vietnam book

7/31/2019 Vietnam Book

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ered by the Buddha; based on the practice o truelove and compassion, helps us nd a way towards ali e in harmony with each other and with the Earth.

Around Christmas 2010 a group o us gathered atUpper Hamlet to discuss the possibility o tr avelingto Vietnam, to do a “Social our” there. Te idea,like wild re, spread steadily and deeply in the hearto a small but determined group. Tanks to the o-cus, vision and much hard work particularly un-dertaken by two Vietnamese Wake Uppers born inEurope, and the support and input o t he rest o us,the trip became reality only seven months a er therst meeting in Upper Hamlet. We are a group o ten coming rom Holland, England, Belgium, Chileand Germany.A er 7 months o preparation and several meetings,the time to depart had arrived and most o us metor a “preparation” retreat at the EIAB, in Waldbröl,Germany. Bonding and building the “group energy”were the main goals o that week, and by the timewe arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam the 9th o August at hal past one in the a ernoon the adven-ture had already begun.

In the time o three weeks we traveled rom Southto North staying at Ho Chi Minh City, Dalat, Hueand Hanoi where we were warmly welcomed andtaken care o by the local youth Sanghas. We spentwonder ul and inspiring mind ulness days andweekends with the Vietnamese Sanghas, visited thebeauti ul nature o Vietnam, visited the SYSS in HoChi Minh City under the guidance o the rst Ordero Interbeing members, visited kindergartens andbridges set up by the Love and Understanding pro-

gram proudly shown to us by the social workers, weworked in a rice eld and painted chairs, tables anddoors at a kindergarten, we played with children atnumerous social projects and schools we visited, wesang songs together during our hours long bus rides,we shared delicious meals together with newly maderiends and drank tea under the ull moonlight.

Maybe it was good that most o us did notreally know what we enrolled ourselves in; other-wise some might have decided to stay behind in Eu-rope. From the day we arrived and were greeted atthe Airport by a wonder ul and warm Sangha untilthe day we said arewell to a very similar group o people, we were given the opportunity and chal-lenge o per orming numerous di erent roles, rombeing sociable enough to engage with ver y di erentgroups o people, to giving art lessons to children,doing gymnastics in very hot weather, enduringlong hours o travelling and sitting upright on hardoors or hours without end. Tese experiences en-couraged us to leave internal challenges behind andgrow stronger as a group. On leaving Vietnam, the impression le in all o usis one o a deep sense o love and amily. Tis is aeeling that touched us rom the moment we startedlearning our rst song, Ben trai rom the Brothers o Bhat Nha, now residents in the EIAB. Even thoughwe didn’t spend much time in Vietnam, we wereable to develop a deep connection with t he oundersand workers o the Order o Interbeing, workers o the SYSS, and with the Sanghas across the country.At the same time we are certain that this is just thebeginning o a long and ruit ul relationship thatcan help all o us grow stronger and more united.

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Early morning, packed with bags with tropical ruits, water and the ukulele, we all squeezed in aminivan accompanied by two social workers to hit the road to a Love and Understanding program. Te threehours long trip, zigzagging through motorbikes, cars and buses, was interrupted brie y in order or us toenjoy some pho (Vietnamese soup) or break ast. We occupied ourselves with doing each other’s’ hair andsinging songs with the ukulele. We sang Somewhere over the rainbowall together.When we arrived at the u am (which means Kind Heart) kindergarten, the children were having a nap sowe visited a bridge newly built by the Love and Understanding program. Building bridges makes an impor-tant change in the lives o neighboring people as children can go to nearby s chools and armers can transporttheir products more easily.

brings some love & understandingSix Hours of Traveling and two bowls of pho

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Back at u am we were warmly invited to have del

songs with the young children attending the kindergmonastics there make it possible or 55 children to hthe kindergarten they would not be accepted at primLove and Understanding program runs 600 kindergin Vietnam. Te way the social workers told us aboutand how they overcome difculties as a river that wexibility and open-mindedness can help us nd creaA er a long day, we decided to order 8 pizzas. Whenpizzeria. Very, very un ortunately there was a mistasionately recti ed the situation by eating it a ll.

by Miranda



by Felipe

The Chance to be there for Each Other

Te dream has come true, we have landedin Saigon, Vietnam, and it all eels amazing. Indeedone o the things you notice straight away is that it isreally hot, and at the same time it seems slower, andsomehow welcoming. When we landed, some o uswhere a bit nervous rom the many stories we heardabout the government, eventually it all went smoothand to our surprise, when we walked out the lob-by o the Airport into the streets, we were warmly greeted by a ew members o the local Sangha. Tey were smiling and waving with a color ul sign they have kindly designed to be able to recognize eachother, with our names and “Wake Up” on it. Wecouldn’t help but to burst into laughter, and startingto eel like we have nally arrived. Our antasy o be-ing sort o “secret” dharmic agents ended there. A -ter getting some Vietnamese dong and introducingourselves, we walked or a bit until we jumped intocabs with our hosts. Te rst thing you notice is howdi erent the trafc works, having such an oppositeconcept o trafc rules to us, still it seems to have anatural harmony and de nitely a s ense o ow.Although in the West we are very dependent on“material com ort”, we were still a bit shocked whenwe arrived at the ats we were about to stay or a

week. In our heads, t he concept o a “Social Worker”di ered with the poshness o our new home. Te re-ality o who we actually were, started to take overand by surrendering to the privilege we were able toenjoy. Some o us were exhausted a er the long ightand needing a shower and a rest. We split into twoapartments, one or men and the other or woman,and took the rest o the a ernoon to settle. We were very keen to start our adventure, so a er Patrick ar-rived on a di erent ight rom London, we headedtowards a vegan restaurant in town where we wereabout to meet the last two o our group, that cameon again a di erent ight, and the young Sangha o Saigon. o our surprise the youth sangha was quitenumerous, and we tried to multiply ourselves andmixed, to connect as much as possible. A er a sim-ple but delicious meal and very interesting conver-sations we headed to a nearby plaza t o have our rstDharma sharing and sit in a circle with our riends.We sang songs together and had a lovely t ime.

