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DonateIn this Dharma talk, the speaker emphasizes the practice of beginning anew and Love in Action. The retreat's theme encourages us to start fresh, not just in the new year but every day. The talk focuses on the importance of recognizing the potential energy within us, understanding that it influences our thoughts, speech, and actions. Just as a stationary object holds potential energy that can lead to movement, our inner state of being holds the energy that shapes our outward actions.
The speaker also introduces the concept of interbeing, symbolized by the Yin-Yang bean, which represents the interconnectedness of all things. They explain how our actions—whether mindful or not—carry long-lasting consequences, shaping both ourselves and the world around us. A key part of "beginning anew" is cultivating stability through mindful awareness, which leads to more positive actions.
The talk further explores the four steps of beginning a new:
Throughout, the speaker encourages a shift from a scarcity mindset to one of abundance, where we can recognize and appreciate what we have. The importance of mindful breathing and self-awareness is stressed as a means to anchor ourselves and break cycles of negative self-talk.
From time to time we offer multi-week courses related to mindfulness, the teachings and life of Thich Nhat Hanh, and a variety of similar subjects. Please see our schedule of upcoming courses.
Take the Deer Park Monastery and Plum Village community with you wherever you go. The Plum Village app is designed to cultivate mindfulness, compassion, and joy through guided meditations, deep relaxations, practice poems, bells of mindfulness, and other practices — all through a mobile device.
