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The Wisdom of Non-Discrimination | Dharma talk by Thich Nhat Hanh (EN subtitles)

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    [Bell]
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    [Bell]
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    [Bell]
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    [Thay bowing in]
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    Dear sangha, today is the 29th
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    of July,
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    2001.
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    We're currently in the Nectar of Compassion
    (Cam Lộ) Temple, Lower Hamlet, Plum Village.
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    Around 6 years ago,
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    Thay went to...
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    On a teaching tour in Italy,
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    Thay passed by a...
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    a region where they cultivated only olive trees.
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    In France, it seemed like we didn't have olive trees.
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    Probably there were a few in the...
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    south.
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    But in Italy, there were many, many olive trees.
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    It dawns on Thay that...
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    the trees in those olive orchards
    grew in quite an amusing way.
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    Instead of being planted apart from one another,
    these trees grew in groups of 3 or 4.
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    They didn't grow separately, but they grew
    in groups of 3 or 4 in the same place.
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    Those olive trees were still young.
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    It was like they were only...
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    7 or 8 years old.
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    But when we asked again, they told us that,
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    7 or 8 years earlier,
    there was a very severe winter
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    so all olive trees in that region died.
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    Because of that, they had to cut them
    all down at the base of the trunks.
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    Only the part above the ground died. The olive roots
    were still alive. So, after they chopped each one down
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    at the base of the trunk,
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    from the roots of one single mother tree,
    3 or 4 baby trees were born.
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    So, 9 or 10 years later, we see that
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    the olive trees have grown in groups.
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    In appearance, it was
    as if there were 3 or 4 olive trees.
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    But looking deeply, those 3 or 4 trees were
    actually only one, all shooting up from one place.
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    But we were wrong, mistaking them as 3 or 4 separate trees.
    Truth is, they all had the same roots.
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    Let's say,
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    if the 1st olive is jealous of the 2nd one, and
    the 2nd one gets into a fistfight with the 3rd one,
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    it will be very funny because they are one tree
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    but they behave as if they were 3 or 4 trees.
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    In them, there is discrimination.
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    "I'm an olive tree, and
    you are another olive tree".
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    The truth is, those 3 or 4 olive trees
    are just one tree.
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    Wondering if the olive trees are jealous of each other,
    or angry with each other, but...
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    many young ones
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    and many old ones—
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    despite coming from the same root—are still
    jealous of each other and angry with one another.
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    They behave as if they were different persons
    having nothing to do with one another.
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    They don't know they all go up from the same root.
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    With that, they are being divided by what we call
    "discrimination" and "dualistic thinking."
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    "Phân biệt kỳ thị" in Vietnamese
    is "discrimination" in English.
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    It's that discrimination that divides us,
    making us consider one another as enemies
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    and not love one another.
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    Sometimes, blood brothers and sisters
    in one family see each other as enemies.
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    That's why, we practice in order
    to look deeply and see for ourselves
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    that we all manifest from
    the same source and root.
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    When we can see for ourselves that
    we all manifest from the same source,
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    we can take away that discrimination,
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    and we will have a very special kind of wisdom
    called "the wisdom of non-discrimination."
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    The wisdom of non-discrimination means
    the wisdom in which there's no discrimination
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    ...or partiality. This is very beautiful.
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    "Trí vô phân biệt," or
    "the wisdom of non-discrimination,"
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    is a term we should know by heart
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    because at school, they don't teach us this term.
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    The wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    In Sanskrit, it's nirvikalpa-jñāna.
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    "Vikalpa" means "discrimination."
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    "Nir" means "non."
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    And "jñāna" means "wisdom."
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    We have a kind of wisdom that distinguishes,
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    "This is a sunflower,
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    and this is a book.
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    A sunflower is different from a book."
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    That kind of distinguishing and discriminating
    is sometimes helpful. Because in it,
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    there's no dualistic thinking,
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    there's no partiality.
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    We can merely distinguish,
    "This is a carrot, that is a tomato."
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    That's also a kind of wisdom, called
    "the wisdom of discrimination,"
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    which is very useful many times.
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    And deep down below, we have another kind of
    wisdom, called "the wisdom of non-discrimination,"
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    or "the wisdom of non-dualism."
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    This is such an important kind of wisdom.
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    At school, we've only been taught a lot
    about the wisdom of discrimination.
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    But in a monastery, we need to learn
    another kind of wisdom, called...
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    "the wisdom of non-discrimination."
