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Tuks Q and A

Thich Nhat Hanh · September 20, 2001 · United States · Audio Only
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We gather at Kim Son Monastery on September 20, 2001, at 4:00 PM, during the monastic retreat. Question and Answer session:

  1. In the Dharma, when men hold men, women hold women, or with foreign lay friends, gestures such as holding hands, shaking hands, or touching each other give rise to feelings (contact, feeling, perception, intention)—how do these arise, and how should we respond to lay friends in other places?
  2. Some teachers outside often ask about “hugging” as taught by Thay; what do you think about this practice?
  3. In the Sutra on Removing Anger, Venerable Shariputra teaches the younger monks five instructions—what are these five instructions?
  4. Regarding the banana plant, the first leaf becomes tattered when many later leaves grow—why does the first leaf become like that?
  5. When some monks have little contact with lay women and seem to look down on them, causing the nuns to avoid attending Uposatha, while the Buddha taught that both men and women have Buddha nature, how should we transform this situation?
  6. Are the “initial aspiration to leave home” and the “first arising of the Bodhi mind” two concepts or one, and how are they related or different?
  7. If a senior brother and sister want to go out together but feel hesitant, then invite a third person to join, should we agree to accompany them or decline?
  8. With American lay friends who often hug or put their hand on the cheek when shaking hands, how should monks and nuns respond so as to respect their culture while keeping the precepts?
  9. When encountering someone whose words are very good but whose actions are not right, and who imposes on practitioners causing loss of faith, how can we restore faith in them and in ourselves?
  10. When we feel regret for not having hugged someone when needed, even though we knew we were not yet qualified, how can we transform that regret?
  11. Sometimes we feel it is too late to establish communication with Thay and do not have enough position or strength—should we seek another practice environment?
  12. When I have tried to offer love and understanding to my elder brother but he does not receive it, what should I do?
  13. If a mother is too poor and has many children and does not allow her child to become a monastic, and the disciple runs away and lives a lonely life, please teach us how to transform this situation.
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Previous Talk September 20, 2001
1h 48m

Monastics of Kim Son - Hand-Holding Meditation

Next Talk September 21, 2001
1h 50m

The Practice of Transforming the Mind: Walking, Prostrating, and Sitting Meditation