Te next day we had a lazy one, which certainly suit-ed us all, and gave us the chance to see a bit moreo the city and to get to know each other better inour group. Most o us didn’t have much experience

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at all o Social work, but we all resonate with it andwere ready to learn about it. So a er an exqui-site lunch, where we tasted a wide array o oods, the delicacy o the native cuisine,we went to Maison Chance, an inspiringproject set up rom scratch by a Swisslady - im Aline Rebeaud - an Art-ist who has devoted her li e to helpabandoned children and disad- vantaged people. As soon as wearrived we were warmly greet-ed, even though we were quitelate, and shown around TeVillage, a airly new lookingbuilding, designed to provide housing or 30 handi-capped and their amiliesand severely disabled peo-ple. In a developing coun-try like Vietnam, the statedoesn’t provide any sup-port whatsoever or dis-able people, so a project likethis becomes essential. A erlooking inside one o the ats,we could imagine what a hugedi erence it makes or handi-capped people having a suitablehome designed to t their needs.Ten the time to play and share withthe children begun, we split into twogroups and joined an art class and adance and exercise class. Te great thingwas that our whole group was very keen onplaying with the children, even though no one

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had hardly done it be ore, it all owed very nicely,and we had such un, and connected with the chil-dren so much. We played un games, and we allhad a good laugh, when we swapped groups a era break, where we played ootball, we went into theart class, which elt great too, as we had the oppor-tunity to make direct one to one contact with thechildren, even though there was a language barrierwe were able to communicate and understand eachother quite well. We said good bye to the childrenand went to the ake Wing Centre, a place whereprimary education and vocational training is provided, also with quite a ew workshops where disabled people have the chance to express t heir talentspainting, sawing, or doing various handicra s.

A er we were shown around we were introduced toim, the ounder o Maison Chance. Straight away we noticed her warmth, kindness, and energeticpersonality. She resembles a modern BodhisattvaWe introduced ourselves and we shared some coldre reshments, whilst she told us her amazing story:when she was 21 years old she traveled over lanto Mongolia , and then to Vietnam to visit riends.Here she met a child who was ill and alone, she tookhim to the hospital. Tere she was told that i shewanted him to get treatment, “somebody”, a relativeor riend must stay with him, be his care t aker. So ashe didn’t have anyone able to do that or him, she de-cided to become his amily and stay with him, sleep-ing under his hospital bed or 3 months, until he gotbetter. By that point she had taken care o anotherchild, and decided to rent a house where they canall live. oday, about 30 handicapped, severely disa-bled people and about 20 able-bodied children and



A er we wandered around the Pagoda enjoying the gardens and the views, the sound o the wind-chimes,and the bell, we split and everyone got to their thing, just or a bit. So some o us went down by the lake todrink ice co ee and enjoy the views, others to read their book, or wander aimlessly. By the time we met againin ront o the Pagoda it was starting to get cold and the rain was alling again. So in the midst o the groupdecision on whether to have the Dharma sharing here or head straight home I decide to sit or a tiny bit untilconsensus is reached, nally three o us sit or a bit, while the rest o the group went home. Te emple slowly got emptier and emptier, quiet and peace ul and the wind -chimes brought us back to our breathing, to thepresent. How lovely to see the green pines and the rain all over the large window o the Pagoda…

We got straight into the Dharma sharing a er a nourishing vegetarian meal, a good one seeing that we haveexperienced so much during the past ew days and how di erently we react and thought sometimes over thesame situation. Perhaps it was the time to look into our own stu and share where we struggle and how, andalso to get to really appreciate how lucky we are to have one another.Now another day is ending and is time to go to bed and prepare or new adventures. Tanks or being thereor us.

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From Luxury to SimplicityBy Bart

Many mosquito nets were set up or every-body to sleep com ortably and peace ully in a quitelarge communal room, straw mats covering theoor, pillows and blankets were there all to share.Tat was a very special tea Meditation, under theull Moon. Te night was quite warm, but at thesame time re reshing. We have gathered there tostart celebrating the Rose Festival, a very emotionatime to remember and honor our Parents.

Fi y people shared the dorm where we all slept. Tealmost bare (hard) oor, the scarcity o pillows andshortage o blankets challenged some o us. Eventhough we were very tired a er a very long day, andit was already 22:00, aware that we had to wake uat 4:00am, going to sleep wasn’t an easy thing to doIt was or many o us, our very rst experience o simple living and being packed to sleep so togetherIt was a great night or some, others shared it wasone o their most difcult nights ever.

Te morning bell was invited at 4:00 and at 4:30 theWake Up group guided the sitting, chanting andtouching the earth in Vietnamese and English. Techants almost went good, but as we had not prac-

ticed and without the usual monastic support itturned out d i erently. Nonetheless our Vietnameseriends were very touched to hear the practice inEnglish and done by Westerners. A er break ast wewent or walking meditation and around Yin Quan,we chanted Avalokiteshvara in English and Viet-namese. In the end we planted our second wake uptree in Vietnam. Te Sake tree would bear ruit later,like our own practice. Te very sweet abbot spokeabout cultivating our peace and happiness.



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Tis bus was great; there were no real seats, but sorto bunk beds like so as. Although driving on theVietnamese roads is very shaky, the ride was pleasant and we got the time again to socialize amongthe group. Which we strangely enough o en do nothave enough time or, as the schedule is quite ull.



