[Full] Discourse on Mindful Breathing: Main Takeaways (Jul 21, 2009) (English sub)

Video transcript: https://tnhtalks.wordpress.com/2022/0...
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Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Master Tang Hoi said, “Mindfulness of breathing is the great vehicle used by the Buddhas to save beings who are drifting and sinking in the ocean of suffering” (source: https://plumvillage.org/library/songs....

In this post, the TNHT project offers you the translation (transcript and subtitles) for "The Main Takeaways of the Discourse on Mindful Breathing" that Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh gave on July 21, 2009. Perhaps so far, none of Thay's English dharma talks covers this whole sutra like this one, in which Thay encapsulated key points to remember about each mindful breathing exercise. It also seems that Thay was delivering this talk to an audience of Vietnamese-speaking filmmakers who were thinking of making a film based on this sutra.

To help you better follow the talk, the transcript is divided into passages numbered in the order of the breathing exercises. As always, the Vietnamese audio is never muted so that friends who understand Vietnamese can benefit from the talk in both languages. Any feedback on the translation is very much welcome (using the Contact page).

"The day I discovered the Discourse on the Full Awareness of Breathing, I was extremely happy. It's like I'd just discovered a treasure chest. And it felt like I was the happiest person in the world. And for that reason, I have taught, I have presented, I have instructed many, many practitioners. And as always, I've had a lot of happiness. And those who get to hear the teachings and practice accordingly have also had a lot of happiness. And so, I believe, in the following hour or so, I'll present the 16 breathing exercises in such a way that allows you to grasp the teachings and practice successfully right away."

This is a full dharma talk on the Discourse on the Full Awareness of Breathing given at Son Ha Temple in the Upper Hamlet of Plum Village France on July 21, 2009.

⚫ Original Vietnamese title: "01 2009 07 21 XT VN Tinh Yếu Kinh Quán Niệm Hơi Thở"
⚫ Originally posted by: Plum Village (YouTube channel)    • 01 2009 07 21 XT VN Tinh yếu kinh quán ...  
⚫ Talk given: July 21, 2009, Upper Hamlet, Plum Village France
⚫ Length: 1 hour 25 minutes 46 seconds

With deep bows of gratitude for your patience, kindness, and understanding.
Breathing joyfully,
🙏
Living Dharma of the Heart
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REFERENCES (Resources used to translate this Dharma talk)
1. The list of 51 mental formations by Plum Village: https://plumvillage.org/wp-content/up...
2. The list of 51 mental formations from Plum Village website, https://plumvillage.org/transcription....
3. Discourse on the Full Awareness of Breathing: https://plumvillage.org/library/sutra...
4. Discourse on Youth and Happiness: https://plumvillage.org/library/sutra...
5. Thich Nhat Hanh, 1992, "Breathe, You Are Alive!," Parallax Press.
6. Thich Nhat Hanh, 2013, "Exploring the Joy of Practice" dharma talk transcript, Magnolia Grove Monastery, retrieved from Plum Village's website, https://plumvillage.org/library/dharm....
7. The "Chant on the Three Jewels for children" used in the translation is excerpted from "Chanting from the Heart" e-books series, Book #3, page 31, by Thich Nhat Hanh and the Monks and Nuns of Plum Village, PDF file retrieved from the Blue Cliff Monastery's website: https://www.bluecliffmonastery.org/li... (you can click the link and download the three e-books). Please note that the translator has edited the translation to allow it to stay as close as possible to the original meanings presented in the Vietnamese audio.
8. Thich Nhat Hanh, 2009, "The Blooming of the Lotus," Parallax Press.
9. Br Phap Dung, 2020, "On "Ingagement"," retrieved from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation's website, "https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/o...".
10. Tịnh Thủy, n.d., Từng bước chân thảnh thơi, retrieved from langmai.org, https://langmai.org/dai-may-tim/thien...
11.   / 536656747167335  
12. Wikipedia, n.d., "Magnifying Glass," https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnify....
13. Thich Nhat Hanh, "Liberating Our Mind: Untying Knots, the Ten Fetters | Thich Nhat Hanh (short teaching video)," Excerpt from 'Path of the Buddha' (June 18th, 2009), retrieved Sep 17, 2022 from Plum Village YouTube channel,    • Liberating Our Mind: Untying Knots, the Te...  .
14. EarthSky, 2019, "Why are moths attracted to flame?," https://earthsky.org/earth/why-are-mo...
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#ThichNhatHanh #breathingmeditation
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Photo courtesy of langmai.org and plumvillage.org