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    It is the kind of wisdom that doesn't treat
    one another as inferior, superior, or equal.
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    We don't say,
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    "I'm not that person. They're a white person,
    and I'm a black person.
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    I don't love white people,
    I only love black people."
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    Or, "The other person is a black person,
    and I'm a white person,
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    I only love white people,
    I don't love black people."
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    That's called...
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    discrimination based on dualistic thinking.
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    We say, "They are a Jew,
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    but I'm not a Jew. I'm a Palestinian."
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    That's discrimination based on dualism.
    And, if a Jewish person said,
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    "I'm a Jew, I'm not a Palestinian," that's
    discrimination based on dualism.
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    The two sides make one another suffer.
    The truth is,
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    we all come from the same source and root.
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    In Islam, as well as in Judaism,
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    we get to learn that,
    all are born from the same root.
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    All come from Allah, all...
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    come from God—one source, one origin.
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    And yet, now we see each other as enemies,
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    we have discrimination based on dualism.
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    We fight each other, and we want an eye for an eye.
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    That's discrimination based on dualism
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    that we have to remove from our hearts and minds.
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    However, in order to remove it,
    one needs to meditate and look deeply
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    to realize for oneself
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    the wisdom of non-discrimination
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    —la sagesse de la non-discrimination.
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    What is "the wisdom of non-discrimination"?
    Is it something we can understand? It is.
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    We can understand what it is.
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    Quite easy.
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    Take looking at our hand—our right hand, as an example.
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    This hand has in it
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    This hand has...
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    has...
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    done so many things.
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    It is very skillful.
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    Sometimes, it does have
    a bit of unskillfulness, but...
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    in it, there's also skillfulness.
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    For example, this hand has made...
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    hundreds and thousands of poems.
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    All the poems
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    that Grandpa Teacher have written down
    are done by the right hand.
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    This left hand has never made a poem.
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    Except that one time
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    when Grandpa Teacher didn't have
    paper, ink, or pen close by.
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    Grandpa Teacher had to load
    an envelope in a typewriter,
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    and Grandpa Teacher started typing it down.
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    Only that one poem was made on the typewriter.
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    That poem is, "The Little Buffalo
    Chasing After the Sun."
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    "The Little Buffalo Chasing After the Sun."
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    Only that poem was done jointly by both hands.
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    All other poems were made
    only with Grandpa Teacher's right hand.
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    This hand also does many other things, such as...
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    every time one needs to hold a hammer to put a nail
    on the wall, it's this right hand that holds it.
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    This left hand is quite clumsy.
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    It's not as strong.
    And sometimes it mishammered.
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    The right hand also mishammered sometimes, but
    most of the time it has a better grip on the hammer.
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    The right hand also writes poems and calligraphies,
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    among many other things.
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    But the right hand has never dualistically
    discriminated against and criticized the left hand.
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    It doesn't say, "Hey, Left Hand,
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    you are good for nothing,
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    you can't do anything.
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    You can't jot down poems,
    you can't write any calligraphy, either."
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    The right hand never thinks like that.
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    In this right hand, you cannot find
    the thing called "dualistically discriminating."
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    It doesn't believe in a separate self-entity, saying,
    "I'm better than / as good as / worse than you."
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    So, in this right hand, there's
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    For that reason, it can live in harmony, peace,
    and happiness with the left hand.
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    Meanwhile, the left hand doesn't have any complex.
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    It doesn't say, "My goodness,
    you can literally do things I can't!"
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    This left hand doesn't have any complex.
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    It's because both hands
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    know
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    that they come from the same root,
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    that they are siblings.
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    Between siblings, there's no discrimination
    treating each other as separate self-entities.
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    For that reason,
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    there's no problems between the two hands.
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    Now, do we and our elder sister
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    treat one another like the two hands do?
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    Or, do we and our younger brother
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    treat one another like the two hands do?
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    Sometimes there's still fistfights.
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    And sometimes there's still
    anger, resentment, jealousy, etc.
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    You name it.
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    So, in us, there's still not much of the wisdom
    of non-discrimination like in our two hands.
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    Is it difficult to understand, dear ones?
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    We see how much suffering
    discrimination based on dualism has already caused.
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    White people discriminate against black people.
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    Muslims
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    discriminate against Hindus.
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    Hindus discriminate against Muslims.
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    Jews discriminate against Palestinians.
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    And Palestinians discriminate against Jews.
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    We've failed to treat one another
    like the two hands of one body
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    because, in us, there's no deep insight
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    —the insight of the wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    We should know that, when the
    other hand hurts, we also hurt.
