Wake Up Booklet by Blue Cliff Monastery

h e r a e n d n o w .

Wake Up USA us.wkup.org The Wake Up Movement was founded in 2008 by Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh. Wake Up - Young Buddhists and non-Buddhists for a Healthy and Compassionate Society - is a world-wide network of young people practicing the living art of mindfulness. Blue Cliff Monastery 3 Mindfulness Road Pine Bush, NY 12566 www.bluecliffmonastery.org Blue Cliff Monastery was founded in 2007 and is an extension of Plum Village meditation center in France, founded by Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh. Blue Cliff Monastery is open all year round for anyone to experience mindful living. Copyright © 2011 by Unified Buddhist Church All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America This booklet has been created by young practitioners for young practitioners. Please pass me on or recycle me.

Welcome. We recognize that life can get busy. Real busy. And stressful. And overwhelming. Finding the time to pause and reflect is difficult, especially amidst an ever-growing to-do list and inbox that keeps piling up. But somehow you found yourself here, and for that we are grateful. You’ve arrived at just the right time and you’re in just the right state of mind. All of the things you did prior to now are done and everything you need to do later can wait. You are here! As for us, well, we’re here as well. We’re part of the Wake Up movement. We represent a world-wide network of young people practicing the living art of mindfulness. If you know a thing or two about mindfulness, great. If you’re new to the practice, even better. The most important thing to remember about mindfulness is that it is to be experienced. Words and people can describe it, but its true transformative power will be seen when you are able to practice it for yourself. That’s what we’re here to help you with. Being mindful is simple, but not always easy. The practices we’ll cover will equip you with your own ‘mindfulness toolkit’ that you can use anywhere, anytime, with anybody. Practicing mindful breathing, sitting, walking, eating, talking and listening... all of these can open doors of happiness and peace. They provide some space between you and the stress found in the realities of everyday life. With this space comes joy, relief, and healing ; you are free to just be. With gratitude,

The Wake Up Team

Contents Practicing Together 4 Breathing 5 Sitting Meditation 7 Walking Meditation 8 Eating Meditation 11 Deep Relaxation Practice 12 Dharma Sharing Practice 13 Beginning Anew Practice 15 Dealing With Anger 18 Mindfulness Poems for Everyday Awakening 22 Songs for the practice

The Five Mindfulness Trainings

Wake Up Mission Statement

Wake Up Sangha 35 Stay Connected to Keep the Flame of Awakening Alive

Upcoming Events 38

Practicing Together In the Lakota tradition there is an insight: Mitakuye Oyasin – All are related. In our daily lives we often think and act in a way as if we are all alone and separate from the rest of humanity, from the rest of the world. We compete against each other, we talk badly about each other and so on, acting as if we are all separate. This brings about much suffering for ourselves and others. We have not woken up to reality yet. When we practice mindfulness, we come together as a spiritual family. We practice together, and the collective energy of mindfulness helps us all return to life in the present moment. Little by little, by sitting, walking, eating and playing together we feel more close to the people around us. We come closer to ourselves, aware of our bodies, our feelings and our minds. We awaken our capacity to be in contact with the wonders of life. We are not carried away by our anxiety, our anger or our craving. We often talk about the interbeing nature of all things: How can we be here without our parents, the Earth, the sun, the bees? When we practice together we start to embody this insight. This brings us much joy and peace.

When you are motivated by the desire to transcend suffering , to get out of a difficult situation, and to help others to do the same, you become a powerful source of energy that helps you to do what you want to do to transform yourself and to help other people. - Thích Nhất Hạnh Taming the Tiger Within

Breathing Welcome to one of our most basic practices called Mindful Breathing. It is, simply put, being aware of your in-breath and out-breath. At first, we can be mindful of 3 in- and outbreaths and gradually build our awareness and concentration over more breaths, and over a longer period of time. I find for myself that my breath is the most reliable and portable tool that I always have to hand when I am overwhelmed by strong emotions. My breath is my favorite anchor that I turn to when I need to find my center and reestablish solidity. When I feel a rush of anxiety or boiling rage escalating inside, I resort to calming myself with mindful breathing. One of my favorite exercises is:

In - Out Deep - Slow Calm - Ease Smile - Release Present Moment - Wonderful Moment The most important thing is to enjoy and not control your breath. It’s okay if it’s short or long or deep or shallow. With time and practice it will naturally become deeper and slower. Every time you feel lost, alienated, or cut off from life, or from the world, every time you feel despair, anger, or instability, practice going home. Mindful breathing is the vehicle that you use to go back to your true home. - Thích Nhất Hạnh Taming the Tiger Within

