The Anapanasati Sutra presents sixteen methods of breathing; during the first two days of the retreat, we only study the first eight methods, which include
1–4 related to the body,
5–8 related to feelings and emotions, in order to take care of body and mind.

1. Recognizing the in-breath and out-breath – breathing in, I know I am breathing in; breathing out, I know I am breathing out (in and out)
2. Following the breath – following the breath from beginning to end (long and short)
3. Awareness of the whole body – breathing in, I am aware of my whole body; breathing out, I bring body and mind together (bodily formation awareness)
4. Releasing tension in the body – breathing in, I release all tension; breathing out, I calm any pain or discomfort (calming the body)

From the fifth to the seventh breath, we cultivate joy and happiness, and then with mental formation awareness we recognize suffering and embrace and transform our pain:

• The method of generating joy and happiness begins with letting go (joy and happiness born from letting go) of notions and obstacles to happiness
• Mindfulness brings joy and happiness – being aware of the conditions of happiness in the present moment, the joy of practice (the joy of meditation as nourishment)
• Recognizing suffering – aware of the painful feeling, embracing and soothing the inner suffering as a mother holds her child (mental formation awareness)

The retreat emphasizes dwelling happily in the present moment: dwelling in mindfulness to generate countless joys and happiness, increasing the strength of the mind—before receiving and transforming suffering.

The practitioner must first learn how to take care of their own body and mind, just as a gardener knows how to tend the garden of body-mind to cultivate the flowers of peace and happiness, while also composting the garbage of afflictions into green fertilizer to nourish the flowers. Body and mind are likened to two organic elements, containing both flowers (joy, peace) and garbage (anger, despair, fear, delusion, jealousy), and the practitioner does not run away or merely pray, but must practice embracing suffering, generating peace, and nourishing the flowers of happiness within themselves before they are able to help others.

The practice of mindfulness (Sanskrit: smṛti) begins with the breath and the steps, bringing body and mind together in the present moment. The basic exercises include:

1. recognizing the in-breath and out-breath
2. following the breath from beginning to end
3. being aware of the whole body while breathing
4. releasing tension in the body
5. generating joy (pīti)
6. generating happiness (sukha)
7. recognizing and embracing pain

Thanks to mindfulness, concentration, and insight, the practitioner clearly sees the truth of suffering—the First Noble Truth—and courageously returns to observe and to transform suffering, thereby bringing peace and happiness to themselves and to the community.

Practicing mindfulness is to recognize what is happening in the present moment, so that we know where we are, what we are doing, and how we are feeling; mindfulness is the heart of Buddhist practice and the source of happiness. A five-day retreat requires turning off the phone, maintaining silence, eating meals, washing dishes, walking meditation, sitting meditation… all must be practiced with mindful breathing to nourish joy, solidity, and liberation from anxiety and fear.

Thay Thich Nhat Hanh first attained realization in America in 1962 at Princeton and wrote A Rose for Your Pocket as an acknowledgment of his first insight: mindfulness is the condition for happiness to be present right away, without needing to seek in the future. The Buddha also taught in the Discourse to the Layperson that the phrase dwelling happily in the present moment is repeated five times, affirming that happiness can be attained right in the present moment.

Main steps of practice

• Breathing in, know you are breathing in; breathing out, know you are breathing out; smile, do not worry
• Walking meditation: each breath is linked with each step to dwell in “I have arrived, I am home – I have arrived, I am home”
• Sitting meditation: back straight, eyes half-closed, return to the breath whenever the mind is distracted
• Eating and washing dishes in silence, chewing each bite thirty times to nourish insight and gratitude
• Maintaining collective silence so the mind can settle, generating the energy of mindfulness and concentration, opening the path for insight

We have a mental formation called “attention” (manaskāra), which means to pay attention to objects that bring us benefit and happiness. When our attention is correct—appropriate attention (yoniso manaskāra)—we direct our mind toward positive elements such as the Buddha, the Dharma, the Sangha, joy, and happiness. On the other hand, turning our mind toward suffering, conflict, and anxiety is inappropriate attention (ayoniso manaskāra), which sows seeds of suffering in ourselves. Thanks to appropriate attention, we can generate right thinking (thoughts of love, understanding, forgiveness), right speech, right action, and right livelihood (especially through vegetarianism, using solar energy, and practicing “car-free days”) to protect ourselves, others, and the Earth.

Love and gratitude in family and couple relationships also need to be practiced with appropriate attention by writing down, recording, or reading again happy memories. According to Thay, there are three main kinds of love:

• Passionate love—intense but short-lived
• Gratitude—arising when someone has helped or sacrificed for us in times of danger
• Faithful love—loyalty, arising from gratitude and keeping the relationship from betrayal
  When passionate love fades, gratitude and faithful love will nourish and sustain the happiness of the family.

In the Noble Eightfold Path, the remaining seven steps (right diligence—practicing the Four Right Efforts, right mindfulness, right concentration, right view) help us water wholesome seeds, remove unwholesome seeds, and realize that suffering is interdependent with happiness (no mud, no lotus). Thanks to non-dualistic right view, we understand that the world is not separate from our mind, and from there, we can transform suffering and develop insight.