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    We need to see this for ourselves.
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    One time,
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    Thay held the hammer in the right hand
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    and a nail in the left
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    in an attempt to hang a calligraphy
    on the wall for decoration.
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    Somehow, the right hand misaimed the nail and went
    straight to the left thumb, so it hurt really bad.
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    Immediately when this left hand got hurt,
    the right hand put down the hammer
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    and held the left,
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    while it was looking for antiseptic medication
    and a Band-Aid to put on it.
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    It does everything ever so naturally,
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    never saying, "I'm Right Hand,
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    I'm applying a dressing to your wound.
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    I'm taking care of you.
    Don't you ever forget that.
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    Don't you ever be ungrateful to me."
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    The right hand never has that thought.
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    It doesn't have...
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    the discrimination
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    between "me" and "other,"
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    or "one" and "other,"
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    because in it, there's very good
    wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    A complete absence of discrimination and dualism.
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    That's why the two hands can
    live together very harmoniously.
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    When the two hands join to make
    a lotus bud, it's very beautiful.
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    When one eats, the left hand holds the bowl
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    and the right hand holds the pair of chopsticks.
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    It doesn't say, "Now I have to raise this bowl,
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    what a chore!"
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    And the right hand doesn't say,
    "I have to scoop the rice, what a chore!"
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    There's never been discrimination,
    dualistic thinking, or ranting like that.
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    Very beautiful.
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    So, we know that
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    the wisdom of non-discrimination,
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    or la sagesse de la non-discrimination,
    is something real
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    that we can see.
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    When we practice to attain
    enlightenment like a buddha,
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    a bodhisattva,
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    or an arhat,
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    we can totally be like that.
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    We no longer have discrimination
    and dualistic thinking.
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    When we come to Plum Village, we see
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    the Brothers and Sisters here
    are doing their best to be like that.
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    Each Sister in Lower Hamlet
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    is like a finger
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    of one hand.
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    This person does this,
    and that person does that.
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    Everything is done in silence,
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    without anybody knowing,
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    never saying, "What I'm doing is more important
    than what my Sisters are doing."
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    Or, "What other Sisters are doing
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    is... is.. is not as important
    as what I'm doing."
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    The Sisters never have that thought in mind.
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    All are working for shared benefits the same.
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    One person is cooking.
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    Another person is doing the dishes.
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    Yet another is grocery-shopping.
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    And yet another is picking lay friends
    at the airports or bus stations.
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    And yet another is sweeping and tidying.
    And yet another is scrubbing the toilet bowl.
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    But no one complains or rants on and on,
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    "Why does nobody do anything but me?"
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    Why is that so? Because
    in them there's already a little bit...
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    Though not exactly like the Buddha or Bodhisattvas,
    but in them, there's already a little bit of the wisdom
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    of non-discrimination.
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    The same with the Upper Hamlet Brothers.
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    There are so many things to do,
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    especially in summer, when many lay friends come.
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    We practice in such a way
    that lay friends have peace and well-being,
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    because we become a monastic
    because we want to help relieve suffering.
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    Among the lay friends coming here,
    some have a lot of pain and suffering
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    so we need to listen to them deeply.
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    We need to show them how to walk in meditation,
    how to breathe mindfully,
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    how to practice so as to suffer less.
    That's our joy and happiness as a monastic.
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    One person gives a Dharma talk.
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    Another one facilitates Dharma sharing.
    Yet another person grocery-shops.
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    And yet another one only takes care of transport.
    Everyone finds joy in what they do the same.
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    Because grocery shopping is also important.
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    Without food, how can they participate
    in a Dharma-sharing circle ...
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    and listen to Dharma talks?
    They'll be too hungry to listen to Dharma talks.
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    For that reason, grocery shopping and cooking
    for the whole sangha are as important...
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    as facilitating a Dharma-sharing family
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    or giving a Dharma talk.
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    That's why it's everyone's pleasure to get to do
    whatever they're assigned to do.
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    So, there's no discrimination and dualism.
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    Groceries shopping or toilet scrubbing
    is as sacred
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    and as beautiful...
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    as facilitating a Dharma-sharing family
    or giving a Dharma talk.
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    So, no one has the complex
    that they're superior to anyone,
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    or inferior to anyone,
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    or equal to anyone.
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    All are working together
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    like the five fingers of one hand
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    very harmoniously
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    without... without...
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    any friction,
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    any animosity,
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    any dualistic thinking.
