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In Search of the World-Honored One
When arriving at the beach in Sri Lanka, Thay realized that although people have different faiths—Buddhism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Judaism—they all use a sound to pray and follow their breath. For example:
- Buddhaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi
- Namo Mariāya or Om Namah Christāya
- Om Mani Padme Hum
- Recalling the Lord through the breath: “Jesus, my Lord” ↔ “Jesus, my God” or “Fill me with yourself” ↔ “Empty me of myself”
Thay guides us through various traditions—the Ānāpānasati Sutta (Buddhism), the Bible (Psalm 31, 118; John 17), the Upanishads (Isa, Prajnānam Brahma, Tat Tvam Asi)—to illustrate interbeing between the created and the Supreme Being, between the subject and the object of contemplation. The path of devotion (Bhakti) is brought into the path of looking deeply (quán môn), going beyond form and sound to touch the ultimate dimension, the Dharma body, Brahman, or the Tathāgata store nature right in each breath and in everyday phenomena.
Through a heartfelt poem, Thay recalls the journey from childhood, searching for the World-Honored One everywhere—in deserts, high mountains, and storms—and the moment “throughout the night the sky rained ambrosia” under the Bodhi tree. When the rain stopped, the moon appeared amidst “autumn leaves falling on the old path,” and Thay—and each practitioner—suddenly realized peace, solidity, and freedom right in the breath, the leaf, the pebble. From there, we give rise to our aspiration to nourish and transmit these three qualities as the continuation of the Tathāgata.