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Chargement... Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire (1967)par Thich Nhat Hanh
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Inscrivez-vous à LibraryThing pour découvrir si vous aimerez ce livre Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre. First book by TNH published in English in the U.S. A history of Viet Nam from the perspective of a then 40 year old Buddhist monk, with emphasis on the role of French and Catholic influences on Vietnamese society during the 19th and 20th centuries. Mention is made of the need for a "reformation of Buddhism" with a role in "the future society of Viet Nam". This "engagement of Buddhism in the modern society" was called "Nhan Gian Phat Giao, or engaged Buddhism" (page 42) -- and thus the first mention in English of Engaged Buddhism. Of great interest also are Thomas Merton's foreword and the appendix which includes "Frequently Asked Questions" about Viet Nam by TNH, TNH's letter to Martin Luther King dated 6/1/65 explaining the significane of self-immolation by Buddhist monks, remarks by TNH to Pope Paul VI on 7/16/66, and TNH's statement to the American people and Congress dated 6/1/66 on the steps needed to find a true peace in Viet Nam. aucune critique | ajouter une critique
This stunning commentary on the cultural and political background to the war in Vietnam resonates deeply as the first work of Vietnamese writer, peace activist, and Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh This rare book from 1967 is one of the very few written in English giving a Vietnamese perspective on the Indochina Wars. Many years ahead of its time, Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire will be welcomed by historians and readers of contemporary Vietnamese narratives. As war raged in Vietnam, the Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh became a leading figure in the Buddhist peace movement. With the help of friends like Catholic monk Thomas Merton, he published Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire in 1967 in the US (and underground in Vietnam as Hoa Sen Trong Biển Lửa), his uncompromising and radical call for peace. It gave voice to the majority of Vietnamese people who did not take sides and who wanted the bombing to stop. Thomas Merton wrote the foreword, believing it had the power to show Americans that the more America continued to bomb Vietnam, the more communists it would create. This was Thich Nhat Hanh's first book in English and made waves in the growing anti-war movement in the United States at the time. Thich Nhat Hanh's portrayal of the plight of the Vietnamese people during the Indochina Wars is required reading now as the United States and Europe continue to grapple with their roles as global powers--and the human effects of their military policies. Vietnam: Lotus in a Sea of Fire is of special interest for students of peace and conflict studies and Southeast Asian history. It also gives the reader insights into the thought of the young Thich Nhat Hanh, who would later go on to found--in exile--Plum Village in France, the largest Buddhist monastery outside Asia, and influence millions with his teachings on the path of peace and mindfulness. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)959.7History and Geography Asia Southeast Asia VietnamClassification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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My first sensation on receiving the book was one of gratitude. I had been wanting to read it for some time but it had never come to hand. It has been out of print for a long time but I found a copy on Abebooks for £5 delivered to my door. This copy was an ex-library volume from the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban and is a 1967 first UK edition. It feels like a piece of history. I imagine it being bought 47 years ago by someone trying to understand the situation from a Vietnamese Buddhist perspective. I wonder why it was discarded.
The cover is as powerful as it is iconic. It shows the self-immolation of Buddhist monk Thich Quang-Duc. The book could be seen as an explanation of the context in which Thich Quang-Duc and other Buddhists felt they had to burn themselves.
Vietnam had been at war for much of the 20th century. It had been a French colony, occupied by the Japanese, independent and recolonised and split in half. The American’s and the West were fighting the forces of communism coming from the North. The Chinese were fighting capitalism coming from the South. Many Vietnamese felt that the largely Roman Catholic Southern government was a puppet of the West and saw it as a continuation of brutal French colonialism. The communist forces were able to harness this patriotism to gain support of a populous largely ignorant or apathetic to the politics of communism. During this time there was much suppression of Buddhists who had not taken either a communist or ant-communist stance. Thich Nhat Hanh felt that the failure of the Southern governments to engage with the cultural heritage and nationalism was a major failing. It lead to tragedy on many levels. As I write this Thich Nhat Hanh, now 88, is in hospital in France with a brain haemorrhage. He has been living in exile from Vietnam for half a century with only a single return visit. Here is hoping he recovers and continues teaching for a few more years.
Strangely I feel more of a connection from this book to my teacher in hospital than the piece of his calligraphy I have hung on my wall.
Having just gone through the Scottish independence referendum I can only feel gratitude that it was so peaceful and that we were able to have an, albeit a little stilted, debate and vote. It is interesting to reflect that many of those on the nationalist side in our debate also felt stronger socialist leanings than those on the unionist side. The Labour party is Scotland is having something of a crisis at the moment many of its core voters having just voted against it.
Nationalism is often painted as fascistic and right wing because of the terrible things that happened across Europe in the 20th century but I’ve come to appreciate, helped by this book, that the desire for smaller groupings of people to have self determination is a social/socialist and democratic aspiration. ( )