Sitting Meditation Sitting Meditation is a time to be still. In Plum Village we have a song called Happiness is Here and Now. One line goes, “No where to go, nothing to do.” I think sitting meditation is when we can stop and be in our body. We can feel happy. Sitting meditation is a designated time for us ; it is “my time.” When our body has stopped moving, it gives our mind a chance to calm down also. Practicing sitting meditation we want to unite our body and mind. This desire to feel our body, to be in our body, to understand our body, to fully embrace our body and to heal our body is an act of love. It takes determination to settle into our body and to become aware of this world within us. When our body is at ease and comfortable, it does not take effort to sit like a mountain - to sit solidly and in freedom. But I think we all know that when we are unhappy or we have strong emotions, whether pleasant or unpleasant, it is a challenge to be still. What allows us to be able to sit still and be calm is to follow our breathing. This exercise of being aware of our in- and out- breath brings the light of awareness to shine forth onto these strong emotions. When we understand something, or want to understand something, it is much easier for us to be present for it, unconditionally. Mindfulness of our breath is an anchor that grounds us to our Mother Earth. It keeps us in place even when the winds of thoughts and feelings are blowing forcefully. Training ourselves to be mindful of our breath is like making a best friend. When we have a best friend, we connect more openly with other people, because we have someone to take refuge in someone we believe understands us well. If our best friend is friends with someone else, then we too can be friends with him or her and at the least manage to hang out with him or her. That someone else, our “next friend” we meet on this path, is our body. Once we have made friends with our body, then it is easier and we have more confidence in making friends with our mind.

Sitting to relax, to enjoy, to understand As our practice deepens sitting meditation can become like sitting and having a good cup of coffee or juice with a long time dear friend. You are just sitting and enjoying each others’ company and listening wholeheartedly without any judgment. You are there simply in order to understand, so you can be there for your friend. It is like that with sitting meditation as we get to know our body and mind. We want to sit so we can understand and know how to live our life more fully and happily without regrets. Since we are sitting with our best friend the breath, we feel secure and blessed to have someone so faithful by our side. We do not need to be afraid of “not being enough” because we understand ourselves, and our limits and our potential. We know we have weaknesses but we know our faithful friend will be by our side and shed light on these areas as is needed throughout our life, so we can take it easy. This awareness of “being enough” is a great insight that can only come when we stop and care for ourselves, not allowing ourselves to be caught and carried away by the mainstream of society. We learn to live wisely from our understanding and wish to love life. Bitesize sitting sessions We do not need to sit for long. If we can sit peacefully and joyfully for 5-10 minutes in the morning, that is enough to water the seed of stopping and of coming back to ourselves. We can also sit for 5-10 minutes, breathing in and out in the evening before crashing on our bed to knock out for the night. Sitting for short periods like that is enough for us to be more aware of our actions of body, speech, and mind in order for us to develop and grow into a beautiful human being.

Walking Meditation Walking meditation is my closest friend. It is always available, always there for me. My meditative steps soothe, reassure, comfort and embrace me when I need it most. I practice walking meditation wherever I am, walking from building to building. I practice it when I’m happy, when I’m angry, when I’m lonely, when I’m sad. Walking puts me in touch with myself, and with the wonderful and healing elements of life around me. It sets me free from the junk and grounds me in reality.

Not walking like a zombie To walk in meditation simply means to walk knowing we are walking. Walking like this I’m awake to my steps, awake to my life right here, right now. I put all my attention, all my heart, into my steps. Simply being with each step is enough to bring stillness and freshness to my walking moment. Synchronizing mind, steps and breathing I bring 100% of my attention to the contact between my feet and the ground, and I gently combine my steps with my breathing. Breathing in, perhaps I take three or four steps. Breathing out, I take five or six steps. I’m just a breathingwalking being in that moment. Landing into the present moment I’m someone whose mind is always buzzing, but when I walk, I really let go of the thoughts whizzing around in my head: I let go of tension that may be there, regretting something I’ve said or done, or hurt or disappointment about something that happened in the past; and I let go of my fears, anxieties and stress about what I’m facing ahead. And I just focus on my steps. Freeing myself from the weight of the past, and freeing myself from angst about the future, I land, lightly and freely into the present moment. Awakening to life, to freedom I feel the contact of my feet with the ground, and take my steps solidly and freely, rather than trippingly. Each step is my life: I cannot find my life in the future. So each step is worth taking for real, and not in a hurry. So I gently put all my attention into the point of contact between my feet and the ground. I know when I’m walking on asphalt, or pebbles, or grass or gravel. I feel that relationship. I feel the breeze on my face, the warm sunshine or chill at dusk. I feel the expanse of the sky above me and the vast earth beneath me. I hear the sound of the birds, the wind in the trees – or the roar of traffic & bustle of life around me. Walking like this I feel a kind of freedom. Eye of the urban storm I used to walk like this through downtown London on my way to work in the newsroom. I learnt that I could walk freely – but also fast. I could walk fast without hurrying, because I was there with every step. Even though there was traffic, sirens, and stress all around me, I used my mindfulness to bring my attention to the sky, the trees, the river, the earth. I found sources of solidity and freshness, and chose them as my reference point. As I walked I would let go my worries go into the sidewalk, and release the tension in my shoulders and chest. I felt like I was master of my life, and my environment – not carried along by the rush-hour majority, not taking on their stress as my own. My inner-city walking meditations were moments of freedom and of rest, when I was really myself, and really living my life. 11

