Five finds of the fortnight: Edition 25

Dear reader,

I’ve missed writing to you! I was unwell the past fortnight, which is why the 15th edition comes to you, 15 days later.

The past week, I’ve been reading Thich Nhat Hanh’s ‘No Mud No Lotus: The Art of Transforming Suffering’ —a book I would recommend to anyone who wants to understand the nature of suffering, and how we can deal with intense, unpleasant emotions.

I picked this up after I read that Thich Nhat Hanh passed away.And these words from Catherine Cadden and Jesse Wiens Chu (referring to the passing of Robert Gonzales and Thich Nhat Hanh) give me hope: “When we hear stories like this, we are able to see how the Dharma Wheel turns, how the cycle of passing these precious teachings on continues with each one of us. We honor Robert Gonzales and Thich Nhat Hanh for all that they taught us. We are grateful for our place on the circle, and we are so moved and inspired by all of you who are now living these teachings in your own lives and furthering it for the next generation.”

Warm regards,

Ranjitha

1. Quote of the week

This body is not me.I am not limited by this body.I am life without boundaries.I have never been born,and I have never died.Look at the ocean and the sky filled with stars,manifestations from my wondrous true mind.Since before time, I have been free.Birth and death are only doors through which we pass,sacred thresholds on our journey.Birth and death are a game of hide-and-seek.So laugh with me,hold my hand,let us say good-bye,say good-bye, to meet again soon.We meet today.We will meet again tomorrow.We will meet at the source every moment.We meet each other in all forms of life.

Contemplation of no-coming and no-going, by Thich Nhat Hanh

2. Image of the week

3. Video of the week

In case you missed it, the video of John Kinyon’s session “Mediate your life” in aid of CNVC’s fundraiser is up. You can watch it on youtube.

If you would like to make a donation to CNVC, you can do so here.

4. Movie recommendations

I’d like to recommend to you two movies I watched recently. I enjoyed them and found some parallels to NVC and empathy:

1. The Two Popes (available on Netflix) tells us how we can connect across differences, and have friendships based on trust and respect—even when we disagree.

2. A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood is about the power of empathy and learning to befriend our emotions (I wrote about it here). You can buy/rent this film on Youtube movies.

If you’ve watched either of these movies I’d love to hear what you thought about them. Hit reply to share with me!

Upcoming event alert

This February, Miki Kashtan offers the sixth edition of her year-long group coaching program, ‘Responding to the call of our times’ on NVC Academy. The program is intended to support participants to step into leadership in any or all spheres of their lives.

The program begins on February 4, and the first session is free for all to attend—you can sign up here to experience the first session. Visit the NVC Academy page to know more about the program, and whether it’s the right fit for you.