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Bodhidharma and the True MindBy Felipe

“A Buddha is someone who nds reedom in good ortune and bad.”Brainquote

Te last two days have been ull o wonder. From our strong desire to connect with the raditionalVietnamese Meditation practice, at the local Pagoda we requested or a Meditation instruction t hat resemblesthe old days, where the student asked his Master/teacher or adv ice- teachings.So we dressed with traditional grey long (lay) robes and sitting in a hal lotus or ull i possible, we received along guided meditation, where we almost d idn’t move at all or an hour…!Tat was a very traditional setting, beauti ul and most peace ul, that really allowed us to bring the mind homeor a bit and bene t rom calming down the Mind, t hrough stilling the body.Some o us are not very used, or just don’t particularly like doing sitting meditation , whilst the majority o usdo, in some level, it’s great to even up our practice (try to orget the body’s numbness and pains) as a groupand support and see each other, share our struggles and pointing out the highlights o the practice. We haveenjoyed Dharma discussions almost every day, because we decided to do so in order to assimilate our experi-ences and see how we eel.What had come up very strongly recently as being the great bene t o connecting with Mother Nature. Whilewe stayed in Dalat we have visited two gorgeous water alls and walked considerable distances, soaking the

peace and harmony o the Mountains and the ow o the wild li e. Te stillness o the Gecko and the reehappy song o the birds in the orest.Bodhidharma the rst Patriarch or ounder o the Zen comes into the picture then, while walking in t he or-est, on my way back, I started to pick up some litter: plastic bottles, empty crisps bags, etc. It’s not uncommonto nd shoes too, while in most o my Ecological cleaning crusades I ound almost everything rom tires tomoney, this time a single sandal on my way, it manages to make me think about him (Bodhidharma) and hismiraculous sandal ! His gure is around a lot in Vietnam, and his teachings too. Ten maybe this was truly his…Another day is ending and I am still aching rom carrying rice a couple o days ago, tomorrow caves and theCapital city Hanoi.



Monday 22 o August Te Nature here is so beauti ul (I’m again andagain so impressed!). It wa s our “tourist-day” andrst o all we visited the Huyen Kuong Pagoda,

which is located ar o the city in a beauti ul park.We did walking meditation underneath bloom-ing trees, along lakes ull o lotus owers and oversmall bridges (just per ect to calm down). A erhaving lunch together we rested in the shadewhile listening to Hai playing the guitar. I guesshe is skipping university every day just to show usaround! Wow… A erwards we headed towardsthe Minh Mang Monument, the huge tomb o the Vietnamese king Minh Mang. It is said thatthe eight men carried his corpse into the graveand that the entrance was closed or ever behindthem… Scary, but no reason or Uncle Sam notto take loads and loads o pictures. Lazy as we are(it’s just too hot!) we didn’t continue the sight-seeing by eet but took a very color ul, Dragon-shaped boat.It took us to the Tien Mu Pagoda where wewalked around and enjoyed the sunset. Return-ing to the boat it was dark already. We enlight-ened some dozens o lotus- ower-lanterns andset them onto the river. Slowly the little lightswhere carried away by the water ; a touching pic-ture and a beauti ul ending or such a day ull o impressions.

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Lotus fowers, laughter & lanterns…

By Nadjabamboo, brotherhood on a boat trip

Dear ather,We are now in Hue, a city nearby the sea surroundedtains and beauti ul nature. I would like to tell you adays during which we worked together with locals oelds and doing maintenance work at a kindergartenWe helped a morning with the work on the rice eldo’clock in the morning we all arrived at the rice eour trousers put in our socks, wearing gloves and a Tere were already many people at work, cutting tplants, making piles o the rice plants and carryipiles to the machines to separate the r ice. So, on ouralso stepped into the mud.When I knew what to do and ound my work rhythmthat I enjoyed the work very much. Not what I exhand! Doing physical work in the burning sun sombe easy to keep up with. I connected with my bodyrhythm that was almost meditative. With my armsand my eet in the mud I elt also very connected to earth and I started to come together in the same rhyIt was also a great way to connect to everybody through words we exchanged (because we didn’t utogether and smiling to each other. And during the btogether. Everybody was so heartwarming, happy people.

Connecting to my Fa

By Miranda



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Einmal hab ich Tao ge ragtWas Liebe ist, doch sie nur sagt:

„Gemüse gibt dir Bart sehr viel Er weiß, ür dich kein leichtes Spiel Doch, weißt du?! Das ist sehr gesund Und manchmal auch noch ganz schön bunt

Was Liebe ist, das rag nicht michSieh zu Bart, er denkt an dich

und das ist Liebe !

Schaust auch Miranda zuDa kommt die Milch nicht von der KuhUnd haarig ist plötzlich das EiWas wahr nun ist, ist einerlei

Mit Witzen bring sie uns zum kichernWill sich unsere Freude sichern

und das ist Liebe !

Die ganze Reise organisiert die HanWar immer da, von An ang anKau uns Äp el, kau uns KuchenBrauchst du Liebe ?! Kannst bei ihr gern suchen

Once I have asked Tao what love isBut all she said was this:

„Bart makes you eat a lot o vegetableseven though he knows that’s not easy or youBut do know – Tey are quite healthyand sometimes also color ul

Don’t ask me what love is likelook at Bart – he thinks o you

And that is love!

And i you look at Mirandawith her, milk doesn’t come rom the cowand suddenly eggs turn to be hairyWhat is true now – Tat doesn’t matter

Her jokes makes us laughand bring us joy

And that is love!

Te whole trip is organized by HanShe has been about it right rom the beginning She buys us apples, buys us cakeWhoever is looking or love can nd some here

Und das ist Liebe

By Meggy

What is Love ?

So musst du dich um gar nichts sorgenFühlst dich gut, ühlst dich geborgen

und das ist Liebe!

Fotos macht Felipe o Sich dadurch ‘nen guten Blog erhof Manchmal hörst du ein „Aya“ Sein Geist er rischend wie Papaya



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Alles nimmt er wirklich leicht Doch brauchst du Hil e, er nicht weicht

und das ist Liebe !

Um uns, da sorgt die Nadja sehr Lernst von ihr ganz viel und mehr Ziemlich deutsch ist diese FrauBlonde Haare, Augen blau

Das hier nd ich wirklich krass

Denn au sie ist stets verlassund das ist Liebe !

Patrick macht Musik sehr gernDavon hält ihn niemand ernLustig ist auch sein Gesang Mit ihm bei uns, ein guter Fang

Spaß ist seine PhilophieLangeweile haben wir nie

und das ist Liebe !