Eating Together It’s like Sitting Meditation, but Yummier. Eating is one of the most regular and dependable things that we already do in our daily life. Mindful eating, or Eating Meditation, is a great way to incorporate a regular dose of mindfulness into our everyday practice - at least three times a day! In eating meditation, we take the time to connect more deeply with the food we have before us. Whether it’s a snack, a drink, or a full meal, we slow down to see, taste, and recognize exactly what it is we are putting into our body. Looking deeply into our food, we become aware of the many conditions that have come together for the food to be on our plate. With this awareness, we water seeds of gratitude and compassion for the nourishment we are able to receive at the cost of much energy and hard work, and this awareness then also becomes a source of nourishment for us. The Tortoise and the Hare Slowing down is an important part of becoming more present during our meals. We give ourselves full permission to eat in a leisurely, attentive way instead of rushing through our meal to get it out of the way of “more important things.” When we give ourselves time to chew the food carefully and thoroughly, we can connect more deeply with the tastes and textures of our food, and become more aware of the nutriments that we are incorporating into our body. We also have the time to observe and embrace certain habit energies - did we put too much food on our plate? are we eating beyond what our body is needing? are our minds wandering towards the future or the past? are we using the food to nourish ourselves or are we using it to run away from our anxieties and suffering? As we touch old habit energies about our way of consuming, we are able to recognize and smile to them, and then gently set course for a healthier way of eating and living. Setting aside time to be with ourselves as we enjoy a mindful meal is a wonderful way to lay claim to an oasis of peace in our daily lives. And it’s a practice we can share together with our friends and family, as well. Happy eating!

The Five Contemplations 1. This food is the gift of the whole universe - the earth, the sky, numerous living beings, and much hard and loving work. 2. May we eat and live in mindfulness and gratitude so as to be worthy to receive it. 3. May we recognize and transform unwholesome mental formations, especially our greed, and learn to eat with moderation. 4. May we keep our compassion alive by eating is such a way that we reduce the suffering of living beings, preserve our planet, and reverse the process of global warming. 5. We accept this food in order to nurture our brotherhood and sisterhood, strengthen our community of practice, and nourish our ideal of serving all living beings.

Deep Relaxation Just Chill It’s so important to relax. But our lives can be so hectic, and our minds so complex. That’s why it’s much easier to start with our bodies. We know that when our body is relaxed, our mind will naturally follow. Just as when our body is tense and agitated, our mind will be as well. I think that many of us may have a notion that relaxation is something that can only be achieved at a later date, after we have attained [insert life goal here]. Only after we’ve purchased our dream house on the beach will we finally allow ourselves to let go and enjoy. We may feel that we require a day-spa, or a massage, to facilitate our relaxation. We’ve lost confidence in our own body’s ability to heal itself. But relaxation is something that can occur within the space of a few skillful in-and-out breaths. At first it may actually feel like our bodies are in more pain than before. Without noticing it, our bodies have accumulated a reservoir of tension; the pain has been there all along - we just hadn’t noticed it yet.

Wishing the pain away, wanting to get rid of the discomfort as quickly as possible will not help. The harder we try to force ourselves to relax, the more tense we may become. We have to gently embrace the tension, stress and discomfort with compassion, recognition and acceptance. Allowing our stress to surface so that it can be cared for, this is the key. After you have located a point of pain, direct the breath towards it. I guarantee that after five minutes of wholehearted practice, the suffering will diminish. Try it – trust your body.

Dharma Sharing Dharma Sharing is an opportunity for us to share deeply our experience of applying the practice of mindfulness in our lives. It is a time for us to share our happiness and also share our difficulties. It’s a safe space where we can share freely whatever is real for us, whatever is on our heart, perhaps even things we have never felt able to share before. But most of all it is an opportunity for us to listen to each other. How many times in our lives have we felt that noone is really listening to us? And how many times have we not really been able to listen to our friends and our loved ones because our mind is occupied with other things (or because we’re busy texting )? In a session of Dharma Sharing, we learn to listen deeply to each other, offering each other our full presence, not allowing ourselves to be carried away by judging or reacting to what the other person is saying. We listen deeply by focusing our attention on our breathing, again and again bringing our mind back to our body and letting go of our thinking. When we share, we share to the whole group. We try to avoid crosstalk, and we definitely don’t give anyone advice. We get enough advice already. The best way to protect the space for everyone is to keep our sharing to our own experience. When we all share our own experience, the wisdom of the group manifests, and we are able to touch true brotherhood and sisterhood.

