With this book Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh contributes to current thinking on how we can define secular guidelines that will allow us to create a compassionate, and healthy way of living.
The Five Mindfulness Trainings (also referred to as “Precepts”) are the basic statement of ethics in Buddhism. Nhat Hanh discusses the value and meaning of each precept, offering insights into the role that it could play in our changing society and argues eloquently for their applicability in our daily lives and on a global scale.
Previously published as For A Future to Be Possible.
Excerpt
It is important for us to stay in touch with the suffering of the world. We need to nourish that awareness through many means—sounds, images, direct contact, visits, and so on—in order to keep compassion alive in us. But we must be careful not to take in too much. Any remedy must be taken in the proper dosage. We need to stay in touch with suffering only to the extent that we will not forget, so that compassion will flow within us and be a source of energy for our actions. If we use anger at injustice as the source for our energy, we may do something harmful, something that we will later regret. According to Buddhism, compassion is the only source of energy that is useful and safe. With compassion, your energy is born from insight; it is not blind energy.
ISBN:978-1-937006-34-1, Revised Ed., Paperback, 160 pages.
Available now from Parallax.org
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