Why Habits Matter Most of our life is lived through habit. We wake up the same way, think the same thoughts, react in familiar patterns, and move through the world on well-worn tracks. Habits give structure to life, but they also quietly shape who we become. In Buddhism, habits are not merely psychological tendencies. They…
'Thich Nhat Hanh' tagged posts
On January 11, 2026, practitioners gathered from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. for our Beginning Anew Silent Retreat, held overlooking the serene Shoyoan Teien Zen Garden in Middletown, Connecticut. Participants shared that the retreat offered a meaningful way to begin the new year with intention, clarity, and care. In the closing reflection, many spoke of the…
In a World of Division, the Middle Way Late in autumn, as the last leaves had fallen and only a few lingered on the branches above the Shoyoan Teien Zen garden, I found myself speaking words that arose extemporaneously. They were shaped by a reading, the season, and the stillness of that moment. During a…
Awakening unfolds as we orient ourselves through view, rest in awareness through meditation, and allow wisdom and compassion to express themselves naturally in how we live together. Buddhism is often described as a path of awakening, but at its heart it begins with a simple and compassionate insight: our deepest nature is already whole. Even…
On Sunday morning, October 12, 2025, we hosted our annual Autumn Silent Simplicty Retreat at the Mansfield Freeman Center for East Asian Studies, Wesleyan University, in beautiful Middletown, Connecticut. It was 2.5 hours of listening and quiet sitting (zazen) and walking (kinhin) meditation, lead by our guiding Dharma Teacher, Rev. G.R. Lewis. The retreat started…
This is a short article by Dharma Teacher G.R. Lewis who explores “Let your life be the teaching luminous, ordinary, and free.”
Our field trip to the Tibetan Cultural Festival 2025 in Redding, Connecticut was awesome. From eating traditional momos (dumplings) with fried rice, and drinking warm traditional butter and sweet teas to shopping for unique Tibetan items in the market place, watching the animal blessing, listening to the monks from Tibetan and Theravada traditions chant ancient…
This morning a few of us enjoyed a peaceful outdoor meditative experience under an ancient elm tree at the Wethersfield Green, in historic Old Wethersfield, Connecticut on August 24, 2025 We enjoyed a peaceful 30-minute seated meditation under the the open summer sky, surrounded by the shade of trees and the spacious green. This mindfulness…
Our very first Mindful Bike Ride was a success. We had a few a participants and all had a wonderful time yesterday biking from Farmington to Simsbury on July 25, 2025. Along the way, we stop at Small State Provisions in Avon for refreshing iced matcha, coffee, and croissants. Then, while in Simsbury, we had…
“There is no path to awakening that does not pass through the simple act of being fully here, now.” In Buddhism, awakening is not a distant goal found only in monastic isolation or after years of abstract study—it begins and ends in the immediacy of our present experience. The quote, “There is no path to…