Becoming a true friend of the Buddha is within our reach—all we need is a discerning eye and an open mind.
In A True Friend of the Buddha, Thich Nhat Hanh employs the spirit of investigation and free inquiry to revisit and critically assess some key Buddhist teachings. Even in the time of the Buddha, there were many people—including those in the monastic community—who did not recognize the true spirit of what the Buddha taught. As such, misunderstandings have been introduced throughout history into many of the Buddha’s teachings. By revisiting these teachings with a discerning eye, Thich Nhat Hanh demonstrates how to remove inconsistencies and errors that have persisted, in some cases, since the Buddha’s own time.
Using clear and direct language, Thich Nhat Hanh investigates the teachings passed down on key Buddhist teachings such as emptiness, non-self, nirvana, and the Twelve Nidanas, among others. Through these examples, the Zen master helps us to hone our capacity for critical examination of the teachings so that we become free from dogma. This is how to look with the eyes of a real student—and a true friend—of the Buddha.
Thich Nhat Hanh was a world-renowned spiritual teacher and peace activist. Born in Vietnam in 1926, he became a Zen Buddhist monk at the age of sixteen. Over seven decades of teaching, he published more than 100 books, which have sold more than four million copies in the United States alone. Exiled from Vietnam in 1966 for promoting peace, his teachings on Buddhism as a path to social and political transformation are responsible for bringing the mindfulness movement to Western culture. He established the international Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism in France, now the largest Buddhist monastery in Europe and the heart of a growing community of mindfulness practice centers around the world. He passed away in 2022 at the age of 95 at his root temple, Tu Hieu, in Hue, Vietnam.
Sister Annabel Laity (Chan Duc, True Virtue) was born in England and studied Classics and Sanskrit. In 1988, in India, she became the first European person to be ordained as a monastic by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
Becoming a true friend of the Buddha is within our reach—all we need is a discerning eye and an open mind.
In A True Friend of the Buddha, Thich Nhat Hanh employs the spirit of investigation and free inquiry to revisit and critically assess some key Buddhist teachings. Even in the time of the Buddha, there were many people—including those in the monastic community—who did not recognize the true spirit of what the Buddha taught. As such, misunderstandings have been introduced throughout history into many of the Buddha’s teachings. By revisiting these teachings with a discerning eye, Thich Nhat Hanh demonstrates how to remove inconsistencies and errors that have persisted, in some cases, since the Buddha’s own time.
Using clear and direct language, Thich Nhat Hanh investigates the teachings passed down on key Buddhist teachings such as emptiness, non-self, nirvana, and the Twelve Nidanas, among others. Through these examples, the Zen master helps us to hone our capacity for critical examination of the teachings so that we become free from dogma. This is how to look with the eyes of a real student—and a true friend—of the Buddha.
Author
Thich Nhat Hanh was a world-renowned spiritual teacher and peace activist. Born in Vietnam in 1926, he became a Zen Buddhist monk at the age of sixteen. Over seven decades of teaching, he published more than 100 books, which have sold more than four million copies in the United States alone. Exiled from Vietnam in 1966 for promoting peace, his teachings on Buddhism as a path to social and political transformation are responsible for bringing the mindfulness movement to Western culture. He established the international Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism in France, now the largest Buddhist monastery in Europe and the heart of a growing community of mindfulness practice centers around the world. He passed away in 2022 at the age of 95 at his root temple, Tu Hieu, in Hue, Vietnam.
Sister Annabel Laity (Chan Duc, True Virtue) was born in England and studied Classics and Sanskrit. In 1988, in India, she became the first European person to be ordained as a monastic by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.