Unser Bas spielt schön Klavier Den größten räumer ndest du hier Knuddlig, kuschlig ist er auch

Hat immer gerne Pho im BauchZuhören tut er jeder Zeit Wirklich gerne, ist immer bereit

und das ist Liebe !

Willst du auch mal P erde stehlenKannst du au Anouk gut zählen Abenteuer, Spaß und SpieleDas und mehr sind ihre Ziele

He takes everything so easybut i you need help – He’s there or you

And that is love!

aking care o us is what Nadja does,From her you can learn a lot and a lot more,Tis young lady is very German,Blond hair, blue eyes

I nd it really amazing

You can always count on her And that is love!

Patrick loves to make musicNo-one can withhold him rom that His singing is very unnyHe makes our group very sunny

Joy is his philosophyWe will not be bored, that is the key

And that is love!

Our Bas plays the piano so niceTere you can nd the biggest dreamer Very huggable he is as well

Always in or some Pho in his bellyHe is always up to listenIt’s his pleasure

And that is love!

Do you want to steal horsesTan you can count on Anouch Adventure, un and gamesTat and more is her goal

Bei allem wirst du unterstützt Doch vor Ge ahr sie dich beschützt

und das ist Liebe !

Verstehst du nun, was Liebe ist Wehe du das jemals vergisst!“

Ich nicke nur und sage dann: „Mit chi Tao hab ich ganz viel FunIhre Art ist krass, voll ett

Denn eigentlich ist sie sehr nett Desö eren nennt sie mich kleinDoch noch mehr ärgern?! Das lässt sie sein

und das ist Liebe !”



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Sunday 21st o August oday, we got up at 5 am. We got break ast outside,near one o Hue’s emples with the view o grand-mothers and elderly people doing chi gong and allkinds o exercises under the rising Sun. Wow, sucha beauti ul scenery! We can see also the trafc start-ing, everybody going to work, young girls in Ao Dai(traditional dress) or University, children in uni-orm going to School and many others dressed orwork, on their motorbikes, helmets on.7 am. We have arrived at the rice eld. Yeah, weare going to help harvest rice with the Monastics o the u Hieu Pagoda and about one hundred school

teachers who work or the Love & UnderstandingProgram. What an interesting experience I mustsay! Never will I eat rice the same way again! Ac-tually it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be,although I believed this as my parents always toldme how each grain o rice is precious and nothingshould be wasted. It’s true though, but rst I have tosee it or mysel .I helped carrying the reshly cut rice plants to themachine. Tis machine separates the actual grains

rom the rest o the plant, and this makes the work so much quicker and easier. Everyone relies on t hisold machine. Nonetheless carrying the rice rom theeld to the machine, cutting it and putting it intobags, then carrying the bags to the van which is go-ing to take it somewhere to dry is all done under the very strong Sun.I particularly enjoyed cutting the rice as the tool Iwas using cuts really well. And this does not requiretoo much e ort! We were all advised to have longsleeves, long trousers, hats and gloves to protectourselves rom the Sun but also rom the reaction o

the skin to the plants. Furthermore we started early so that the sun would not hit us too much. But stillit was working under the burning sun that makesall much harder. Miranda and Felipe however didextremely well and worked or ve hours straight.Tey later on shared how this made them eel closerto the monastics, and all the lay supporters there asworking together is a good way to create links withone another. Everyone except me....hum.....end upcovered in mud ...

A Single Grain of RiceBy Anouk

Anyway, I then spent some time talking (well tryintheir very limited knowledge o English) with some nally hal Vietnamese. Ten I got really close to somethe rice eld, where we nested, used the toilet, and sI realized we do not need those words to communicaor something, you can just be. I don’t know these girEnglish, others know at least how to say: “Hello, mLater on, we walked on the road holding hands, I nsimple. Words are not necessary.One o the Sisters very nicely o ered me her jumpe

was way too hot to wear such a thing !



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stories with o course a wise conclusion at the end. We shared also about Wake Up and how we deeply ap-preciate the work the teachers do with the kids.A erwards we headed towards the beach with some monastics and the Sangha rom Da Nang. Nice, as soonas we arrived we jumped into the water, clothes on, eeling the incredible warmth o the sea w ater. As our timewas limited, we then got to know the Sangha better t hrough playing some games. One which was particularly un and joy ul, called the ”U” game. We split into two teams, while some o us remain peace ully observingthe tremendous display o energy that was about to take place. Ba sically you walk/run into the adversary sideo the eld, making the “U” sound while trying to touch anybody rom the other team, and them trying tocatch you at the same time! Tis game was great un once we got the gr ip o it, which took us a while. We triedto catch each other in a rugby-like manner, but also literally dragging the rescued or prisoners quite savagely.Tis warming up exercise lasted or hours and by the time we calmed down and decided to join everyone elseit was starting to get dark. Te per ect time to do a bit o silent sitting meditation. Because we had run out o time, playing games, we couldn’t really get to know each other more ormally in a Dharma sharing, but it eltne given the close connection we developed in such a short time through all the laughter and un we hadtogether. We have heard that the Da Nang Sangha practice diligently every day, which was quite impressive.

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Te sound o the sea waves, the exquisite light at dawnmeditation the icing on the cake.ime to say good bye and leave, but taking with us thome, another wonder ul vegetarian meal, making hotel we had a Dharma sharing be ore going to bed awas the inspiring question to start with. I said tiger eeling at that very moment. Most o us were eelingthe chance the live so many special experiences. Teo the Da Nang Sangha that stayed with us. Nice annew day, ull o emotions and magic.



Sometime in the middle o our trip I suddenly started asking mysel : Why am I actually doing this?Just discovering the places where Plum Village spiritual roots started to grow and exploring the Vietnamese

culture as a tourist didn’t seem to me as sufcient purpose to spend such a long time in this country... Andthen a er a ew days I realized that the most important reason or my presence in Vietnam is to learn. Every day I’m learning a lot rom the others in our group as well as rom our interactions. However, the most im-portant lesson I’ve learnt rom the Vietnamese people we met so ar. It’s their generosity, their sel essness andhospitality. It doesn’t matter in which city we’ve been:Wherever we arrived, we’ve been welcomed with open arms, o ered a glass o tea and over and over againwe’ve been invited or lunch.