Beginning Anew At times we need to say something to our friend, our parents, or our partner, and we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t find the right time or space to say it. The practice of Beginning Anew helps us to create a space in which we can share our happiness or our pain in such a way that the other person or people are able to listen and to receive it. The guidelines of the practice help to maintain an energ y of peace and openness during the whole sharing , making it possible to for us to truly hear and to be heard. The added presence of a trusted and experienced facilitator in the Beginning Anew session can expand the capacity of the space to hold even quite difficult conflicts and emotions. Find a quiet space where you are unlikely to be interrupted. It is nice to put a beautiful flower or plant--even a pine cone--in the center of the space where you sit. If you are a group practicing together, you may like to sit in a circle around the flower; two may sit on either side of it facing inwards. It is even possible to practice Beginning Anew by yourself alone with a flower! Enjoy the beauty of the flower before you as you follow your breathing. It is helpful to have a practitioner who has experience with Beginning Anew to help guide the meeting. He or she can help invite the bell to begin, and may share the guidelines of Beginning Anew with everyone; during the meeting he or she will know when it is appropriate to remind everyone to come back to their breathing and listen to the sound of the bell. It is best if that person is not too emotionally involved in any conflict that may be brought out in the meeting. If there is no one to go over the guidelines, one person may just read this text out loud to begin. In Beginning Anew only one person may share at a time. When you would like to share you join your palms before your chest and bow, or

use some other gesture which is clear and acceptable to the group. If we are in a circle you may like to stand up, walk mindfully to the flower in the center, pick it up, and walk back to your seat to sit down. Place the flower in front of you to remind you to bring beauty to your words as you share. The others practice not to interrupt you as you speak until you gesture that you have finished by joining your palms and bowing. When we share we begin with the practice of watering flowers. We share the things that we genuinely appreciate about the other person or people. This is not mere flattery; it is the practice of recognizing the good qualities in the other person and pointing these out to them. We share from our heart and not just by way of lip service. We want to let them know that we are grateful for their presence. A skillful practitioner will water flowers not just by recognizing abstract qualities in the other person, like kindness or joyfulness, but by pointing out concrete things that the other person has done to demonstrate these qualities. For example, “I really appreciated how you washed the dishes for everyone last night without being asked. That was very kind.” By learning to skillfully water the flowers of those around us we build brotherhood and sisterhood--the foundation of our relationships and our communities. The second step is to share our own weaknesses and unskillful actions. We are not perfect in every way; everyone has things they can work on. This is the moment to recognize those concrete things we have thought, said or done in the past few days or weeks that have been unskillful or hurtful to others, and also to make the commitment to do better. In this way we cultivate humility and keep ourselves open to receiving feedback from others. When others hear our sharing , their hearts naturally open with compassion and understanding. When we genuinely acknowledge our own shortcomings, others are much more open to receiving feedback from us.The third step is to share how we have been hurt by something we perceive the other person has thought, said or done. We always start from the level of our perceptions; in this way we acknowledge that our perceptions may be wrong , leaving space for the other person or people to offer their own perception about what happened. You may like to start by saying : “I feel hurt because I perceived you said or did this or that.” We can speak truthfully about our own emotions and experience of our perceptions, but we do not blame or judge the other person. This may seem difficult, but it is the best way to leave space for the other person to explain their own perceptions about what happened. Reconciliation can only come about when everyone recognizes the role they played in bringing about a

situation of suffering. Beginning Anew creates the space for this kind of reconciliation to take place. By first watering the flowers of the other person and then recognizing our own shortcomings, we prepare the soil for the flower of true reconciliation to grow. If the other person is not skillful enough in their speech, a strong emotion like anger may come up. At that point it is better not to respond or react, but to follow our breathing. It may be better not to respond to the other person in that same meeting but to leave some time, even a week or more, to let the emotion settle so that we may respond, using the same steps above, at a later time. There is a fourth step that is sometimes added where you may ask the group for support to go through a difficult time. Perhaps a loved one has died, or perhaps we are just having a strong emotion come up in our daily life. We may let the others know about this and ask for their love and support. You may like to practice only the first and second steps in a session of Beginning Anew. Be sure, however, not to proceed to the third step without having fully practiced the first and second step beforehand. In that way you help prepare the other person for a sharing that may be difficult for them otherwise to receive. In this way Beginning Anew can become a powerful tool for building trust, intimacy, and brotherhood and sisterhood in your family, group of friends, or community.

Dealing With Anger Just because anger or hate is present does not mean that the capacity to love and accept is not there; love is always in you. When you see your face looking like a bomb ready to explode, you are motivated to do something to change it. You know in your heart what you can do to look more beautiful. You don’t need cosmetics. You need only to breathe peacefully, calmly, and to smile mindfully. If you can do that one or two times, you will look much better. Just look in the mirror, breathing in calmly, breathing out smiling, and you will feel relief. - Thích Nhất Hạnh Taming the Tiger Within

Defuse Me If I were a bomb ready to explode, if I have become dangerous to your life, then you must take care of me. You think you can get away from me, but how? I am here, right in your midst. (You cannot remove me from your life.) And I may explode at any time. I need your care. I need your time. I need you to defuse me. You are responsible for me, because you have made the vow (and I heard it) to love and to care. I know that to take care of me you need much patience, much coolness. I realize that in you there is also a bomb to be defused. So why donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t we help each other? I need you to listen to me. No one had listened to me. No one understands my suffering, including the ones who say they love me. The pain inside me is suffocating me. It is the TNT that makes up the bomb.

