How to Eat

by Thich Nhat Hanh, Jason DeAntonis (Illustrator)

Overview

How to Eat is the second in a Parallax’s series of how-to titles by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that will introduce beginners and remind seasoned practitioners of the essentials of mindfulness practice. Pocket-sized, with bold black-and-white illustrations by Jason DeAntonis, How to Eat provides an explicit explanation of what it means to eat as a meditative practice and why eating mindfully is important. Specific instructions are followed by a collection of verses written for secular practitioners that will help set a mindful intention for each activity connected with preparing, serving, eating, and cleaning up after meals.

The results of mindful eating are both global and personal. Eating a meal in mindfulness will show practitioners that the whole universe is supporting them. This awareness helps develop compassion and understanding, reminding practitioners that there are things they can do to help nourish people who are hungry and lonely. Encouraging moderation, mindful eating can lead to optimum health and body weight, while diminishing waste, and contributing to a more healthy society.

How to Eat is a unique gift for those who want a comprehensive yet simple guide to eating as

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781937006730
Publisher:	Parallax Press
Publication date:	08/01/2014
Series:	Mindfulness Essentials , #2
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	128
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Thich Nhat Hanh was a world-renowned spiritual teacher and peace activist. Born in Vietnam in 1926, he became a Zen Buddhist monk at the age of sixteen. Over seven decades of teaching, he published more than 100 books, which have sold more than four million copies in the United States alone. Exiled from Vietnam in 1966 for promoting peace, his teachings on Buddhism as a path to social and political transformation are responsible for bringing the mindfulness movement to Western culture. He established the international Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism in France, now the largest Buddhist monastery in Europe and the heart of a growing community of mindfulness practice centers around the world. He passed away in 2022 at the age of 95 at his root temple, Tu Hieu, in Hue, Vietnam.

Read an Excerpt

Eating a meal in mindfulness is an important practice. We turn off the TV, put down our newspaper, and work together for five or ten minutes, setting the table and finishing whatever needs to be done. During these few minutes, we can be very happy. When the food is on the table and everyone is seated, we practice breathing: “Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I smile,” three times. We can recover ourselves completely after three breaths like this.

Then, we look at each person as we breathe in and out in order to be in touch with ourselves and everyone at the table. We don't need two hours in order to see another person. If we are really settled within ourselves, we only need to look for one or two seconds, and that is enough to see our friend. I think that if a family has five members, only about five or ten seconds is needed to practice this “looking and seeing.”

After breathing, we smile. Sitting at the table with other people, we have a chance to offer an authentic smile of friendship and understanding. It is very easy, but not many people do it. To me, this is the most important practice. We look at each person and smile at him. Breathing and smiling together are very important practices. If the people in a family cannot smile at each other, the situation is a very dangerous one.

After breathing and smiling, we look down at the food in a way that allows the food to become real. This food reveals our connection with the Earth. Each bite contains the life of the sun and the Earth. The extent to which our food reveals itself depends on us. We can see and taste the whole universe in a piece of bread! Contemplating our food for a few seconds before eating, and eating in mindfulness, can bring us much happiness.

Having the opportunity to sit with our family and friends and enjoy wonderful food is something precious, something not everyone has. Many people in the world are hungry. When I hold a bowl of rice or a piece of bread, I know that I am fortunate, and I feel compassion for all those who have no food to eat and are without friends or family. This is a very deep practice. We do not need to go to a temple or a church in order to practice this. We can practice it right at our dinner table. Mindful eating can cultivate seeds of compassion and understanding that will strengthen us to do something to help hungry and lonely people be nourished.

Editorial Reviews

The Mindfulness Essentials have appeared on the NPR Bestseller list, the San Francisco Chronicle Bestseller list, the Boston Globe Bestseller list, the LA Times Bestseller List and the extended New York Times Bestseller List. 

“The monk who taught the world mindfulness.”
—TIME
 
“Thich Nhat Hanh shows us the connection between personal inner peace and peace on earth.”
—His Holiness the Dalai Lama

“Thich Nhat Hanh is a holy man, for he is humble and devout. He is a scholar of immense intellectual capacity. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity.”
—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

From the Publisher

Thich Nhat Hanh shows us the connection between personal inner peace and peace on earth.”

praise for the author His Holiness the Dalai Lama