Thầy teaches that it is never too late to transform what we regret. Every thought we produce, every word we say, and every act we commit becomes our continuation, and by handling the present moment, we can heal the past and prepare for the future. “If your continuation is not beautiful enough, make it beautiful right here and right now by your way of thinking, your way of speaking, and your way of doing.”

Thầy begins with two ways of practicing mindfulness. Like a guard at the gate of a citadel, we can recognize whoever is coming in and going out. Or, instead of letting the mind grasp one thing after another like a monkey swinging through the forest, we can stay with one object, such as the breath, until mindfulness becomes concentration and we see its true nature. Looking at the dead leaves of autumn, Thầy shows how deep looking reveals their continuation in the new leaves of the tree. Like a curious scientist, we can make the object of our meditation interesting, and Thầy explains why mindful breathing is not just the ABC of meditation.

Thầy cautions against practicing like a robot—“Lifting, moving, placing”—splitting each step or in-breath into pieces and losing life in the process. Goodwill is not enough. The practice is an end in itself, not just a means to arrive somewhere in the future, and enjoyment is the ground on which deep looking can grow.

Thầy then tells a story from a Chinese novel about the Tripiṭaka Master’s journey to India, translated into English as Monkey. The monkey draws a circle on the ground to protect his teacher from the demons, but the master steps out when he hears a baby crying. Thầy relates this to a young nun who asked how she could help the victims of the earthquake in the Indian Ocean, and to the way the lungs and kidneys help a wounded body by staying where they are. He describes the mindfulness trainings as a circle of freedom we can bring with us wherever we go.

Returning to continuation, Thầy uses a diagram he learned as a schoolboy to show how loving speech today can change the direction of something unkind said yesterday. He points to the New Year as an opportunity to make resolutions that transform the past and prepare a better future.

This talk is from a series given during the [Retreat Name] in the year [year]. Thầy offered this talk at the Lower Hamlet, Plum Village, France.