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    It's because, in working together,
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    there's—to an extent, the insight
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    of the wisdom of non-discrimination.
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    That one day, Brother Pháp Độ went up...
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    to the Upper Hamlet to pick some greens.
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    Maybe because those living in
    Middle Hamlet tend to eat lots of veggies,
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    especially Vietnamese herbs,
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    Brother Pháp Độ spent the whole morning
    and the whole afternoon picking greens there,
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    before moving on to other hamlets
    to continue picking greens.
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    So, there arose a misunderstanding,
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    that the Middle Hamlet ran out of food.
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    It was rumored that Middle Hamlet ran out of food,
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    and that everybody in the Middle Hamlet
    would be starved for the next couple of days.
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    That was actually a wrong perception.
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    So, upon hearing that, Upper Hamlet
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    brought some food down to Middle Hamlet.
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    Then,...
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    Lower Hamlet also brought some food
    down to Middle Hamlet.
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    And New Hamlet also brought
    some food down to Middle Hamlet.
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    Why is that so?
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    Because Upper Hamlet, Lower Hamlet,
    and New Hamlet
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    see themselves as fingers of one hand.
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    On hearing the news that one of
    the hamlets was short of food,
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    they took it upon themselves to take care of that.
    They didn't say, "We are from this hamlet.
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    We are the ones who bring food
    down to your hamlet. Don't you forget that."
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    There's never been such a thought.
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    There's the Vietnamese proverb,
    “When one sibling falls, another sibling lifts them up.”
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    We know that we all come from the same root,
    so we take good care of one another, and we...
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    don't have discrimination against one another.
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    [Touching the bell]
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    [Bell]
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    In The Insight That Brings Us To The Other Shore,
    there's a verse that goes,
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    "Listen Śāriputra, this Body itself
  • 23:30 - 23:32
    is Emptiness
  • 23:32 - 23:34
    and Emptiness itself is this Body.
  • 23:34 - 23:38
    This Body is not other than Emptiness
    and Emptiness is not other than this Body."
  • 23:40 - 23:44
    Now we can apply this in our family, saying,
  • 23:47 - 24:00
    "Sister, you yourself is me
    and I myself is you.
  • 24:00 - 24:04
    You are not other than me
    and I am not other than you.
  • 24:05 - 24:10
    The same is true of our father, mother,
    grandmother, grandfather, etc."
  • 24:10 - 24:13
    "The same is true of Feelings, Perceptions,
    Mental Formations, and Consciousness."
  • 24:13 - 24:16
    It means we all come from the same root.
  • 24:16 - 24:18
    We need to see for ourselves that we...
  • 24:18 - 24:19
    are all...
  • 24:19 - 24:21
    fingers of one hand.
  • 24:21 - 24:24
    So the thumb itself
  • 24:24 - 24:25
    is the index finger.
  • 24:25 - 24:27
    The index finger itself is the thumb.
  • 24:27 - 24:30
    The thumb is not other than the index finger
  • 24:30 - 24:34
    and the index finger is not other than the thumb.
  • 24:35 - 24:40
    The same is true of the middle finger,
    the fourth finger, and the pinky.
  • 24:40 - 24:43
    That's applying The Insight
    That Brings Us To The Other Shore.
  • 24:44 - 24:47
    “Listen Śāriputra, this Body itself is Emptiness
    and Emptiness itself is this Body.
  • 24:47 - 24:50
    This Body is not other than Emptiness
    and Emptiness is not other than this Body.
  • 24:50 - 24:52
    The same is true of Feelings, Perceptions,
    Mental Formations, and Consciousness."
  • 24:52 - 24:53
    Now we can say it very clearly.
  • 24:53 - 24:58
    “Listen Śāriputra,
    the thumb itself is the index finger
  • 24:58 - 25:00
    and the index finger itself is the thumb.
  • 25:00 - 25:04
    The thumb is not other than the index finger
    and the index finger is not other than the thumb.
  • 25:04 - 25:11
    The same is true of the middle finger,
    the fourth finger, and the pinky."
  • 25:11 - 25:15
    That's the spirit of non-discrimination.
  • 25:15 - 25:16
    So, though young,
  • 25:16 - 25:21
    we can still understand The Insight That Brings Us
    To The Other Shore—a very deep sutra in Buddhism.
  • 25:23 - 25:26
    So, this afternoon, dear little ones,
  • 25:26 - 25:28
    let's put on a play.
