The notes below are designed to give prospective readers an idea of what to expect from the book, and to aid in making a decision on whether to buy it.
Peace is Every Step
Tich Nhat Nanh
Introduction
This is an excellent book on over 100 meditation techniques. It’s best to buy this book and have it handy to find the best technique for each day. It’s starts with the premise of Be Here Now and comes up with many specific meditation techniques as the book unfolds.
General Notes
Foreword by The Dalai Lama:
World peace comes through giving individuals their own internal peace. Love, compassion, and altruism are required for peace.
Editor’s Introduction:
Peace come internally and not to be bought or sold externally. Living mindfully, slowing down, and taking deep breaths helps.
Smiling, or mouth yoga, can quiet our distracted thinking.
Part 1: Breathe You are Alive:
Peace is in the here and now. We prepare to live well, but don’t actually live. The past is gone, the future is not yet here.
Refrain from hoping or wishing. Enjoy all actions even washing the dishes. Church bells bring one back to the present moment. Enjoy being alive. We are what we feel and perceive. If we are angry, then we become anger. There is no way to peace, peace is the way.
A smile affirms our will to live in peace and to approach each day with gentleness and understanding.
Breath is the link between the mind and the body. Breathing mindfully gives our mind a break and allows for real rest to allow recovery. Breathing lets us go back in our internal rabbit hole. We can breathe anywhere, anytime. Coordinate movement with breath.
Cross legged on a cushion is the most stable seat for breathing.
Eat meals slowly and enjoy being alive. Nourish awareness and enjoy food.
Breath in and calm the body, exhale and smile.
Walk just to enjoy the walk, not to arrive. Be ‘wishless’ sometimes just live.
Apply nonviolence to the body.
Create a breathing room where you can meditate or just breath. Let kids go there anytime and be safe from your voice.
Part 2: Transformation and Healing:
River of healing in which each drop is a different feeling—pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral. Use breathing to come into contact and accept feelings. Recognize each feeling as it arises. Shake hands with it.
Observe anger with love and attention. Make peace with anger. Hello, Anger how are you today? Anger is a blazing flame that burns up our self-control and causes us to say and do things that we later regret. A mind without anger is cool, fresh, and sane. Must accept anger is there before transforming it into another energy as the gardener transforms food scraps to compost. Anger is rooted in desire, pride, agitation, and suspicion, rooted in ourselves via our own making.
Anger meditation, “Breath in, I know anger is here. Breath out, I know that anger is in me. Breath in, I know that anger is unpleasant. Breath out, I know that this feeling will pass. Breath in, I am calm. Breath out, I am strong enough to take care of this anger.”
Observe fears and get to know them.
Consciousness exists on two levels: as seeds and as manifestations of those seeds. If we plant wholesome, healing, refreshing seeds, they will take care of negative seeds. No need to address negative beyond planting healthy seeds.
Children can bring enlightenment to their parents. Who has given you your body? Your parents, meditate on them. We are all one.
Try to understand how others are suffering to help them and ourselves.
What is not wrong? Blue sky, sunshine, name all the wonders that we see every day.
“When you plant the lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don’t blame the lettuce. You look into the resaons it is not doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or less sun. You never blame the lettuce.” (p. 78).
Understanding and love are just one thing. Do not posses what you love. One word, one action, one thought can bring love and joy to another.
Hug for three breaths.
Invest in friends. Friends, not money, provide security. We must be a good element of a community to be a friend.
Old people just want to hold grandchildren in their arms.
Compassion removes the suffering that is present in others.
Once there is seeing, there must be action.
Part 3: Peace is Every Step:
Interbeing—all things are linked. Roses and garbage inter-are. Without roses no garbage, without garbage (compost), no roses. No one among us has clean hands. We can only shoot strangers when they are strangers.
Real strength is not in power, money, or weapons, but in deep, inner peace. Non discrimination is real love.
We need the vision of interbeings, we belong to each other and cannot be cut into pieces. We have to look deeply to see.
The earth is our mother. Our bodies are at least 70% water. Be in nature from time to time. Hug the tree.
40,000 kids die of hunger a day. Do something. Poverty and oppression bring war. Be a brother and a sister to all. Say sorry when you hurt others.
Peace is based upon respect for life. See other’s suffering.
Practicing nonviolence first involves seeing a difficult situation as such and not reacting violently.
Seeing orphans of lost boat people puts Western (US/EU) suffering into perspective.
Do not be idolatrous, do not think about absolute truth, do not force children to take your views, do not avoid contact with suffering, do not accumulate wealth when millions are hungry, do not maintain anger, do not lose yourself in dispersion, do not utter words that create discord, do not say untruthful things for personal gain, do not use religion for personal gain, do not kill, do not work in a vocation that harms people or nature, do not mistreat your body, possess nothing that should belong to others.
Loving kindness lets you see the clouds are already a part of you.
Sit outside with your child, holding hands, breath and smile together. This is peace education that is free and available in every moment, in every breath, in every step.