This profound look at Buddhist psychology offers important insights into how Buddhism's ancient teachings apply to the modern world. Basing his work on the writings of the great fifth-century Buddhist master Vasubandhu and the teachings of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Thich Nhat Hanh focuses on the direct experience of recognizing the true nature of consciousness. Presenting the basic teachings of Buddhist applied psychology, he shows how the mind is like a field, where every kind of seed is planted — seeds of suffering, anger, happiness, and peace. The quality of life, he writes, depends on the quality of the seeds. By learning how to water seeds of joy and transform seeds of suffering, understanding, love, and compassion can flower.
Understanding Our Mind: 50 Verses on Buddhist Psychology
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About the Author
THICH NHAT HANH is a Vietnamese Buddhist Zen master, poet, scholar, and human rights activist. In 1967, he was nominated by Martin Luther King, Jr. for the Nobel Peace Prize. He is author of more than one hundred books, sixty in English, including Being Peace, Present Moment Wonderful Moment, and Calming the Fearful Mind. He lives at Plum Village, his meditation center in France, and travels worldwide, leading retreats on the art of mindful living.
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The present moment contains the past and the future.
The secret of transformation at the base lies in our handling of this very moment --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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47 of 47 people found the following review helpful
By S. Svenson
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
While I agree with the other reviewers that the subject matter of this book is complex, my experience has been that upon completion, all the pieces fall into place with incredible grace. In a nutshell, we need to practice nourishing the seeds (content) of our consciousness--and unconsciousness--with mindfulness. Mindfullness is the sunshine that nourishes 'wholesome' seeds and enables the transformation of 'unwholesome' seeds, such as anger, envy and desire into peace, love and compassion. What then is mindfulness? Mindfulness is a continuous practice that includes meditation and an effort to live healthily and happily in the present moment, as opposed to regretfully in the past or fearfully in the non-existent future. Suffering occurs because our mind distorts our perceptions and we mistake perception for reality, arriving at erroneous conclusions about the people, places and events that surround us. Once we realize this and begin to achieve greater levels of mindfulness through practice and meditation, we can begin to transform suffering into joy. So, yes, while some of the ideas in this book are complex (such as the concept of interbeing) its essences is elegant in its simplicity.
Incidentally, my father was a Freudian Psychoanalyst and over the course of my life (45) I have spent many hours with him discussing the role of the unconscious in relation to our everyday impulses and actions. I also went through 5 years of intensive psychoanalysis as a young adult. The conceptual base presented in Understanding Our Mind is not altogether different from Freud's treatment of the unconscious. As the author himself points out, the main difference is that Freud emphasizes examining past events rather than transforming their manifestations as mental formations in the present (p.232). I am just now embarking on the path of practicing mindfulness, yet I have little doubt that it will surpass the results achieved through traditional psychoanalytic therapy.
Incidentally, my father was a Freudian Psychoanalyst and over the course of my life (45) I have spent many hours with him discussing the role of the unconscious in relation to our everyday impulses and actions. I also went through 5 years of intensive psychoanalysis as a young adult. The conceptual base presented in Understanding Our Mind is not altogether different from Freud's treatment of the unconscious. As the author himself points out, the main difference is that Freud emphasizes examining past events rather than transforming their manifestations as mental formations in the present (p.232). I am just now embarking on the path of practicing mindfulness, yet I have little doubt that it will surpass the results achieved through traditional psychoanalytic therapy.
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful
By vokitok
Format:Paperback
This was a very unexpected book from a very practical teacher like Thich Nhat Hanh, whose books on mindful living continued to inspire me for the past more than ten years. Why, indeed, would he delve into complexities of one of the most elaborate and, dare I say, abstruse philosophies that Buddhism has produced - Yogacara, or the Mind Only school? Having an undue penchant for philosophical discourse, however, I readily grasped at the book, looking in it for an excuse for my passion for abstractions. And I found so much more than what I was looking for.
The key phrase for this book is given in the introduction: "When we understand how our mind works, the practice becomes easier". I was always fascinated by the way the mind works, especially after having read Schopenhauer's "On the fourfould foundation of the law of sufficient reason" (sorry, that's how terrible it sounds), which first revealed to me to what a great extent that which we consider to be 'objective reality' is actually shaped by our mind. Later on, I became interested in Zen/Chan, which doesn't really emphasize philosophical discourse on surface (although some of the most profound philosophical works have also been produced by Chan masters - for instance, Dongshan Liangjie). In this book by Thich Nhat Hanh, Chan meets philosophy again for me (philosophy in the Kantian sense - not as a metaphysical discourse, but as an investigation of the nature and limits of our perception and knowledge). For me, unfortunately, Zen practice continuously has to be supported by intellectual conviction that it is the right thing to do, or after some time I lose it. For those as unfortunate as I am, this is the right book. Even a few lines from it every day, like a medicine, will be a great help if you don't want to veer into the foggy-groggy existence that most of us lead. After all, isn't it cautioning us against this way of life what Thich Nhat Hanh devoted his lifetime to?
This book is as dense as any philosophical treatise may be, except for the fact that each sentence seems to be so incredibly well thought out as to have a practical application to one's life. The number of Sanskrit terms is incredible for Thich Nhat Hanh (there are a couple of pages where there are 50+ of them). But the difference between this work and some PhD dissertation on the Mind Only school is as vast as between heaven and earth, for this man lives what he's talking about, whereas most professors seem to be just churning words.
