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Thiền (Vietnamese)
Vietnamese Thiền — Zen in a Vietnamese key — including the engaged Buddhism of Thich Nhat Hanh.
Thiền is Vietnamese Zen, historically intertwined with Pure Land devotion and Vietnamese cultural forms. In the twentieth century, Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Interbeing brought mindfulness, engaged ethics, and gentle Thiền practice to a global audience.
Vietnamese temples worldwide often combine sitting meditation with chanting, ancestral rites, and community festivals. Plum Village and related centers emphasize breathing, walking meditation, and peace work.
Practices
Mindful breathing
Simple awareness of in-breath and out-breath as taught in Plum Village.
Walking meditation
Slow, coordinated steps that make every path a practice hall.
Engaged practice
Bringing mindfulness into social service, peace work, and daily speech.
Texts
- The Miracle of Mindfulness
Thich Nhat Hanh
Peace Is Every Step
Thich Nhat Hanh