The Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh provides timeless insight into the essence of true love in this enlightening manual. He examines the four main facets of love as defined by Buddhism—lovingkindness, compassion, joy, and freedom—and explains how to experience them in our daily lives with warmth, directness, and simplicity.
He also highlights the need to learn how to be completely present in our lives before we can truly love, and he provides straightforward methods from the Buddhist tradition that anybody may adopt to create the circumstances for love.
Martin Luther King Jr. nominated Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize. Hanh is a well-known novelist, poet, scholar, and peace campaigner.
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About the Author
The Vietnamese Buddhist Zen Master, poet, and peace campaigner Thich Nhat Hanh (1926–2022) was one of the most renowned and significant spiritual leaders in the world. Born in 1926, he was sixteen when he became a Zen Buddhist monk.
His efforts to promote peace and harmony during the Vietnam War inspired Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to propose him for the 1967 Nobel Peace Prize. The School of Youth for Social Service, a corps of Buddhist peace workers, and Van Hanh Buddhist University were established in Vietnam by Thich Nhat Hanh.
He was exiled for his attempts to promote peace, but he kept up his humanitarian work by saving boat people and assisting refugees in their resettlement. He founded the biggest Buddhist monastery in Europe, Plum Village France, in 1982.
It serves as the centre of the global Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism. His writings, which have been translated into over 40 languages and sold millions of copies worldwide, were written throughout his seven decades as a teacher.
Review
BACKGROUND: My marriage, which has been wonderful for 33 years, has encountered a difficult period. We love and respect one another, have run a business together, and are friends. Retirement is a new chapter in our lives, and I’m having trouble.
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There is more to the story, of course, including my husband’s traumatic layoff that left him emotionally and physically crushed. And my anxiety over being able to relax and be less afraid in this new chapter without holding on to or forcing my husband to fill the void. Nevertheless, I am happy that I came upon this book at this time in my life.
The best book I’ve read recently about “Love” is TRUE LOVE. No other book I’ve read breaks through the romantic layers and commercial definitions that surround us with commonplace findings or offers “just enough” guidance without offering guidance on how to create lasting and fulfilling love.
This voyage and lesson are about enduring love that goes beyond oneself. For readers who attempt the methods discussed in True Love, I have one warning: Participants must have a certain degree of emotional integrity where everyone plays fairly, is reliable, and shows respect.
For instance: It may be difficult to practice granting freedom to a spouse who has a history of adultery. I am by no means an expert, but these exercises will help you understand the next steps. Elements of deeper relationships include fostering independence, loving someone more than yourself, and providing them with unconditional emotional support.
The message is straightforward but challenging, and it is presented in a compassionate manner that allows one to adapt it to their own reality. Thich Nhat Hanh embodies love; his lessons have humbled me and given me peace, but homework!
Summary
The author’s goal in True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart Summary is to help readers better comprehend what love is by being present in every moment.
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The author emphasises the four elements of love—compassion, freedom, kindness, and joy—in this work. He also offers readers a number of easy-to-implement Buddhist strategies in this book that will help them stay in the present.