This is an excerpt from Part 3 of the Discourse on Transforming Violence and Fear, given by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh on April 01, 2010, at the Assembly of Stars Meditation Hall, Lower Hamlet, Dharma Nectar (Cam Lộ) Temple, in the Spring Retreat 2010.
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🔔 Video transcript
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"A good practitioner always has sovereignty, is truly present, and is fully aware of what's going on.
"But first and foremost, what should they be fully aware of? It's the feelings going on inside. ...
"[F]eelings are one of the major objects of meditation. ... If it's a pleasant feeling, learn to take care of it. 'This is a pleasant feeling.'
"But can this pleasant feeling nourish and heal us or not?
"If it dawns on us that this feeling can nourish and heal us, we can—with peace of mind, savor this feeling.
"Like, while taking each step with inner peace and breathing in the fresh air, that pleasant feeling is not unwholesome at all. We can—with peace of mind, savor that pleasant feeling.
"But when we drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes and there's a pleasant feeling, we also merely recognize, 'This is a pleasant feeling.'
"Well, the feeling you have while doing drugs or cocaine is also very pleasant. It's ecstatic and quite 'transcendent.'
"But if we're truly present, we know, 'This is a pleasant feeling but hidden beneath it is a plethora of toxins. It's this pleasant feeling that will bring on many ill, unpleasant, gnawing, and desperate feelings later on. So, this kind of pleasant feeling is not wholesome for me and won't do me any good.'
"And it's thanks to this insight, that we can let go of this unwholesome pleasant feeling."
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✩ Full talk's original title: "Duy Lâu Lạc Vương - Bài 3—Ngày 01 tháng 04 năm 2010"/"2010-04-01-TNH-VNM-Duy Lâu Lạc Vương-03.mp4"
✩ Full talk originally posted by Thich Nhat Hanh Archive Library Team, date posted unknown. Viewable link.
✩ Full talk given: on April 01, 2010, at the Assembly of Stars Meditation Hall, Lower Hamlet, Dharma Nectar (Cam Lộ) Temple, in the Spring Retreat 2010
✩ Excerpt's length: 10 minutes 51 seconds
✩ Watch the full Dharma talk with English subtitles and transcript here.
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REFERENCES (Resources used to translate this Dharma talk): Please kindly refer to the Video Transcript link for the full list.
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Republished on the Plum Village App with kind permission of Thich Nhat Hanh's Talks channel 🙏