A message from Plum Village.
Dear Dharma Brothers & Sisters,
We’re very happy to announce the publication next week, on June 6, of Thay’s book THE ART OF LIVING, an edited selection of Thay’s unpublished teachings from 2013-14. It includes Thay’s remarkable teachings from the June 2014 21-day Retreat in Plum Village, France (the last 21-day retreat taught by Thay), with the theme “What happens when we die? What happens when we’re alive?” So perhaps the title of the book could also be, “THE ART OF LIVING AND DYING”
We hope those of you who were at the 21-Day Retreat will appreciate reading a full exposition of Thay’s teachings on the Cosmic Body, reincarnation, life-force, and so on. And those who missed the retreat will have a chance to discover some of Thay’s precious teachings before his stroke.
In THE ART OF LIVING, Thay’s insights are set within the context of the Seven Concentrations he focussed on in the last year or two of his teachings: combining the 3 Doors of Liberation with the last 4 Exercises of Mindful Breathing (making a total of 7).
We are grateful for the support of HarperOne publishing, in allowing us to produce an accessible yet profound Dharma book, that we hope will be an inspiration for Thay’s students everywhere, and a support for the deepening of our collective practice.
We hope that many of you will have a chance to read and study the book, as individuals and as sanghas. We invite you to get involved by writing an honest review on THE ART OF LIVING Amazon page, and by participating in discussions on the book’s Goodreads page. We’d especially love to see comments and reviews from those of you who attended the 2014 21-Day Retreat, and who’ve already had a chance to put these teachings into practice.
Perhaps, in the future, monastic and lay Dharma Teachers may be able to offer some structured study of the book, along the lines of Br Phap Hai’s wonderfully successful “The Sun My Heart” Book Club. If you have any ideas for this, please let us know.
We welcome your feedback.
With gratitude and appreciation,
Sister True Dedication
on behalf of the Plum Village Editorial Team