There is no one else who will listen to me. That is why I need you. But you seem to be getting away from me. You want to run for your safety, the kind of safety that does not exist. I have not created my own bomb. It is you. It is society. It is family. It is school. It is tradition. So please don’t blame me for it. Come and help; if not, I will explode. This is not a threat. It is only a plea for help. I will also be of help when it is your turn. - Thích Nhất Hạnh Please Call Me By My True Names

Mindfulness Poems for Everyday Awakening Put Some Poetry Into It! Towards the end of retreat, we’re always asked, “Now, what? How do we realistically apply these newfound mindfulness skills to everyday life?” It can be quite daunting, especially when we see that our current life style, friends or environ are not as conducive as we’d like. Gathas are short poems that correspond to regular moments throughout the day. We gently weave gathas together with our daily actions and our breathing. Whether it is waking up in the morning, starting the car or finishing a meal, we can gently remind ourselves with poetic assistance. As we recite the first line, we return to our in-breath. With the second line we follow our out-breath. Third line: in-breath. Fourth: out-breath. It’s important to really allow the poems to work their way through us rather than reciting by rote. There’s no way I can easily convince you to memorize five poems. It’s much simpler to write them down on a small sheet of paper. Post them accordingly: bedside, bathroom mirror, tea-mug, etc. Then, when you wake up, brush your teeth or drink your tea, the small slip of paper will put some poetry into your mindfulness! If you find the practice of gathas inspiring, more can be found in the book, Present Moment Wonderful Moment (Thich Nhat Hanh, Parallax Press).

Waking Up Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. I vow to live each moment fully, and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion.

Brushing Your Teeth Brushing my teeth and rinsing my mouth, I vow to speak purely and lovingly. When my mouth is fragrant with right speech, a flower blooms in the garden of my heart.

Drinking Tea This cup of tea in my two hands, mindfulness is held uprightly. My mind and body dwell in the very here and now.

Walking Meditation The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, a gentle wind blows, with each step, a flower blooms.

Turning On the Light Forgetfulness is the darkness; mindfulness is the light. I bring awareness to shine upon all life.

Songs for the practice 1. Breathing In, Breathing Out Breathing in, breathing out Breathing in, breathing out I am blooming as a flower. I am fresh as the dew. I am solid as the mountain. I am firm as the earth. I am free. Breathing in, breathing out Breathing in, breathing out I am water, reflecting what is real, what is true. And I feel there is space deep inside of me I am free, I am free, I am free.

2. The Island Within Breathing in, I go back to the island within myself. There are beautiful trees within the island, there are clear streams of water, there are birds, sunshine and fresh air. Breathing out, I feel safe. I enjoy going back to my island. 3. Dear Friends Dear friends, dear friends, Let my tell you how I feel; You have given me such treasures, I love you so.

4. I Have Arrived, I Am Home (I have arrived, I am home in the here and in the now.) (2x) I am solid, I am free. I am solid, I am free. In the ultimate, I dwell. In the ultimate, I dwell.

5. In Out In, out Deep, slow Calm, ease Smile, release. Present moment, Wonderful moment.

6. Standing Like A Tree Standing like a tree with my roots down deep, and my branches wide and open. Come down the rain, Come down the sun, Return to the Earth, return to the One... You are so tall, your leaves are so green How could we live without you?... Trees... give us shade and... Trees... give us air to breathe... We are one family, we are all related...

7. Arrived

10. Peacefully Free

Arrived, arrived, at home, I am at home. Dwelling in the here and dwelling in the now. Solid as a mountain, free as a white cloud. The door to no-birth and no-death is open, free and unshakable.

I am so free because I can be me. look at the clouds at play, passing over everyday. Inside the sky so blue, immense, spacious and true. I’ll be tall like the sky, wide enough to embrace what’s inside, just like the clouds passing by, flying high in the grand open sky. Everything around me will be loved, embraced, and peacefully free. everything inside me will be loved, embraced, and peacefully free.

8. Mindfulness Poem For Walking Meditation The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this lovely path, I walk in peace. With each step, a gentle wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms.

9. Please Call Me By My True Names My joy’s like spring, so warm. It makes flowers bloom all over the Earth. My pain’s like a river of tears, so vast it fills the four oceans. Please call me by my true names. So I can hear all my cries and laughter at once. So I can see that my joy and pain are one. Please call me by my true names, so I can wake up and the door of my heart could be left open.