  • 25:29 - 25:32
    In that play, there'll be a dad, a mom,
    a paternal grandpa, a maternal grandma,
  • 25:32 - 25:34
    and a few children.
  • 25:34 - 25:37
    At first, the children...
  • 25:38 - 25:40
    don't have the wisdom of non-discrimination,
  • 25:40 - 25:43
    so they have fights with one another
    and don't give way to one another.
  • 25:46 - 25:49
    So, maternal grandma
    will call them over saying,
  • 25:49 - 25:51
    "Don't you know
  • 25:51 - 25:55
    that older sister is younger brother,
    and younger brother is older sister.
  • 25:55 - 25:57
    Older sister is not other than younger brother,
  • 25:57 - 25:58
    and younger brother is not other than older sister.
  • 25:58 - 26:04
    The same is true of maternal grandparents,
    paternal grandparents, and parents."
  • 26:04 - 26:06
    That's speaking The Insight
    That Brings Us To The Other Shore.
  • 26:06 - 26:10
    With that, the 2 siblings can burst into a hearty laugh,
    hug each other, and stop getting angry with one another.
  • 26:10 - 26:14
    When the following day comes,
    the parents seem to have a heated argument.
  • 26:14 - 26:16
    So, one of the children
    may go and say, "Daddy,
  • 26:16 - 26:19
    don't you know you yourself are Mommy
    and Mommy herself is you.
  • 26:19 - 26:21
    You are not other than Mommy
    and Mommy is not other than you.
  • 26:21 - 26:25
    The same is true of my paternal grandparents,
    maternal grandparents, and all of us kids."
  • 26:25 - 26:28
    That's The Insight That Brings Us
    To The Other Shore.
  • 26:31 - 26:32
    We can apply that straight away.
  • 26:32 - 26:35
    Let's rehearse it.
  • 26:36 - 26:41
    Every time there's discrimination, prejudice,
    anger, etc., we need to recite that mantra.
  • 26:43 - 26:45
    "It should be known that it is a Great Mantra,
    the most illuminating mantra,
  • 26:45 - 26:48
    the highest mantra,
    a mantra beyond compare.
  • 26:48 - 26:54
    The True Wisdom that has the power to put an end
    to all kinds of dualism and discrimination."
  • 26:57 - 27:00
    When we go into a monastery,
  • 27:00 - 27:04
    such as Bút Tháp Monastery
    in Bắc Ninh province (Vietnam),
  • 27:05 - 27:06
    we'll see a...
  • 27:06 - 27:11
    statue of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
  • 27:11 - 27:13
    That statue of the Bodhisattva
  • 27:13 - 27:16
    doesn't have only two arms
  • 27:16 - 27:18
    but a thousand arms.
  • 27:23 - 27:28
    We may be amazed, wondering,
    "How can a person have so many arms?"
  • 27:30 - 27:34
    Has any one of you ever seen
    a Bodhisattva statue with many arms before?
  • 27:40 - 27:44
    Never ever? What about us making one right now?
  • 27:44 - 27:47
    Sister Tuệ Nghiêm, please
    come up here and help the young ones
  • 27:47 - 27:49
    create a statue of Bodhisattva Chunde with many arms.
  • 27:50 - 27:53
    Dear child, you can hold this thing, alright.
  • 27:57 - 27:59
    This hand will hold this one.
  • 27:59 - 28:01
    And this other hand will hold this one.
  • 28:09 - 28:11
    Here you are, please hold this one.
  • 28:21 - 28:23
    One of you needs to sit down.
  • 28:23 - 28:27
    [Sister Tuệ Nghiêm] Would you mind
    sitting down, dear child?
  • 28:49 - 28:53
    See. This is one person with many arms.
  • 29:02 - 29:07
    This is the Bodhisattva Chunde.
  • 29:07 - 29:09
    Very beautiful.
  • 29:09 - 29:11
    Let's consider
  • 29:11 - 29:15
    that we're looking at only one person
    —a person with lots and lots of arms.
  • 29:15 - 29:18
    But the statue at the Bút Tháp Monastery
  • 29:18 - 29:20
    has a thousand arms.
  • 29:20 - 29:26
    Here, we've only got... Let's see, 4... 6...
    8... 10... 12 arms... Well, 14 arms only.
  • 29:37 - 29:39
    Lots of arms.
  • 29:49 - 29:54
    Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara has great compassion
  • 29:54 - 29:59
    and she/he/they aspire to do many things at once.
  • 30:01 - 30:04
    Do tell me when your arms get tired, dear ones.