I agree with the above reviewer that this may be a life changing book. It has to be read very slowly, than probably read over and over again. Then you may go to the original works (which is what I intend to do), and I bet you'll read them with different eyes. But of course the key thing here is to view your life with different eyes.
The key phrase for this book is given in the introduction: "When we understand how our mind works, the practice becomes easier". I was always fascinated by the way the mind works, especially after having read Schopenhauer's "On the fourfould foundation of the law of sufficient reason" (sorry, that's how terrible it sounds), which first revealed to me to what a great extent that which we consider to be 'objective reality' is actually shaped by our mind. Later on, I became interested in Zen/Chan, which doesn't really emphasize philosophical discourse on surface (although some of the most profound philosophical works have also been produced by Chan masters - for instance, Dongshan Liangjie). In this book by Thich Nhat Hanh, Chan meets philosophy again for me (philosophy in the Kantian sense - not as a metaphysical discourse, but as an investigation of the nature and limits of our perception and knowledge). For me, unfortunately, Zen practice continuously has to be supported by intellectual conviction that it is the right thing to do, or after some time I lose it. For those as unfortunate as I am, this is the right book. Even a few lines from it every day, like a medicine, will be a great help if you don't want to veer into the foggy-groggy existence that most of us lead. After all, isn't it cautioning us against this way of life what Thich Nhat Hanh devoted his lifetime to?
This book is as dense as any philosophical treatise may be, except for the fact that each sentence seems to be so incredibly well thought out as to have a practical application to one's life. The number of Sanskrit terms is incredible for Thich Nhat Hanh (there are a couple of pages where there are 50+ of them). But the difference between this work and some PhD dissertation on the Mind Only school is as vast as between heaven and earth, for this man lives what he's talking about, whereas most professors seem to be just churning words.
I agree with the above reviewer that this may be a life changing book. It has to be read very slowly, than probably read over and over again. Then you may go to the original works (which is what I intend to do), and I bet you'll read them with different eyes. But of course the key thing here is to view your life with different eyes.
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
As noted by another reviewer, this is not an easy book to read and it's not something to be tackled in large segments. Each of the fifty chapters should be closely examined and considered before moving on to the next. Sometimes, in the context of books on Eastern Philosopy, this is a result of translation or editing problems, however, with this book, it is simply a matter of an incredibly complex subject.
If you are curious about your mind and its ability to transform your world, you will really enjoy this book. If you want to understand meditative techniques, this book is an excellent resource as well. If you are contemplating the purchase of your first book on Buddhism, I would suggest another path, perhaps "Turning the Mind into an Ally," by Sakyong Mipham, which is by no means simple, but well-adapted to communicating with the Western Mind. I would also suggest Thich Nhat Hahn's book "The Miracle of Mindfulness," as a good starting point.
If you are curious about your mind and its ability to transform your world, you will really enjoy this book. If you want to understand meditative techniques, this book is an excellent resource as well. If you are contemplating the purchase of your first book on Buddhism, I would suggest another path, perhaps "Turning the Mind into an Ally," by Sakyong Mipham, which is by no means simple, but well-adapted to communicating with the Western Mind. I would also suggest Thich Nhat Hahn's book "The Miracle of Mindfulness," as a good starting point.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Required reading
Buddhist psychology is getting more attention than it used to which is a good thing. Thich Nhat Hahn is clear and his commentary is to these eyes accessable. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bill L.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Book
This is a book to read every day. Very grounding. A must read. One of Thich Nhat Hanh's best.
I will read it again.
I will read it again.
Published 1 month ago by dori zandy
5.0 out of 5 stars
Required reading
Solid explanation of the foundations of Buddhist practice. Will help you to orientate yourself from the point of view of practice rather than the usual, more common intellectual... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Brian Goodyear
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent review
stunning insights that foreshadow many issues in modern cognitive/embodied psychology. blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
Published 4 months ago by Robert N. Nelson
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good as far as it goes...
Thich Nhat Hanh interweaves many Buddhist teachings, as he understands them. Many of the teachings are very useful. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Ron Beasley
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Powerfully Focused and Open Hearted Vision
Using a series of 50 short verses as a foundation, this book presents a powerfully focused and open hearted vision of mindfulness practices adeptly woven into the contexts of... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Paul Russell
4.0 out of 5 stars
Understanding Our Mind
Buddhism is not a religion but a science of Mind, which most people do not understand. This book is an excellent overview of how the Mind functions to create our reality, color our... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Clare G.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Indispensable stepping stone
This book is very enriching and enlightening. However, it is also a difficult book. So if you read it, do it as recommended in the introduction and welcome, in a contemplative way,... Read more
Published on September 28, 2010 by H. G. Posthuma
5.0 out of 5 stars
profound travel into our mind
"Understanding our Mind" takes us slowly on a travel to know more about ourselves. As a reader of Thich Nhat Hanh I have enjoyed all of his books but this one goes really deeply... Read more
Published on April 15, 2010 by H. P. Egert
4.0 out of 5 stars
some deep truths
I have been exploring the teachings of the Buddha for over 10 years and Hanh's books have been a big part of my journey. This book is probably not suited for the beginner. Read more
Published on June 28, 2009 by petaloka
