A Pilgrimage of Mindfulness: Monastics Return to the Land of the Buddha

Eight monks and nuns from Deer Park Monastery and Plum Village in France, Brothers Pháp Dung, Minh An, Minh Lượng, Minh Nhân and Sisters Túc Nghiêm, Bội Nghiêm, Phú Nghiêm and Trai Nghiêm recently returned from a five-week pilgrimage and tour of the land of the Buddha, India. They participated in a two week pilgrimage led by Plum Village Dharmacharya Shantum Seth and his team at BuddhaPath and led Days of Mindfulness and retreats in Delhi and Dehradun, organized by Ahimsa Trust, Plum Village's representative in India.

Along the journey, our dear monastic siblings had the opportunity to visit many sacred Buddhist sites such as Bodh Gaya, the site of the Buddha's enlightenment, and the Jeta Grove, the place where the Buddha spent many Rains Retreats and offered many of the teachings we read in our chanting book today. It was a deeply inspiring and nourishing experience to come in contact with the Buddha as a real human being, our wise teacher, through these places which were so important to him. After practicing together and coming in touch with the Buddha in ourselves over the course of the two week journey, a large group of lay pilgrims received a transmission of the Five Mindfulness Trainings under a Bodhi tree in the Jeta Grove.

The monastics also had time to meet, listen to, and play with the locals young and old, rich and poor alike. From young beggar children at the entrance to pilgrimage sites to heads of government departments and agencies in Delhi, everyone enjoyed coming in contact with, practicing with, and learning from Thầy through his monastic children. There were events organized for students, teachers and parents at various schools as part of the "Wake Up Schools" global initiative. Events were held also at locations far off the beaten track such as a prison in Dehradun, where over 600 incarcerated people were present to practice mindful breathing, walking, eating, and even singing "I Like the Roses"! 

We are very grateful for the support of BuddhaPath and Ahimsa Trust for organizing this tour, and to our worldwide community for their unwavering support of our work to bring the Dharma to so many places all over the world, and to be in contact with our deep spiritual roots in the East. May the merit of our practice be spread out to benefit all living beings on Earth.

With a deep bow and "Namaste"