  • 30:06 - 30:10
    When we have boundless love,
  • 30:11 - 30:17
    when we have great compassion,
    we want to do many things at once.
  • 30:19 - 30:23
    We want to pour water into a cup for our beloved.
  • 30:23 - 30:27
    We want to tutor our younger siblings.
  • 30:27 - 30:32
    We want to read a book to our maternal grandma.
  • 30:32 - 30:38
    We want to write a letter to a friend.
  • 30:38 - 30:43
    We want to give our father a flower
    on his continuation day.
  • 30:43 - 30:48
    We want to give our mother a flower
    on her continuation day.
  • 30:48 - 30:53
    We want to keep time
    so everybody won't be late for school.
  • 30:55 - 30:58
    We want... We want...
  • 30:58 - 31:01
    to read our letters to our friends.
  • 31:02 - 31:05
    We want to record Grandpa Teacher's
    Dharma talk for those who can't make it today.
  • 31:05 - 31:09
    We want to send this book to our mother.
  • 31:09 - 31:12
    We want...
  • 31:12 - 31:13
    to use this book to tutor our younger siblings.
  • 31:13 - 31:16
    We want to use that book...
  • 31:17 - 31:21
    to record ourselves reading it onto a cassette tape.
    When we have great love,
  • 31:21 - 31:23
    we want to do many things.
  • 31:23 - 31:26
    If we only have two arms,
    how can we do many things?
  • 31:26 - 31:29
    So, the Bodhisattva has...
  • 31:29 - 31:32
    a thousand hands
  • 31:32 - 31:34
    and a thousand arms.
  • 31:37 - 31:41
    Thank you so much, dear little ones. Now please
    return those items by leaving them here.
  • 31:44 - 31:47
    Now let us imagine Lower Hamlet
  • 31:47 - 31:51
    i.e. this temple—Nectar of Compassion,
    is a bodhisattva
  • 31:51 - 31:53
    called Bodhisattva Lower Hamlet.
  • 31:53 - 31:57
    Well, wondering how many hands
    Bodhisattva Lower Hamlet has.
  • 31:57 - 32:03
    There are as many hands and arms
    as there are nuns and lay friends.
  • 32:03 - 32:05
    So how many hands and arms
    does Lower Hamlet have?
  • 32:08 - 32:10
    We call this, Bodhisattva Lower Hamlet.
  • 32:13 - 32:18
    One hand takes care of abbacy.
  • 32:18 - 32:21
    Another hand, the care-taking council.
  • 32:21 - 32:23
    Yet another hand, the registration office.
  • 32:23 - 32:25
    Yet another one, transport
  • 32:25 - 32:28
    and living quarters for lay friends.
  • 32:28 - 32:30
    Well, so many hands.
  • 32:30 - 32:32
    So, let us imagine
  • 32:32 - 32:34
    that, Bodhisattva Lower Hamlet...
  • 32:36 - 32:39
    has hundreds of hands.
  • 32:40 - 32:43
    Let us not look at Lower Hamlet
    as many people,
  • 32:43 - 32:46
    but let us look at it as one person only.
  • 32:47 - 32:49
    Coming to Lower Hamlet,
  • 32:49 - 32:55
    we see that the Bodhisattva Lower Hamlet
    is extending hundreds of arms to welcome us in.
  • 32:55 - 33:00
    One hand is showing us where our rooms are.
  • 33:00 - 33:03
    Another hand is giving...
  • 33:04 - 33:06
    is giving...
  • 33:07 - 33:11
    another person a cup of water, for example.
  • 33:11 - 33:13
    Each Sister
  • 33:13 - 33:16
    plays the role of...
  • 33:16 - 33:19
    an arm of a bodhisattva.
  • 33:19 - 33:22
    Those arms do not have any friction
    or get into any fistfights with one another.
  • 33:22 - 33:27
    Although there are many arms,
    they work together ever so rhythmically.
  • 33:27 - 33:33
    There's no conflicts that cause any quarreling,
    falling-out, or relationship breakdown.
  • 33:34 - 33:40
    So we practice looking at Lower Hamlet
    as a bodhisattva having many arms and hands.
  • 33:40 - 33:42
    We also practice looking at Upper Hamlet
  • 33:42 - 33:46
    as a bodhisattva having many arms.
    Each Brother is an arm
  • 33:46 - 33:48
    of that bodhisattva.
  • 33:49 - 33:53
    Have we ever seen the Brothers
    having quarrels and getting into a fistfight?
