Scattered Memories

Mind Seal

“Stepping on the land of reality,

Beautiful flowers bloom everywhere.

Only deep mindfulness shines through

And the three realms have been surpassed.

In this land,

Where the moon shines brilliantly

On the glorious Dharma Body Ocean,

The world of Heaven disappears

And the world of Hell dusts off.

Why let birth and death bind us?

We can freely and joyfully travel,

Praising the melody of peace

And playing the music of non-birth

On a holeless flute,

Heading home on the buffalo’s back,

The golden moon arising at the gate top.”

1997

Thich Giac Thanh

This collection of poems by Thay Giac Thanh the much loved senior disciple of Thich Nhat Hanh, explore his journey from young boy in Vietnam to Buddhist monk, to immigrant,  and monastic abbot of Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, California. While the early poems are full of romantic and poetic imagery, the subsequent ones convey a profound wisdom and spaciousness of heart. As both disciple and Zen master, he was committed to cultivating great compassion and liberation through inner discovery. Light in spirit, loving and wise, sometimes strict, often humorous — his poetry perfectly capture Thay Giac Thanh’s clarity, wisdom, and heart. With beautiful original ink drawings by Orlin Mantchev.

Thay Giac Thanh was born in 1947 in Vietnam and passed away October 2001 at Deer Park monastery in Escondido, CA. Ordained as a monk at age 20, he received the Dharma name Giac Thanh (Awakening Sound). In 1971 he went to Van Hanh University to further his studies in Buddhism. He left Vietnam as a boat person in 1981 and came to the US in 1982. In 1999 he became the first abbot of Deer Park Monastery, and continued writing under his pen name Da Hac.

ISBN:978-1-937006-31-0, Paperback, 144 pages.