discrimination, of compassion, of hope
0:53:19 Responding to the sufferings of our time – global warming, terrorism, war, discrimination …
1:07:13 Cultivating non-dualistic thinking, discrimination is no longer there
1:17:21 Object of perception and subject of perception inter-are
1:21:49 Normative Ethics and Meta Ethics
1:37:18 Right view is the removal of all views
VII Life, Death, Love and Happiness in Daily Life (Vietnamese)
This is the seventh talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 8th December 2023.
0:00:00 Start of the talk
0:02:17 Being in touch with life, receiving life and giving life, life is wonderful
0:09:27 Life and death look like opposites but in light of Buddhist insight, life and death inter-are
0:19:55 If you are not mindful you cannot receive the wonders of life,
you lock yourself in a shell of grief and anger
0:26:53 Normative Ethics: what is the right thing to do?
0:28:13 The Buddhist criteria of ‘pleasure and pain’
0:35:41 The Buddhist criteria of ‘beneficial and un-beneficial’ and the relative nature of all criteria
0:40:34 The Buddhist criteria of ‘delusion and awakening’ can help inform the first two criteria
0:52:33 Applied ethics are needed to address real challenges in our world
1:01:25 ‘To open or to bar the way’ Buddhist criteria to prevent future harm
1:12:00 ’To uphold or to break’’ Buddhist criteria relating to the precepts
1:24:20 Meta Ethics: when you say right, what is right? When you say wrong, what is wrong?
VIII
This one is missing from the online sharings.
IX – Meditating on Emptiness, Signlessness & Aimlessness
This is the ninth talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 20th December 2023. Original date of the talk: 18 June 2009.
0:00:00 Start of the talk
0:02:50 Look deeply to discover the nature of emptiness, signlessness, aimlessness
0:07:16 The 12th awareness of breathing: to liberate the mind from the 10 fetters
0:15:32 The second fetter is violence and anger, born from ignorance and wrong views
0:23:00 The middle way is the way transcending all pairs of opposites
0:29:48 Liberation is not found by performing rituals but by engaging in rituals to become fully present in the here and the now, where there is mindfulness, joy and freedom
0:36:30 The 13th awareness of breathing: contemplating on impermanence
0:47:54 All formations are impermanent, all phenomena have to go through birth and death
00:55:27 The 14th awareness of breathing: concentration on no craving
01:02:27 The 16th awareness of breathing: break through all notions
X The Buddhist Understanding of Reality
This is the tenth and last talk of the series, which the community in Plum Village France watched on the 13th December 2023. Original date of the talk: 08 January 2009.
0:00:00 Start of the talk
0:04:07 Trainings available at the European Institute of Applied Buddhism
0:19:48 Applied Buddhism is a new term that comes after Engaged Buddhism
0:29:16 What can Buddhism do in order to release the tension, in ourselves, our families and the world
0:36:55 Both subject and object of perception manifest from consciousness according to interbeing
0:46:04 The true nature of reality is non-local, non-temporal
1:07:07 Nothing is born and nothing can die, only manifestation in different forms
1:25:36 Everything comes from the mind, that is why thinking is action, speaking is action and we speak of karma as the triple action
1:38:20 To be or not to be are both wrong views, to inter-be is better
1:46:22 The ultimate reality transcends notions of good and evil, right and wrong, that is the absolute criteria for Buddhist Ethics