  • 33:53 - 33:56
    Have we ever seen the Brothers
  • 33:56 - 34:00
    discriminating and treating one another
    with prejudice, making one another suffer?
  • 34:00 - 34:04
    The same with New Hamlet. New Hamlet is also
    a bodhisattva with many arms and hands.
  • 34:04 - 34:08
    Each Sister or each permanent resident here is an arm.
  • 34:08 - 34:10
    All are doing the works of a bodhisattva
  • 34:10 - 34:14
    to take care of lay friends, to bring...
  • 34:14 - 34:19
    peace and happiness to lay friends, young
    and old alike, during their time in Plum Village.
  • 34:19 - 34:25
    The greater such peace and happiness...
  • 34:25 - 34:30
    and that spirit of harmony
    and non-discrimination get,
  • 34:30 - 34:35
    the greater the peace and happiness lay friends have.
  • 34:35 - 34:38
    Have we ever seen the Sisters
    getting angry with one another,
  • 34:38 - 34:42
    treating one another with prejudice, or
    launching into a tirade against one another?
  • 34:43 - 34:47
    It's because the Sisters are practicing
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 34:47 - 34:51
    Though not as well as the great Bodhisattvas,
  • 34:52 - 34:54
    and though not as well...
  • 34:55 - 34:56
    as the Buddhas,
  • 34:56 - 35:00
    in each Sister and in each Brother,
  • 35:00 - 35:05
    there's already a little bit of
    the insight of non-discrimination.
  • 35:05 - 35:09
    For that reason, they can live together
    in harmony, peace, and happiness.
  • 35:09 - 35:13
    Thanks to that, they can...
  • 35:13 - 35:17
    build and create happiness
    for those coming to them.
  • 35:19 - 35:21
    Roughly 5 or 6 years ago,
  • 35:21 - 35:23
    Thay went...
  • 35:23 - 35:27
    to Korea on a teaching trip.
  • 35:28 - 35:38
    Thay was invited by a Buddhist university
    in Seoul to give a Dharma talk.
  • 35:38 - 35:42
    That university is Dongguk University.
  • 35:43 - 35:48
    There, Thay said, "University
    has to be a bodhisattva,
  • 35:48 - 35:54
    and each professor at the university
    has to be an arm of the bodhisattva."
  • 35:56 - 35:59
    And Thay had...
  • 35:59 - 36:01
    elaborated further on that topic.
  • 36:01 - 36:03
    The talk was very appropriate,
  • 36:03 - 36:07
    because, otherwise, it would
    no longer be a Buddhist university.
  • 36:07 - 36:09
    A Buddhist university
  • 36:09 - 36:15
    has to be organized
    like the body of a bodhisattva.
  • 36:16 - 36:18
    From the School Principal
    and the teaching professors,
  • 36:18 - 36:21
    to all staff members, they need to be
    the arms of a great bodhisattva
  • 36:21 - 36:24
    in order to offer and dedicate to their students
  • 36:24 - 36:31
    two substances: wisdom and compassionate love.
  • 36:31 - 36:35
    If the only thing a university offers
    is knowledge,
  • 36:35 - 36:37
    that's not enough.
  • 36:38 - 36:41
    A university must dedicate beyond knowledge
  • 36:41 - 36:44
    i.e. wisdom and compassionate love.
  • 36:44 - 36:49
    If, in this wisdom, they can also offer the wisdom
    of non-discrimination, that'll be very well done.
  • 36:49 - 36:52
    So, those who are thinking of
    running a Buddhist university
  • 36:52 - 36:54
    should keep this in mind.
  • 36:54 - 36:59
    A university in the future has to be a bodhisattva.
  • 36:59 - 37:03
    That university is to dedicate
  • 37:03 - 37:06
    the substances of wisdom
    and compassionate love.
  • 37:07 - 37:13
    The wisdom of discrimination has already
    been offered by many universities.
  • 37:13 - 37:18
    However few universities dedicate
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 37:18 - 37:22
    If a Buddhist church, a monastery,
    or a Buddhist university
  • 37:22 - 37:25
    is really operating in the name of the tradition,
  • 37:25 - 37:28
    it has to offer the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 37:28 - 37:31
    It's not enough to offer only
    the wisdom of discrimination.
  • 37:31 - 37:35
    The worldly knowledge that helps one
    become a doctor, an engineer,
  • 37:35 - 37:39
    or a professor in science or literature
  • 37:39 - 37:40
    is not enough.
