(Bell)
Dear Thay, dear Sangha,
our son has been with us in
the Summer Opening in Plum Village over the last 8 years,
since he was 11 years old. He's 19 now.
He is very intelligent, creative, peaceful and loving.
He is a child of the Sangha.
Half a year ago he had his first psychotic episode.
After some recovery from the traditional psychiatric treatment,
we came for the 21 day retreat.
He found himself again in the practice of mindfulness.
He was feeling secure and stable.
Feeling his practice solid, he decided to drop the medicine
and to look into his mind directly without hindrances.
At a point, he wasn't able to control his mind.
He slipped off into another episode.
We were afraid for his sanity and decided to help the brothers
to take him to the hospital of Bergerac.
Doctors say he has a disorder.
Nobody really know where it comes from and how to treat it,
other than making him sleepy and dull with drugs.
We feel very touched and thankful.
We don't trust much in the team that is taking care of him,
nor in the way of oppressing his mind with drugs.
We are searching for a return to a way of truth in his problems,
more loving and respectful with regards to his spiritual growth.
Can you help us get some spiritual insight and understanding?
I think we need more mindfulness.
We need to pay more attention,
because mindfulness helps us to be there,
to be more concentrated and
we have a better chance to understand
the cause of the illness.
The cause might have come from very far away in time and in space.
And with the Sangha, especially those who are close to us,
we should look together in order to find out.
We should be in the process of learning,
because...
because we have not understood, we do not know exactly what has been happening
So with members of the Sangha, young and less young,
and with members of the medical corps,
we have to look together and try our best
to understand and to be open
in order to look for better ways to deal with the situation.
The fact is that in our society every one of us is a little bit too busy.
We are preoccupied with so many things.
We don't have enough time to be with ourselves
and to be with our beloved ones.
We may underestimate the situation.
So let us as a Sangha become aware of that
and produce that collective energy of mindfulness and compassion,
to help embrace him and send him that energy,
so that he can recover more quickly.
This morning we also sent energy to a monastic member of the Upper Hamlet,
who was hospitalised in Bordeaux last night
and went through a surgery.
During the time of chanting this morning Thay and the Sangha focused our attention.
We sent the collective energy to him who is now in the hospital.
We hope that the collective energy of compassion and mindfulness
and peace can help him recover quickly from the accident.
His name is Phap Nhac, the Music of the Dharma.
He just came from Vietnam two days ago.
We accept the situation.
We should accept the situation and try our best from there.
And we shall do it as a Sangha.
(Bell)