11. I Am A Cloud I am a cloud, I am the blue sky, I am a bird spreading out its wings. I am a flower, I am the sunshine, I am the Earth receiving a seed. And I am free when my heart is open. Yes I am free when my mind is clear. Oh dear brothers, oh dear sisters, Lets walk to together mindfully (joyfully). (2x)

12. We’re All Moving On A Journey To Nowhere We’re all moving, on a journey to nowhere. Taking it easy, Taking it slow. No more worries, No need to hurry. Nothing to carry, Let it all go...

13. No Discrimination

15. No Coming, No Going

The sun, it shines on everyone. (2x) No discrimination, no discrimination The rain, it falls on everyone, (2x) No discrimination, no discrimination My heart belongs to everyone, (2x) No discrimination, no discrimination

No coming, no going No after, no before I hold you close to me. I release you to be so free Because I am in you, and you are in me (2x)

14. And When I Rise

16. Happiness

And when I rise, let me rise like a bird, joyfully. And when I fall, let me fall like a leaf, gracefully, without regrets.

Happiness is here and now. I have dropped my worries. Nowhere to go, nothing to do, no longer in a hurry.

(And when I sit, let me sit like a mountain, solidly. And when I lay, let me lay like a lake, calm and still, reflecting all.) (And when I work, let me work like a bee, lazily. And when I play, let me play like the rays of the sun, rejoicingly.)

Happiness is here and now. I have dropped my worries. Somewhere to go, something to do, but I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need to hurry.

17. Wake Up Song We’re planting seeds for new communities It’s time to wake up To be the change in the world we want to see It’s time to open up To redefine society No, don’t give up We’re planting seeds for new communities Please wake up Wake up Open your eyes Wake up Please realize (To a new sunrise) Wake up You are skillful and wise (You are beautiful and wise) Wake up (x2) She dreamed bigger, she dreamed brighter She had the energy of wholeness to guide her And when she stopped to look inside her She listened to her inner voice and said: I can feel it’s been my choice to live in this new way To take time each day to meditate and to pray It is a new day, and there is so much more that I need to say So I’ll be walking on the Earth in this sacred way

Chorus Walking on the path he could hear his heart whisper Keep your spirit growing bigger, keep flowing in this river Believe in yourself, let your heart be your guide And you can use your suffering to grow your heart wide There is more wonder in the world than you can see Now stay true to your path, you don’t have to see how Be compassionate and kind to your body and your mind Practice patience; it takes effort and time One day at a time One day at a time Let the music take you, let the music wake you We are coming together from all ten directions ‘Cause we have a deep affection for the truth We are the youth of all ages, more than just Facebook pages We are living, breathing realities We are new loving compassionate inclusive sustainable communities!

There are those who are so discouraged that they no longer have the courage to love. They suffer a great deal just because they made an attempt to love and failed . The wounds within them are so deep that it makes them afraid to try again. We are aware of the presence of these people among us, all around us. We have to bring them the message that love is possible. Our world desperately needs love.

- ThĂch NháşĽt HáşĄnh Taming the Tiger Within

The Five Mindfulness Trainings The Five Mindfulness Trainings represent the vision of all our spiritual ancestors for a global spirituality and ethic. They are a concrete expression of a path of wisdom and true love, leading to healing, transformation and happiness for ourselves and for the world. To practice the Five Mindfulness Trainings is to cultivate a way of life which can remove all discrimination, intolerance, anger, fear, and despair. Following this way of life, we are not lost in confusion about our life in the present or in fears about the future.

The First Mindfulness Training: Reverence For Life Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I am committed to cultivating compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and our Earth. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to support any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life. Seeing that harmful actions arise from anger, fear, greed, and intolerance which in turn come from discriminative thinking, I will cultivate openness, non-discrimination and non-attachment to views, in order to transform violence, fanaticism and dogmatism in myself and in the world.

The Second Mindfulness Training: True Happiness Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I am committed to practicing generosity in my thinking, speaking and acting. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others; and I will share my time, energ y, and material resources with those who are in need. I will practice looking deeply to see that the happiness and suffering of others are not separate from my own happiness and suffering ; that true happiness is not possible without understanding and compassion; and that seeking wealth, fame, power and sensual pleasures can bring much suffering and

despair. I am aware that happiness depends on my mental attitude and not on external conditions, and I can live happily in the present moment simply by remembering that I already have more than enough conditions to be happy. I am committed to working in a way that I can help reduce the suffering of living beings on Earth and reverse the process of global warming.

The Third Mindfulness Training: True Love Aware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. Knowing that sexual desire is not love, and that sexual activity motivated by craving always harms myself as well as others, I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without true love and a deep, long-term commitment made known to my family and friends. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct. Seeing that body and mind are one, I am committed to learning appropriate ways to take care of my sexual energ y. I will cultivate loving kindness, compassion, joy and inclusiveness which are the four basic elements of true love, for my greater happiness and the greater happiness of others. Practicing true love, we know that we will continue beautifully in the future.