  • 37:40 - 37:44
    There must also be training in this area
    i.e. "the wisdom of non-discrimination,"
  • 37:44 - 37:50
    because it's this area that gives birth to love
  • 37:50 - 37:52
    i.e. loving-kindness and compassion.
  • 37:53 - 37:57
    Without the wisdom of non-discrimination,
  • 37:57 - 38:02
    there will be no acceptance and true love.
  • 38:12 - 38:16
    In worldly schools, they only provide you
    the wisdom of discrimination.
  • 38:17 - 38:19
    But in a Buddhist university,
  • 38:19 - 38:22
    and in a monastery,
  • 38:22 - 38:25
    we must give our best to also offer
    this wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 38:25 - 38:29
    Only when the wisdom of non-discrimination is
    provided, can acceptance and love be possible.
  • 38:29 - 38:34
    Only then, can peace, well-being, and
    harmony be possible.
  • 38:39 - 38:46
    So, we only need to take a closer look at the right
    hand. It'll dawn on us that we can learn a lot from it.
  • 38:46 - 38:49
    It has the wisdom of non-discrimination inside.
    So does this left hand.
  • 38:49 - 38:51
    It doesn't have any complex,
  • 38:51 - 38:53
    such as "I'm better than, worse than, or equal to."
  • 38:53 - 38:54
    Very good.
  • 38:54 - 38:59
    So, they are two very good role models
    in siblinghood.
  • 39:00 - 39:02
    Now, let us all take a closer look
    at both our hands.
  • 39:02 - 39:05
    Use one hand to hold the other to feel...
  • 39:05 - 39:06
    to feel...
  • 39:06 - 39:12
    that they're two siblings living together
    very harmoniously and very happily,
  • 39:12 - 39:14
    because in each hand, there's...
  • 39:14 - 39:17
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 39:22 - 39:29
    Did you see the two hands embracing one another?
    Everyone, no matter how old, is invited
  • 39:29 - 39:33
    to use the right hand
    to embrace the left hand,
  • 39:36 - 39:41
    to see that they're two true siblings,
  • 39:41 - 39:44
    that they can live together in harmony
    all thanks to...
  • 39:44 - 39:47
    the wisdom of non-discrimination in them.
  • 39:50 - 39:51
    Have you done doing that yet?
  • 39:52 - 39:54
    Let's take 3 breaths.
  • 40:01 - 40:05
    Can you see the wisdom of
    non-discrimination in your hands?
  • 40:06 - 40:08
    OK. Now,...
  • 40:08 - 40:12
    use your hands to hold the hands
    of those sitting next to you,
  • 40:12 - 40:15
    to see whether these hands...
  • 40:17 - 40:22
    have the wisdom of non-discrimination in them.
  • 40:23 - 40:28
    Boys, if sitting next to you is a girl, you can still
    go ahead and hold their hand. No problem.
  • 40:28 - 40:30
    Brother Thông Hội...
  • 40:30 - 40:31
    Here.
  • 40:36 - 40:38
    We are all siblings.
  • 40:47 - 40:49
    French friends hold the hands of British friends.
  • 40:49 - 40:52
    British friends hold the hands of German friends.
  • 40:52 - 40:55
    Palestinian friends hold
    the hands of Jewish friends.
  • 40:55 - 40:58
    Jewish friends hold the hands
    of Palestinian friends.
  • 40:58 - 41:01
    Let us hold each other's hand
  • 41:01 - 41:06
    so that we can learn the lesson of
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 41:10 - 41:17
    I myself am you
    and you yourself are me.
  • 41:18 - 41:23
    I'm not other than you
    and you're not other than me.
  • 41:30 - 41:32
    This is the spirit of prajñā.
  • 41:32 - 41:35
    This is the spirit of
    the wisdom of non-discrimination.
  • 41:35 - 41:39
    This is a Dharma talk whose meaning
    —though profoundly deep,
  • 41:39 - 41:44
    can still be understood
    by young ones, by little ones.
  • 41:44 - 41:48
    If you young ones continue to learn
    in this direction, when coming of age,
  • 41:48 - 41:54
    you'll have very deep and firm
    knowledge and practice in Buddhism.
  • 42:01 - 42:04
    [Bell]
  • 42:08 - 42:11
    [Bell]
  • 42:16 - 42:18
    [Bell]
Title:
The Wisdom of Non-Discrimination | Dharma talk by Thich Nhat Hanh (EN subtitles)
Description:

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Duration:
42:19

English subtitles

Revisions