I was very t hank ul or all o this already a ll the time, but this morning it became very clear to me what a pre-cious gi it is. We’ve rented a van to do our small program (visiting a cave in the National Park, swimmingin the sea and then taking the train to Hanoi). We stopped somewhere in the middle o nowhere to havebreak ast. It was still ver y early in the morning (around 6 o’clock probably) and the grass was still wet. So weate while standing when suddenly a man rom the village nearby arrived. Even t hough he didn’t know us andhad never seen us be ore, he brought us a plastic tarp to sit on. I was really touched by his mind ulness andriendliness. I’m absolutely sure that in Europe the man would have shown up as well – but only to tell us t hat

this is his private property and that we should leave immediately. Tere ore it’s the Vietnamese generosity andhospitality which has deeply touched me and which I de nitely want to t ake home with me to Europe!

P.S.: Other lessons I’ve learnt: Never cross the street on your own, it might end d eadly. Be aware o the act thatone gets easily addicted to soy sauce. And why did I bring my hair dryer to a country like this?

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The Lessons I’ve LearntBy Nadja



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Firstly, I need to play catch up. It was my jobto write about last Wednesday but I completely or-got – because I was so immersed in meditation o course, and not because I was drinking the abun-dant quantities o chocolate milk we ound ourselvesin possession o .In the morning we visited the Imperial City in Hue,the ancient capital o Vietnam. Its decayed appear-ance is beguiling because, as we ound out a erpaying the entrance ee, it is in act only 200 yearsold. My dreams o seeing some pre-colonial history were dashed. Te scars o occupation and war still

hang over this country as so many structures werebombed or destroyed. Te oldest building we’veseen remains the French Cathedral in Saigon.With romantic historical idealism dropped wedragged our weary selves round the city in the op-pressive heat, despite it being only 10 in t he morning.My English body is used to rain and mild sunshine.Tat I can handle. But in the direct Vietnamese sunI slow down. I’m a reverse reptile. Nevertheless, asI sat mysel down under a oreign tree – glad o the

respite – I couldn’t but be impressed by the senseo order and calm the architecture gave. Te lakewe were looking on was damaged but neverthelessemitted a peace. Te care ul contours and lines o the imperial palace induce a serenity that I don’t seein Europe. Te place gave o a beauty o a kind thatwas alien to me.A good sleep and a bag ull o coco-pops later wehopped in a taxi to go to Eurasia – a school or chil-dren o various di erent disabilities. As we walkeddown the path towards it a gure appeared at thegate waving enthusiastically and welcoming us in.

Tey commanded such con dence I thought they must have been one o the sta but it turned outthey were one o the children. She, and many o the other students, sat us down at their dining ta-bles, in the elegant courtyard there, and warmly o -ered us tea and watermelon. It was so wonder ul tohave my expectations turned over – I wasn’t there tohelp them, they were here to help me!Te school is a beauti ul example o the resource uland caring Vietnamese spirit we encounter daily in

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The Beginning of the End

By Patrick

the people here. Tey provide workshops or all o the children to be use ul and productive. Tey grow

vegetables, make jam, churn out the most deliciouspassion ruit ice cream, roll incense sticks, embroi-der clothes and paint lacquer using traditional Viet-namese technique. You could just eel the encour-agement and love given to these children as theyproudly showed us around their respective work-rooms. Te things they produced were o amazingquality. We then had a chance to play with them andget creative as we whipped out the paint brushes,crayons and watercolors. We all had so much un



mind ulness at a local pagoda. Te monastery hada gentle sense o domestic peace about it that we allquickly tapped into in the walking and sitting medi-tations. It was wonder ul to slow down and eel my steps in such a beauti ul environment.Te kind o experiences I would strive so hard ori I were just a tourist just land on my eet here be-cause o who I’m travelling with and what we rep-resent. We seem to be the guests o honor whereverwe go and we don’t really know why. Te abbessgave a talk about the history o Vietnamese Bud-dhism especially or us and the joy ully tranquil teameditation was ull o compliments or the Wake UpSangha and expressions o gratitude or our pres-ence. We don’t really know why! All I seem to do isturn up, meditate badly or a short amount o time,be ore getting annoyed with my backache and thehard oor. I o en eel quite irritable and not very mind ul but or some reason a sense o connectionremains with everyone we meet. Tere s eems to be adeep, peace ul communion that really touches all o us. It’s a pleasure to encounter such generosity andappreciation we hardly know. I it were in Europe

it would perhaps eel a little alse and super cial,but here it seems so genuine and heart elt. ToughI don’t know how, our presence here really means alot to people. And their welcoming arms and grate-ul smiles mean such a lot to us – it makes this tripwhat it is.

A er having sat down all day we all went a bit madat the end. A series o increasingly ridiculous groupphotos ensued – the Vietnamese seem obsessed by them. It rounded o a really wonder ul day o con-necting, in a very real way, to a very special group o practitioners here in Hanoi. Tough we may di erin our capacities to sit happily on a straw mat orseveral hours at a time, we all share the same aspi-ration or a peace ul, nourishing and loving uture.It’s a deep joy to not only know that others sharethat vision, but to start living it together with themwhen we’ve only known each other or two days. It’sdeeply reassuring and inspiring to know that suchexperiences are possible.

45



Te trip to Vietnam brought so many wonder ul moments; especially the eeling o being a whole bigamily – East en West united – with no separation. From Saigon to Da lat, to Hue, to Hanoi,everywhere we were taken in as being part o the amily, this eeling o Sangha, brotherhood and sisterhoodtouched me deeply. Walking hand in hand with an elder uncle and eeling so sa e and not awkward and very embraced. With this radiant and charismatic elder uncle, not much was needed to eel so connected. Learningrom these elder practitioners was a real treat. I elt so accepted and equally valued, which made me respectthem so much. Seeing these elders with such a strong aspiration and purpose in li e watered many wholesome

Brotherhood , Aspiration and Purpose

By Bart

47

seeds in me and made me think about the importancTem being in the eld o social service or over 40 yresh... We know it was not easy or them, but a er alment, passion and vision.Luckily both in Hue and Saigon we were able to practice.