True love is a love without possessiveness. You love and still you are free, and the other person is also free. The kind of love that has no joy is not true love. If both parties cry every day, then that’s not true love. There must joy and freedom and understanding in love. - Thích Nhất Hạnh Taming the Tiger Within

The Fourth Mindfulness Training: Loving Speech and Deep Listening Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and compassionate listening in order to relieve suffering and promote reconciliation and peace in myself and among other ethnic and religious groups, and nations. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I am committed to speaking truthfully, using words that inspire confidence, joy, and hope. When anger is manifesting in me, I am determined not to speak. I will practice mindful breathing and walking in order to recognize my anger and look deeply into its roots, especially in my wrong perceptions and lack of understanding of the suffering in myself and in the other person. I will speak and listen in a way that can help myself and the other person to release the suffering and see the way out of difficult situations. I am determined not to spread news that I do not know to be certain and not to utter words that can cause division or discord. I willÂ make daily efforts, in my speaking and listening, to nourish my capacity for understanding, love, joy, and inclusiveness, and gradually transform anger, violence and fear that lie deep in my consciousness.

The Fifth Mindfulness Training: Nourishment and Healing Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming. I will practice looking deeply into how I take in edible foods, sense impressions, volition, and consciousness. I am determined not to use alcohol, drugs, gambling or any other products which contain toxins, such as certain websites, electronic games, TV programs, films, magazines, books, and conversations. I will practice coming back to the present moment to be in touch with the refreshing, healing and nourishing elements in me and around me, not letting regrets and sorrow drag me back into the past nor letting anxieties, fear or craving pull me out of the present moment. I am determined not to try to cover up loneliness, anxiety or other suffering by losing myself in consumption. I will make every effort to consume in a way that preserves peace, joy, and well-being in my body and mind, and in the collective body and mind of my family, my society and our Earth.

Wake Up: Young Buddhists and non-Buddhists for a Healthy and Compassionate Society Mission Statement Wake Up is a community of young Dharma practitioners who want to help their society - a society overloaded with intolerance, discrimination, craving, anger and despair. Their practice is the Five Mindfulness Trainings, ethical guidelines offered by the Buddha - the most concrete practice of true love and compassion. They clearly show the way towards a life in harmony with each other and with the Earth. If you are a young practitioner you are encouraged to join the Wake Up movement in your country. We may feel anger and frustration when we see the environmental degradation caused by our society, and we feel despair because as individuals we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t seem to be strong enough to change our way of life. Wake Up offers us a way to pool our energy and act in synchrony. Let us get together and form a Wake Up group in our own town. Our collective practice will surely bring transformation and healing to individuals and society. Let us get in touch with young practitioners from Plum Village, both monastic and lay, to get more support and information. Buddhism needs to be recognized as a source of wisdom, a long tradition of the practice of understanding and love and not just of devotion. The spirit of the Dharma is very close to the spirit of science; both help us cultivate an open and non-discriminating mind. You can join the Wake Up Movement as a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, an agnostic or an atheist. The practice of maitri, of loving kindness, the practice of sisterhood and brotherhood, is at the foundation of the Dharma. When members of the Wake Up Community come together they like to hang out and connect with each other. They listen to a Dharma teaching, participate in a Dharma sharing, recite the Five Mindfulness Trainings and do sitting and walking meditation. The practice helps them to release the tension in their bodies and their feelings, to live more deeply and enjoy more each moment of their daily lives, and to use compassionate listening and lov-

ing speech to help restore communication and reconcile with other people, and help others in society to do the same. Dharma sharings help us to share our practice with each other, to deepen our understanding of the Five Mindfulness Trainings, and to find more appropriate ways to apply them right away in our daily lives. In this way, we are changing society in the direction of compassion and harmony. Together we can discover many concrete ways to help, such as: • • • • • • • • • •

offering guided relaxation sessions to our classmates before exams organizing regular sessions of sitting, walking and eating meditation with our friends - at home, in parks or public spaces learning to handle our stress, anger, fear and depression so we can offer joy, happiness and wisdom to our friends and society bringing mindfulness practices to the worlds of activism, social work and healthcare consuming in a way that reduces suffering and pollution and helps save our planet - such as eating as vegan as possible actively caring for our immediate environment - such as organizing clean-ups of beaches and planting trees promoting Car-Free Days where we are organizing and facilitating Deep Ecology workshops to help us wake up to the situation of the planet creating organic vegetable gardens in our backyards and cities working together with local charities to help those in need, and supporting aid projects in the developing world

Members of the Wake Up Community can also organize camps and retreats so that many others, young and less young, can come and share the practice of joyful and mindful living, and so we can all nourish ourselves through contact with nature. The Five Mindfulness Trainings encourage everyone to live in such a way that our planet Earth will be able to survive for a long time. These Trainings are the foundation of the lives of the members of the Wake Up Movement and represent their ideal of service. Mindfulness, Concentration and Insight are the energies we cultivate through our practice and that can bring about tolerance, non-discrimination, understanding and compassion. In the last three decades, Plum Village has helped to train many young people in Europe, North America and Asia in this way. Now it is possible to set up Wake Up groups in each town and country. Please share with us in Plum Village what you are planning to do and what you are trying to achieve. We shall do our best to support you.

