Vietnamese Thien and Plum Village practice (Thich Nhat Hanh)

Domain XIII · Contemplative & religious disciplines · Thich Nhat Hanh · Vietnam

What it is

What it is: a living Vietnamese Thiền (Zen) tradition and a worldwide community, not a psychotherapy. It is a whole way of practice: mindfulness carried into ordinary acts (breathing, walking, eating, working), a bell that calls everyone back to the present, community (sangha) life, practices of…

Format

• The tradition has no clinical phases or session counts; no source gives a number of therapy sessions, and none should be assumed. Its own structure is rhythmic and communal.
• Weekly: Beginning Anew in a family or community circle, ideally weekly; a "lazy day" without a schedule; days without car, computer or internet.

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Retreat: a published example is a Vietnamese-language online retreat whose days included listening to the Great Bell (Nghe hô chuông Đại hồng), guided sitting and chanting, qigong or mindful movements, deep listening (lắng nghe sâu), total relaxation (thiền buông thư), a Dharma talk (pháp thoại), small-group Dharma sharing (pháp đàm), Earth Touching repentance (Sám Pháp Địa Xúc), a "lazy" day (làm biếng), and, at…
• Commitment: receiving the Five Mindfulness Trainings in a transmission ceremony; for some, ordination into the Order of Interbeing (lay or monastic), committing to live by the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings. Ordination requirements are set by the Order.
• What it is: a living Vietnamese Thiền (Zen) tradition and a worldwide community, not a psychotherapy. It is a whole way of practice: mindfulness carried into ordinary acts (breathing, walking, eating, working), a bell that calls everyone back to the present, community (sangha) life, practices of reconciliation (Beginning Anew), bowing practices (Touching the Earth), and an ethical framework (the Five Mindfulness…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Does it involve fasting, a special diet or 'detox'? Have you discussed this with your doctor?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• rapid deterioration; the client stopping sleep or food.
• ERP being experienced as asking the client to sin; involve the teacher.
• perfectionism about "doing it mindfully". Working if tasks feel less burdensome.
• over-commitment, burnout from engaged service, or guilt about not living up to the trainings.
• the client idealising you as a teacher; your own beliefs (for or against Buddhism) colouring the work.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.