Dear Sangha builders, OI members, and dedicated Plum Village practitioners around the world:
In June 2026, our worldwide Plum Village community is gathering for a retreat which will be followed by an Order of Interbeing Council, the first in three decades. This is our chance to collectively envision and shape the future of our beloved spiritual community–a moment that will ripple through generations to come.
You have a vital role to play in this transformative process. In the spirit of Thầy's wisdom to drink tea together before we meet to decide on anything, the Lay-Monastic OI Charter and Council Team for 2026 encourages you to organize local and regional "fire-building sessions" that will kindle the energy we need to shape our collective future.
Purpose: Building Siblinghood and Togetherness
These fire-building sessions will support a global process of connection and community building. We want to bring sangha members together in person, face-to-face, creating harmony through shared activities, before we meet to engage in discussions about our collective future. These sessions will focus primarily on strengthening the bonds within our spiritual family and to deepen our mutual understanding and aspirations.
How It Works
We propose fire-building sessions to be organized in person in each region across the coming year, leading up to the OI retreat and council at Plum Village in June 2026. Any committed sangha member should feel empowered to organize a fire-building session. Gatherings should be organized in a way that fosters connections across different age and affinity groups in the Plum Village community, and should be inclusive of committed practitioners who are not formally OI members or aspirants.
Each session should be at least 2.5 hours including walking meditation, sitting and/or tea meditation, and Dharma sharing. They may be integrated into a Day of Mindfulness or combined with a pre-existing retreat or gathering. We offer these broad reflections for dharma sharing:
- What has the Order of Interbeing and the global Plum Village sangha offered to my life?
- How can we both nourish our global sangha body and refresh and reinvigorate the Order of Interbeing?
- How can we as the Order of Interbeing and the Plum Village global family ensure to be a refuge for future generations? What is already there and what is missing?
- What are your aspirations for our global spiritual family?
Please designate one person at each gathering to share with the 2026 Lay-Monastic OI Fire-Building Team via firebuilding@plumvillage.org:
- Basic fire-building session information (where, when, how many attended)
- Group photo of those at the gathering
- Brief sharing about the experience
Wishing you a positive fire-building experience.
With gratitude,
The Fire-Building Team:
Kai Romhardt
Brother Pháp Lưu
Minh-Châu Lê
Chris Phạm
The OI Charter and Council Team:
Anh-Hương Nguyễn
Sister Chân Đức
Shantum Seth
Mitchell Ratner
Kai Romhardt
Brother Pháp Lưu