Wake Up Sangha In Holland, many Wake Up sanghas are forming and we now have a young sangha in almost every big city. This is great, but how did this happen? It almost always begins with just one or two practitioners who have a deep aspiration to continue to practice together with others. For us it started with 5 young people from Rotterdam going to a Wake Up retreat in Holland (that young people organized and asked monks and nuns to come and support). We all really wanted to come together again, so we made an appointment the week after to do so. This first sangha meeting was at my home. With some improvised cushions and tea, we started. We shared the ideal that no one person is the leader of the group and that everybody is responsible. Although in the long run some people felt comfortable sitting at the bell and others did not, the spirit of doing it together always remained. I remember that we first did some sitting and then spoke about what we would like to do at a sangha meeting. We made a list and everybody voted, if and how many times we wanted to do things. The list went something like this: Every time: - Sitting meditation - Dharma sharing - Drinking tea Often:

- Guided meditation - Reciting 5 Mindfulness Trainings - Deep Relaxation practice - Outside walking meditation - Dharma talk - Singing - Games

Sometimes: - Touching the Earth practice - Sharing a meal - Yoga/exercises - Other teachings - Other meditations We started our sangha meeting once a week and we always tried to have a meeting. It seems that having a regular meeting at a fixed time makes a sangha stronger. Sometimes there were not so many people, but as we were all first practicing for ourselves, that did not matter. A sangha meeting can be very deep with only 3 people. For me the young sangha really nourished me. We grew strong connections and felt more and more as brothers and sisters. It helped that during the sharings we could very easily open up and share our difficulties, as we had a safe place and atmosphere. I would like to encourage everybody to form a sangha - you can do it too. Wake Up Sangha cookbook Ingredients: * Consensus on activities to do together * Safe place to meet each time * Regular meetings * A bell * Sitting cushions or improvised rolled-up blankets * Song lyrics * Printed copies of the 5 Mindfulness Trainings * Some inspired people Optional: * Planting Seeds: Mindfulness for Children book by Thích Nhất Hạnh * Attending/organizing retreats for young people

Stay Connected to Keep the Flame of Awakening Alive I’ve been a monk for 65 years, and what I have found is that there is no religion, no philosophy, no ideology higher than brotherhood and sisterhood. Not even Buddhism.

- Thích Nhất Hạnh

wkup.org Wake Up International bluecliffmonastery.org Pine Bush, NY deerparkmonastery.org In the Great Hidden Mountain of Escondido, CA magnoliagrovemonastery.org

Batesville, Mississippi

plumvillage.org Wake Up’s spiritual birthplace - a monastery in the Dordogne, France fiveyears@plumvillage.org For more infromation on the 5-year monastic training program pvom.org Live streaming of teachings from Thích Nhất Hạnh iamhome.org Sanghas all over the planet in the Plum Village tradition morningsuncommunity.org Lay Mindfulness Practice Center in the Plum Village tradition, NH >>contact the Wake Up monastics in North America at us@wkup.org >>follow them on Twitter @wkup >>get connected @ facebook.com/wkupusa Get in touch with Wake Up groups along the East Coast: u s @ w k u p. o r g b o s t o n @ w k u p. o r g d a rt m o u t h @ w k u p. o r g r h o d e i s l a n d @ w k u p. o r g

p e n n @ w k u p. o r g p r o v i d e n c e @ w k u p. o r g n y c @ w k u p. o r g c o l u m b i a @ w k u p. o r g

Upcoming Events: Day of Mindfulness

Led by Dharma Teacher Joanne Friday Saturday, November 19, 2011, from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. @Riverside Church, 91 Claremont Avenue, New York City ... for further information please contact info@joannefriday.com.

Annual Young Adults Retreat

Hosted at Blue Cliff Monastery, 3 Mindfulness Rd, Pine Bush, NY March 12-17, 2012 Leave the city behind, get a breath of fresh air and celebrate awakened living with a lively group of young mindfulness practitioners amidst the forests and creeks upstate. â&#x20AC;Ś thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s even a special rate: $100-$150 room and board (according to your means) for further information please contact office@bluecliffmonastery.org.

Weekends for college students

Hosted at Blue Cliff Monastery, 3 Mindfulness Rd, Pine Bush, NY June 22-24, 2012 August 17-19, 2012 ... for further information please contact office@bluecliffmonastery.org.

Wake Up Tour of West Coast Universities

Organized by Deer Park Monastery, Escondido, Southern California April 2-16, 2012 ... for further information please visit deerparkmonastery.org.

Blue Cliff Monastery Pine Bush, New York

The Wake Up Movement wkup.org