At the question what drives them and what nourisshared that Sangha was the most important and theeling o doing it together as brothers and sisters kunderstand your own su ering, then you can underssion arises. Tis energy keeps you going and uels thmind ulness and to support your mind ulness, you each eeds on the other and makes it stronger. Mandid not keep them rom living their aspiration. Te msame aspiration and ully supported it.



In gratitude I look back at our days in VietnamIn gratitude I think o everyone who has helped us on our tripIn gratitude I embrace our growing brotherhood and sisterhoodIn gratitude I shed a tearIn gratitude I am – in the here and in the now

I there was a ‘day o great gratitude’ it would be today. I just eel so incredibly blessed today. I eelgrate ul or all the love and support we have received. I eel grate ul or our little Sangha amily that we havebuilt. And I eel grate ul or the day just being so wonder ul.Each day in Vietnam has been beauti ul in its own way. Each day had its own surprises and its own charms.Each day I enjoy to the ullest.

oday we went to Dong Mieu, a small sher village close to Hue to help re-paint a kindergarten. Arrivingthere in the morning we were greeted by some kindergarten teachers, p arents and young volunteers o this village, all o them there or the same purpose – helping to improve the kindergarten, helping to improvethe kids’ lives.Everyone started right away: tables and chairs were taken outside, doors were unhooked and the old paintwas taken o o everything that has been brought out to the schoolyard.What a sight to see everyone working together in the burning sun! What a pleasure to see the gray kinder-garten gate getting some color! And how wonder ul to see everyone enjoying their work! Tere were nocomplaints, only smiles!

51

In Gratitude

By Thao

A er lunch we were taken to a small hut on st ilts ovthe unbelievably hot water was already an adventurlous cool breeze on a sunny, hot a ernoon! It was exAnd it was the per ect spot to have our last sharing Hue and Da Nang.It has been so much un having them both join our listay in Hue and lled it with so many smiles, songs aA er some rest and some more work we went back whole Sangha amily. Words can hardly describe mysadness at the same time. I eel so sa e, so understooHowever, this makes it harder to leave rst and makTe eeling o gratitude still lls my heart with happinits children. I am grate ul or all the teachers in the wgrate ul or being healthy enough to do physical labVietnam. I am grate ul or this new amily o mine. A just the beginning o a long, wonder ul journey.



53

Keep sharing your stories and songs And be riend those who hear you singing,

As singing rom your heart, is a danceto celebrate li e

(And that is what love is all about, right)

Hold my hand, and jointhis beauti ul song

When the circle is round,every moment turns into a gi

Flow and stream, my dear And sing your heart’s song

Memories

By Bas



We travelled as a amily, a amily rom many countries. We were rom thirteen to thirty- ve years old, andwe all had our ways to be a brother, sister, uncle, aunt or cousin or each other. Tis amily has been a greatteacher to me; all have stepped into my heart. When I re ect on what Plum Village has o ered me over thepast years I see that our group are the children o a much bigger amily. Te love and care I ound in beingwith people that share the same deep wish to live li e in a meaning ull and beautiul way... that is something very special. I eel very lucky to have ound such a place. Plum Village has inspired me with hope and joy, andto nd people alike rom everywhere over t he world has been a great gi . In Hue Uncle Sum never wanted toknow o our attempts to return all that he was doing or us. He said that we were like his amily. Everywherewe were greeted with open arms and hearts. Looking back I see the great great love all o them hold or Tay and sister Chan Khong. During our trip it o en elt as i they whispered “dear, we have prepared a warm bathor you, please come on in, t he temperature is just right”.

Every morning I burn an incense rom the children o Eurasia. o me the smell o sandal wood is preciousand delicious welcome. Be ore going to Vietnam I didn’t know much about the Love and Understandingprogram, the work o Tay, Sister Chan Khong, and all those hundreds o other dedicating their lives tobringing a brighter uture to children, elders and other vulnerable people. o see the dedication and joy, thebright aces o those who up until old age continue this social work, was a great inspiration. One day in Huewe visited one o the kindergartens where we planted twenty trees, some mango. For me it is very special tosee mangos and jack ruit on a tree, but it is very normal in Vietnam. In the temple in Hanoi where we joineda mind ulness day, a mango tree stood in the garden. Seeing the numerous ripe mangos on that had allendown, Han and I delayed ourselves or the next activity and had a little mango party. I hope the kids o thekindergarten in Hue can enjoy mango parties like that too in the uture.Ten a er a little month the airport swallowed us back in. All o a sudden I elt overwhelmed by the order andsterility o the place, by the iPods and laptops, by the hurrying people. Te sounds o claxons and trafc, thesmell o ood and city, the warmth o the morning in Saigon were gone. We entered the gate back to Europe,and I realized that we had to say goodbye to Vietnam or now. I will miss it.

o explore the world o Vietnam through all what we have seen and all whom we have met is li e changing.In the plane we ew over a place where t he desert and human settlements meet. It is on the edge with the un-known that a lot o wonder and beauty is hidden. It was wonder and beauty we were able to nd in Vietnamand in ourselves. And we learned a lot, oh. Sometimes some o us had to step over their lines o convenience,out o the space o com ort, but it is there that we learn and connect, eel and s ee. I am just very happy every-body was there, with my heart ull o love and gratitude.

