Our upcoming tour will be March 6-29 and many Viet Wake Uppers are excited to be together again for long weekends of mindfulness practice with some bald-headed monastics!
Please visit www.vietwakeup.org for details.
Groups from different regions of North America (Texas, California, Florida, and Toronto) are diligently and joyfully planning for the coming tour with monks and nuns from our different practice centers. Please visit Viet Wake Up’s website for exact dates and locations.
Now, What is Viet Wake Up Exactly?
Viet Wake Up, a global community of young adults practicing Mindfulness for a Healthy and Compassionate Society, is a movement that our teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, envisioned for the greater community of young adults aged 18 to 35.
Knowing that there was a huge interest in the young community to apply the teachings and live a happier, healthier, and more meaningful life, Thay encouraged the Dharma teachers from our many practice centers to reach out to young adults and share the practices of mindfulness, concentration, and insight. From this encouragement, our first tour in 2014 was born.
Reaching Out to Young Viet-Americans and Viet-Canadians
Viet Wake Up’s mission is to reach out to young Vietnamese-Americans, Vietnamese-Canadians, and others who have lost touch with their roots and are looking to cultivate or rekindle their connection to their Vietnamese heritage. The monastics have a deep wish for young adults to use the tools of mindfulness so that they may heal from deep-rooted sufferings and touch life more deeply in every moment, creating the capacity to bring peace to oneself and to others.
The retreats focus on topics relevant to the age group, while using the fundamental togetherness practices of the Plum Village tradition to look deeply at the roots of suffering. With practices such as sitting and walking meditation, deep relaxation, tea meditation, and listening deeply to one another, individuals have the opportunity to calm their minds and be fully present with their body, mind, and feelings.
Transforming From the Inside Out
Retreatants who attended last year’s retreat were so deeply touched by the teachings and their experiences that some were motivated to travel from one tour segment to the next, continuing their practice with the broader Viet Wake Up community. Some have even dedicated a full-year commitment and are living at Blue Cliff to further their practice and continue their journey of healing and mindful living.
Past retreatants have shared that they were very grateful for the experience and look forward to upcoming retreats. “I have returned from a ‘Buddhist retreat’…and I have to say, it is the most compelling thing I have ever done in my life thus far. Not only have I made new friends, but I’ve shared my deepest secrets and issues,” a young friend from Toronto shared on Facebook upon returning from a Viet Wake Up retreat.
For a Future to Be Possible
Hearing such a huge response from young adults who have shared their happiness, joys, and laughter, as well as sadness, sufferings, and pains during the tour, the monastics felt a need to further invest in the Viet Wake Up sanghas across the United States and in Canada.
It is a deep joy for Thay to see the younger community practice together and apply mindfulness in a concrete and practical way to cultivate tolerance, non-discrimination, understanding, and compassion in oneself and in the world. This is the basis of Viet Wake Up’s mission.
Anyone who is inspired to start their own group or to attend a local group is encouraged to do so, with open arms by the monastics and Viet Wake Up community!