Thich Nhat Hanh has had the most remarkable life. He became a novice monk in Vietnam in 1942 at
the age of sixteen, and it is claimed by some, to have achieved enlightenment
in the Buddhist tradition. During the US
war in Vietnam, Thich Nhat Hanh led a movement of ‘engaged Buddhism’ inspired
by Ghandi, where Buddhist monks left the monastery and tried to meet the needs
of the population being bombed out of their villages.
Thich Nhat Hanh's peace work brought him to the United States
where he tried to make the suffering of both sides clear to the U.S.
population. His work is said to have
influenced Martin Luther King opposing the Vietnam war, and he nominated Thich
Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967.
The thrust of Thich Nhat Hanh’s thought is beautifully
simple. In becoming more aware of the
present moment, we can become intimately connected with everything we could
ever want. Happiness, for Thich Nhat
Hanh, is always just a breath away.
As a psychotherapist I am used to working with men who are
running to get somewhere. They are
always striving to achieve more and more.
The idea is that once they have graduated college, got the promotion,
made the first million, they will then be free to be happy. As a therapist I often have to help such men
become more aware of the present moment, something many have forgotten how to
do. Thich Nhat Hanh's position is that we
can never be happy by such ‘running’. In
fact happiness can only be achieved ‘in the here and the now’.
Profound stuff I know.
Yet Thich Nhat Hanh writes very clearly.
These two books are not difficult books to understand. The difficulty starts in trying to put the
philosophy into action. Our minds just
don’t like staying in the here and now.
It is in trying to tame the mind where Buddhism and psychotherapy meet. Thich Nhat Hanh’s words have helped me
realise the great opportunities that exist in every moment. If we can be truly open to that, we can be
truly open to life itself, and the happiness it can bring.
I whole heartedly encourage every man to read any one of
these two books. Men are often accused
of being warmongers and aggressive. Thich Nhat Hanh shows that there is another
way to be a man, and a great man at that:
To live in peace with oneself and ones world.
Dr Phil Tyson is a Men's Psychotherapist based in Manchester in the UK. He offers:
- Group therapy weekends for men in London and Manchester
- Beginners meditation weekend retreats for men in London and Manchester
- Counselling for men in Manchester
- Psychotherapy for men in Manchester
- Cognitive behavioural therapy for men in Manchester
- Telephone and online counselling for men wherever you live
- Mediation for conflict resolution at work in London
- Mediation for conflict resolution at work in Manchester and the North West
- Supervision and consulative support for therapists in Manchester