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A strcomes to li e

making



~ Even athe sun neve

“YouLook what happ

It lights t

Te trip has been amazing on so many levelhave seen, smelled and ta sted. We have widened outer) and we have opened our hearts or each other a

One o the things that has le a st rong impression ono the Love and Understanding program we met. Wcally, the inheritance o doing social work, in Vietncontinuation o the SYSS and the social workers weplanting so many trees across Vietnam which genethem, to look a er them and help them grow. Furtherderstanding program as well as other projects and ccern or making societies more compassionate. In th

Connecting with our “spiritual ancestors” elt like wouldn’t like to d isappoint or lose touch with them.in Vietnam looks like the right kind o Medicine weother and being there or each other instead o spendwhat we need. Learning that working collectively olesson we learned during our trip. O course there weus while we were travelling together, moments whe

Afterword

59



whole group. Luckily with the help o sharing it in the circle, and practicing the ve mind ulness trainingstogether, the truth could always reign and over the course o our weeks mutual understanding grew. Wewanted to live like a Sangha during our trip and there ore decisions were made together, sometimes duringlong meetings where everybody could share his or her ideas. We also made sure that everybody par ticipatedin the tasks there were to do rom inviting the bell and leading dharma sharings to coordinating the days andwriting articles or our blog and eventually also this book. Tis made our group unction very organically and everybody was able to learn new skills. It was love that kept us together, it was love that made us eel likebrothers and sisters and it was love that connected our little Sangha with the Vietnam Sanghas.

Te spirit o waking up together, doing it together was something we wanted present throughout the wholetrip so that we can transmit it to the people we met and learn about it rom the people we met. Tis trip wasalso a way or us together to create a eeling o being one big human amily. It was the opportunity or us t oconnect with Sanghas on the other side o the globe, nourishing brotherhood and sisterhood and creatingmutual understanding, the basis or a more compassionate and peace ul world society.

Now, we bow in deep gratitude to Tay, our dear teacher, who shows us the way o love, togetherness andawareness, the most important ingredients o our journey and encounters with ourselves, each other, and eve-rybody we met in Vietnam. We bow in deep gratitude to Sister Chan Khong who inspired us with her strongbut loving presence and work with the Love and Understanding program.We bow in deep gratitude or the love and support we got rom the brothers and sisters at the EIAB, especially brother Phap rach, or giving us the opportunity to build the oundation or a strong Sangha energy be oreour trip in Vietnam began.We bow in deep gratitude or the warm welcome and incredible care we received rom all the Sanghas we metin Vietnam: the ang Tan Xuan Phong (Spring Breeze Sangha) and the ang Tan Bup Sen (Lotus Sangha)in Ho Chi Minh city, the ang Tan Vat Nui (Mountain Sangha) in Hue, the ang Tan May Tong Dong(Floating Cloud Sangha) rom Da Nang and the ang Tan Ve Nguon (Returning to the Source Sangha) inHanoi. We would like to thank especially everybody who was so generous spending so much o their timewith us : Chi Dieu aka Haylie, Chi Hien, Anh Chuong and Chi Phuong in Ho Chi Minh City, Anh Hai andAnh Quang rom Da Nang, Uncle Sum, Dinh, Viet and Nam rom the Love and Understanding Program inHue, Chi Ha, Chi Huyen, Chi Lan Anh and Anh Ha in Hanoi. Tank you or sharing your tr ue presence, joy and music!We bow in deep gratitude or the rst generation members o the SYSS and social workers o the Love andUnderstanding program who were so willing to show us the ruits o their hard and loving work and sharedwith us their experiences and insights.We bow in deep gratitude or the strong practice energy and joy we got rom the monastics we met in the

temples we visited and where we had the opportuniWe bow in deep gratitude or the support and advicwent on our trip and over e-mail during our stay in And we bow in deep gratitude or mother earth and tthis trip possible and so incredibly nourishing. Te wood we have eaten, and the people we have met allTis trip was the beginning o a riendship we want to

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THE

63

SEEDLINGPROJECT

A compilation o ideas bythe European Wake UpVietnam tour participantsunited by Han.

THE SEEDLING PROJECT

„Tầy believed that Buddhism had much to contrib port me in a movement or social change accordi good hearts who wanted to work together. He agrstart several pioneering development villages to and responsibility. Eventually we could start a tracare, who would then go all over the country.“

PALM LEAVES, STILL FRAGRANT

For a long time the vision to organize a Wake Utions: Our collective aspiration to connect to ourha on a journey and to get in touch with persprocentric way o looking and living. ReadingLove by Sr. Chân Không has touched and is stAll these elements gave us the energy to cultivate t2011 all the conditions came together and a group many and Holland gathered at the European Instituourselves or a three and a hal week-long journey true love.

NOURISHING OUR ROOTS

Sài Gòn.Morning has broken. Te sky is blue, the suto Pháp Vân Monastery , the ormer School o Yout1960s.1 Arriving at Pháp Vân, we enter the meditatmembers o the rst generation o the SYSS, who ha

1. In Saigon in the early 1960s, Tày ounded the School o Youth or Sset up schools and medical centers, resettled homeless amilies, and othe SYSS based its work on the Buddhist principles o non- violenceTầy also ounded a Buddhist University, a publishing house, and an i



members o the rst generation o the SYSS, who have been practicing and engaged in social service in ruralareas or more than 40 years. ogether we enjoy sitting meditation and touching the earth to honour ourblood and spiritual ancestors, ollowed by a sharing on engaged Buddhism and the history o the SYSS, thespiritual practice and our aspirations. During this session this question is being posed: „How can we continuethe SYSS?“„Tis is very easy,“ one o the social workers answers smilingly and continues „only by asking yoursel thisquestion you are already beginning to continue the SYSS.“

Leaving the meditation hall, we walk slowly and silently towards the garden in the centre o Pháp Vân, amemorial place to Sr. Nhất Chi Mai 2 who immolated hersel or peace during the Vietnam War and to themonastic and lay SYSS workers who died during their service. We stop and listen to Sr. Chân Không’s writingson Sr. Nhất Chi Mai’s last days. „I entrust mysel to the earth and the earth entrusts hersel to me...“ , we sing together while one o the socialworkers starts to dig a hole in the ground or the collective tree planting ceremony. Each o us contributesto this ceremony by lling the hole with soil and watering the newly planted tree. Our rst Wake Up tree inVietnam has been planted at the memorial garden o the SYSS. Tis is a happy moment, a moment o aware-ness. Being aware o our spiritual roots, our aspiration to nourish this tree o understanding and compassionand to continue the beauti ul work o the SYSS, we are lled with joy.

