Announcements

Dear Beloved Community, It is with great pleasure to announce that the videos from the April 26, 2023, Inaugural Symposium and Launch Celebration of the Thich Nhat Hanh Center for Mindfulness in Public Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health are now available for viewing on our YouTube channel! We understand that not everyone could join us in person, therefore, we wanted to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to experience and revisit these incredible moments with us in a recording. Here’s how you can access the videos: Visit our YouTube Channel: Head over to our official YouTube channel by clicking on the link below: @mindfulpublichealth Inaugural Symposium and Launch Celebration Playlist: Once you’re on our YouTube channel, you’ll find a dedicated playlist that contains all the videos from the event. Simply click on the playlist, and you’ll be able to watch each session at your convenience. Each video has “chapters” in the caption to easily find specific moments or presenters. Subscribe and Share: While you’re on our channel, don’t forget to hit the “Subscribe” button to stay updated with our latest content. We encourage you to share these videos with your colleagues, friends, and networks to help us reach a wider audience. We believe that these videos capture the essence of the day-long symposium and launch celebration that brought together leading academics, well-known practitioners of mindfulness, and monastics who studied under Thich Nhat Hanh. We honor Thich Nhat Hanh’s remarkable life and timeless teachings while exploring the scientific evidence supporting the value of practicing mindfulness to improve well-being. Whether you attended the event in person or couldn’t make it, these videos offer a chance to revisit the highlights or experience them for the first time. Thank you for being a part of our journey. If you have any questions or need further information, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at mindfulpublichealth@hsph.harvard.edu Stay tuned for more exciting updates from the Center in the near future! With utmost gratitude,
Thich Nhat Hanh Center for Mindfulness in Public Health

Even as they
strike you down
with a mountain of hatred and violence;
even as they step on you and crush you
like a worm,
even as they dismember and disembowel you,
remember, brother,
remember:
man is not our enemy. – Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (excerpt from the poem Recommendation)   October 13th, 2023   Dear Friends of the International Plum Village Community, Our hearts are breaking as we witness the horrific violence that is being unleashed in many parts of the world and most recently in the Middle East: in Israel and in Gaza. We know that both Palestinians and Israelis are our siblings—our brothers, sisters, children, our family—who are being killed, and who are driven to kill. In an atmosphere of violence, accusation and retaliation, we have a tendency to dehumanize the other. Once anger, fear, and suspicion take over, it seems like there is nothing to do besides kill or be killed. Today we shed tears as we witness our Israeli and Palestinian siblings dying, sustaining severe injuries—both psychological and physical—and losing loved ones in the hate-fueled attacks of the very few. Violence can only lead to more violence and diminish any possibility of dialogue and reconciliation—unless we go deeply within ourselves to see that human beings are not our enemy. We need a coalition of wise and courageous people—in Gaza, West Bank, Israel and in the international community—who refuse to give in to this hate: a non-violent army. It is time for violence in all its many forms to end in the Holy Land. With compassion, love, and wisdom in our hearts we can make ourselves available to listen deeply to the cries of those now in Gaza and Israel and elsewhere in the world—the cries of those undergoing the deep mental crisis of being trapped in a conflict zone, who are looking to keep their love strong in the midst of this horror. We need to lend them our strength. We all need to go beyond the delusive and destructive idea that we are separate from each other. Let us create islands of non-violence and peace in our hearts, in our homes and beyond, via email, phone and video. Let us live every moment seeing those we think of as the enemy as not separate from ourselves—as our own blood, skin and bones—and let us not allow hatred to take over. Let us come back and take care of our feelings with calm and clarity, holding our sadness, fear, anger, and despair and resist the temptation to blame, punish, and have to choose a side. This meditation may be challenging at this moment but it is what we as a collective need now in order to awaken from the madness and destruction. Revenge and punishment cannot be the answer. Join us to generate this imperturbable compassion in your own heart, and radiate it out in every direction to our siblings experiencing great loss, fear and pain in this moment. The war is complex and difficult to stop, but it is also impermanent. Its cessation now depends on our capacity, as human beings, to listen deeply, resist polarization and discrimination, and take concrete steps towards lasting reconciliation with love in our hearts. Love, compassion, and courage need to have a place in politics. With love for all beings suffering in the hell of war, The Plum Village International Monastic Community Thich Nhat Hanh Center for Mindfulness in Public Health   The original message from The Plum Village International Monastic Community can be found here.   Resources for the Harvard Chan School Community:   Counseling and Mental Health Services (CAHMS) is a no-cost support service for those who are experiencing distress. They are open around the clock (617-495-2042). Harvard University Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offers free, confidential help for all Harvard employees and their adult household members. They are open around the clock (877-327-4278). The Harvard Chaplains are also available to offer pastoral support and guidance to members of the University (617-879-8365).

Join us from September 26 to October 1, 2023, at Deer Park Monastery for an extraordinary retreat and symposium open to all, merging the timeless teachings of the Buddha with the forefront of scientific inquiry. REGISTRATION IS OPEN The Buddha the Scientist Retreat is a transformative journey into the present moment, empowering scientists and the wider community to cultivate mental stability amidst the multifaceted challenges of our time. The Buddha, as a true pioneer, ignited a revolution in understanding the mind and body. His teachings offer concrete methods to develop mindfulness, concentration, and insight—an invaluable compass for seekers throughout the ages. Moreover, he embodied a scientific mindset, continually adapting his teachings based on real-life evidence gleaned from his own practice and that of his students. In this retreat, offered in collaboration with Deer Park Monastery, we delve into this intersection of wisdom and scientific inquiry, revealing profound insights and a pathway to a more embodied understanding of our minds. We will learn how to practice: Mindful breathing, walking, eating, speaking, and listening Grounding attention in the breath and body to interrupt the torrent of conceptual thinking that perpetuates emotional turbulence, leading to a profound understanding of how our thoughts and perceptions shape our emotional landscape Cultivating conscious attention at a collective level, nurturing vitality and the capacity to thrive as a community Dissolving the illusion of separation through embodied mindfulness practices Engaging in research from a non-dualistic perspective, which extends from the personal to the collective Fostering inclusive and holistic approaches to public health through mindfulness practice, transcending regional, national, and global boundaries Forging deeper connections and harmonious relationships with others and the Earth Experience a groundbreaking exploration where ancient wisdom intertwines with scientific inquiry. Amidst the climate emergency, political divisions, conflicts, and social inequities, this retreat helps us cultivate inner stability. Embrace the transformative power of mindfulness and embark on a collective journey to cultivate compassion, understanding, and resilience in the midst of our complex world. Please visit Deer Park Monastery to learn more about registration, retreat costs, scholarships, contact information, and additional details. A detailed schedule and list of presenters will be available soon. Deer Park Monastery
2499 Melru Lane
Escondido, CA 92026 United States
Phone: 760-291-1003  

New Center will serve as hub for scientific research and promote rigorous, evidence-based approaches to the practice of mindfulness.