2009 November 08 « Rev. Danny Fisher

A Gift of Dharma for 11.8.09

Today’s quote comes to us from the Most Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh.

A Buddhist monk from the age of sixteen, he is also a poet and activist credited with coining the phrase “Engaged Buddhism.”

As a young monk in the 1960s, Nhat Hanh founded the School of Youth Social Service in Saigon. An organization devoted to rebuilding destroyed villages, offering medical care, and providing other forms of relief, the S.Y.S.S. attracted thousands of student members despite government disapproval. During this time, Nhat Hanh also founded the La Boi Press and the Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon.

Around the year 1966, he founded the Order of Interbeing. That same year, while travelling abroad, he was barred from returning to Vietnam. (He was not able to come back again until 2005.)

In 1969, he founded the Unified Buddhist Church in France. The organization helped to lay the foundation for a community of exiles and monastics that, in 1982, became Plum Village. Nhat Hanh resides there to this day.

He has written well over 100 books, including such iconic titles as Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life; Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism; The Miracle of Mindfulness: A Manual on Meditation; Being Peace; Stepping Into Freedom: An Introduction to Buddhist Monastic Training; Creating True Peace: Ending Violence in Yourself, Your Family, Your Community, and the World; Living Buddha, Living Christ; Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames; Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha, and No Death, No Fear: Comforting Wisdom for Life. Perhaps his most famous work is the breathtaking poem “Please Call Me By My True Names”.

After taking Nhat Hanh’s advice to publicly speak out against the Vietnam War in 1967, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize, writing (among many other lovely things): “I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam…He is a holy man, for he is humble and devout…His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity.”

Here’s the quote–from Nhat Hanh’s book The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation (Broadway Books, 1999), pg. 153:

Be yourself. Life is precious as it is. All the elements for your happiness are already here. There is no need to run, strive, search, or struggle. Just be.

[Photo by Don Farber.]

10 comments

November 8, 2009

Mr. Fisher’s Neighborhood: Veggie Life Restaurant

It occurred to me recently that as a resident of San Gabriel Valley, I live around and patronize quite a few wonderful Buddhist temples, centers, shops, restaurants, etc.–establishments that readers of a Buddhist blog might like to know about. So, from time to time, I’d like to highlight some of these spots in a new feature we’ll dopily call “Mr. Fisher’s Neighborhood.”

Today’s site: Veggie Life Restaurant in South El Monte. A Vietnamese Buddhist-owned vegetarian restaurant, Veggie Life can be found at the southwest corner of East Garvey Avenue and Rosemead Boulevard on the first floor of a small shopping complex. If you use the Los Angeles Metro system, the 70 bus handily makes a stop right in front of it. Fortunately for me, though, Veggie Life is just a short walk from where I live, making me a frequent visitor. In fact, it’s probably my favorite place to grab a bite in the neighborhood: between the cosmically good food, lovely atmosphere, and sweet nature of the managment, I always look forward to going in. Here’s a look from the outside:

Though the Veggie Life Restaurant very much wears its Buddhist heritage on its sleeve with statues, literature, and other accessories, the aspect I appreciate the most would have to be the fact that Avalokiteśvara graces the cover of every menu:

Speaking of the menu, I think I’m beginning to amuse the owner and staff by looking at it when I come in because I always end up ordering the same thing, no matter how many times I mull over the options. That item: the Spicy “Beef” Soup with Vermicelli Noodles. Feast your eyes on my precious:

Yes, dear readers, it is as good as it looks: delicious broth, a sampling of different veggie “meats,” mushrooms, and just the right amount of spice. I’ve tried a few other things on the menu, but once I had this…well, there has been no going back (yet).

In short, Veggie Life Restaurant is awesome. If you’re an Angelino, come support this local Buddhist business, where the food is fantastic, the people couldn’t be nicer, and the vibe is lovely. Here’s all the pertinent information:

Veggie Life Restaurant
9324 Garvey Ave., Ste. B
South El Monte, CA 91733

(626) 443-8687

2 comments

November 8, 2009

Pairings for the Buddhist Bloggers’ Article Swap Announced!

Our pal Nate DeMontigny over at Precious Metal has announced the pairings for the Buddhist bloggers’ article swap that he recently proposed. I’m very pleased and happy to announce that I’ll be writing an article for the marvelous Richard Harrold over at my buddha is pink, and my dear friend Justin Whitaker at American Buddhist Perspective will write something for us here at this blog!

1 comment

November 8, 2009

The Jizo Chronicles

Check out the new blog The Jizo Chronicles by our friend Maia Duerr at the Upaya Chaplaincy Training Program! Maia describes the blog this way:

“Beings are numberless, I vow to save them.”

An impossible vow that lots of people chant each day, knowing there is no chance in hell of ever fulfilling it. Why do we do this? What does it look like to even attempt to keep this vow in these times of globalized fear, greed, aggression, and delusion?

The Jizo Chronicles aspires to be a place to explore these questions, share stories, and keep a joyful heart and good sense of humor all at the same time. If indeed there is no separate ‘self,’ then we certainly shouldn’t take ourselves too seriously.

I hope that some of the people I’ve met along my own path as an ‘engaged Buddhist’ (which Robert Aitken Roshi would probably say is a redundant phrase) will join on the way to offer their reflections as well. And while this blog will focus on Buddhism, it will at times also bring in voices from other “spiritual activist” traditions.

I hope that the writing here will provoke and inspire you. As the years go on, I find that I’m no longer so sure about things I was certain about before. The practice of “being with not knowing” gets more important, and labels like “liberal” and “conservative” become less meaningful. This blog is an experiment in socially engaged Buddhism beyond labels, or at least that’s the intention.

This won’t be a theoretical exercise only; we’ll pass along events and actions you may want to consider joining. And please check out the websites and blogs on the right side of the page. Good work is happening everywhere–please support these folks.

Follow “Rev. Danny Fisher”