COLLECTIVE VISION

On our journey through South, Central and North Vietnam we continued to be nourished by this joy andbeing in touch with monastics, social workers, youth sanghas, children who are supported by the Love andUnderstanding Program and many beauti ul human beings. All these inspiring encounters and conditionsgave rise to the development o a collective vision 3, which we would like to share with all o you.Te Seedling Project // A Green Kindergarten in Vietnam – Space & ime or children and parents to learnhow to take care o their inner and outer environment.

2. Sr. Nhất Chi Mai, one o the rst members o the Order o Interbeing, burned hersel in an act o sel -immolation in Saigon on May 16, 1967in protest o t he Vietnam War.3. Being aware o the impermanent ux o our perceptions and understanding, we aspire not to have a xed idea. Te v ision being presentedhere is subject to change according to conditions and circumstances.

65

Our vision for the green kindergarten contains the fo

I. SocialIn remote areas the struggle or a better li e makes peducation, cultural and spiritual developments o thbuild a hybrid space or poor amilies, which is boday it unctions as a home where children can takeents work- are being provided with healthy nutrimemind ulness. In the evening or on weekends, it unctexchange, learn rom and teach each other.

II. Educationeachers o this green kindergarten are trained in t hetion, cultivation o environmental awareness and dlecting rainwater and organic gardening. Armed wintegrate mind ulness into the children’s daily activiplaying, learning, singing, storytelling and gardeninin nature. In order to oster experimental and creativexpress themselves artistically through painting, drrecyclable waste and to observe natural phenomena

III. Architecture and EnvironmentAn important aspect is that the kindergarten buildinal environment o the local people. Te architecturalsustainable, utilizing the availability o local knowporariness, unity with diversity. We intend to introdgies - such as solar cell, rainwater harvesting and gcompost toilets – and to cultivate a permaculture ga

IV. EmpowermentUltimately, we aspire to provide a space o help thrknowledge among each other, cultivate awareness aing process, raising understanding about values o napractices or daily li e, and thus enable them to tr anspeople living in the area. Hope ully, the green kindmunity, become a model or many other rural areas awareness.



A COMMON TASK

„As soon as you have made the rst step, you have already reached the destination.4“ So how do we make ourrst step, how do we approach this project? We aspire to work towards an attitude that helps us trans orm thecomplex o superiority, equality and in eriority and the notion o a separated subject and object: We are notthe people rom the West who are capable o helping the poor and incapable people in Vietnam. We do notconsider this as social work, but rather a great opportunity or mutual understanding, learning and growingwith both the members in the Seedling Project team and the local people in Vietnam.Point number three o Tầy ‘s Tree-Point Proposal to the Executive C ouncil o the Uni ed Buddhist Churchin Vietnam in 1964 expresses this ideal clearly: Tầy’s idea was to go beyond such traditional notions o char-ity as giving ood, medicine, and money to the poor, by supporting the peasants in their e orts to improve thequality o their lives. He wanted to teach social work and rural development as the work o personal and socialtrans ormation. Workers would not consider themselves “helpers” nor the peasants as “people being helped.”Tey would cultivate the understanding that they and the poor peasants were partners in a common task. 5

FAVOURABLE CONDITIONS

It is truly miraculous to observe how avourable conditions mani est and converge when there is a strongcollective aspiration. Presenting this project to Sr. Chân Không and the monastic as well as the lay Sanghaduring the Applied Ethics Retreat in Plum Village in the beginning o the year, we have received much posi-tive eedback. Recently, we have raised a great amount o money or this project, have been o ered territoriesin Vietnam and there are many riends with diverse backgrounds and specialized skills - rom the elds o architecture to nance, rom permaculture to lm-making - both in Europe as well as in Vietnam, who wantto o er ull support.

NEXT STEPS

At the moment we are in t he process o making connections to people, organizations and places in Vietnam,nding ways to establish a space o exchange - or a ruit ul cooperation between Europeans and Vietnameseto be possible - and to weave traditional with contemporary, local with global approaches.A member o our Seedling Project team will be travelling to Indonesia and Vietnam to do research this spring.

4. Quote by Br. Pháp Linh, Cambridge University, March 2011.5. Sr. Chân Không: Learning rue Love. How I Learned and Practiced Social Change in Vietnam, Berkeley 1993, p 49- 50.

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We aspire to connect to the Green School 6 in Bali tohave been o ered to us in Vietnam in order to undertheir joy and difculties and their environment. Sheworkers o the Love and Understanding program, Wake Up, nding ways to support each other and tostanding program.Meanwhile our team in Europe aspires to spread theProject to a greater audience and a plat orm or exch

CLEARING OUR STREAMS

Huế. Te sky is still blue and the sun is stil l shining. Wwe are setting out or a kindergarten built by the LovVietnam. As we arrive in the class room, the childto us. Teir voices are sweet like mangos, re reshingenjoyment o playing and singing with the children bottles o milk and biscuits with t hem. A er enjoyingthe director o the Love and Understanding prograworkers, an intimate sharing evolves. „How can youasks and Uncle Đinh replies: „By understanding ando taking care o yoursel , you will not be able to hel

„Our brothers are rom all our directions, our s

because o skin colour and religion We are comundersta

Only i there is understanding, there is love Te de your understanding

6.Visit www.greenschool.org or urther in ormation.7. A translation o the Vietnamese song „Hiểu và thương“, compose



wenty holes have already been dug and together with our Uncles we plant the trees. Planting trees with t heintention o nourishing our roots and clearing our streams 8, we hope to make the world greener, both in aliteral and gurative sense. By joining orces, by investing our energy into sowing seeds o brotherhood andsisterhood, o understanding and love, o joy and happiness everywhere we go and by sharing our time andmaterial resources with those in need. Mangos and pomelos or past, present and uture generations. Startingwith the cultivation o a small seedling.

8. Original gatha by Tầy: “Bồi đắp gốc rễ, khai thông suối nguồn.”

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