| In Memoriam-Thich Nhat Hanh Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese monk who became a global peace activist, renowned teacher, and prolific author who advocated applying eternal Buddhist principles to contemporary social issues, died on January 22 at age 95. He died at the same Buddhist temple in Hue, Vietnam, where he first entered at age 16 to fulfill his childhood dream of following the Buddha. Born on October 11, 1926, Thich Nhat Hanh developed his transformative view of the contemplative faith in the early 1960s as bombs rained on Vietnam. To the idea of being mindful of every moment-fundamental to Buddhist philosophy-he added direct help. He organized the School of Youth Social Service with monks delivering food and medicine to victims in North and South Vietnam. By then Thich Nhat Hanh was in exile, banished for what came to be 39 years. He had been teaching at Cornell and meeting U.S. political, social, and religious leaders including Martin Luther King Jr. After their meeting in 1966, he was by King's side at a press conference where King denounced the Vietnam War. Check out his books here. |
