Book Review : Old Path White Clouds by Thich Nhat Hanh

This extraordinary book on the life of Buddha takes us back to, if one may say, our own lives lived with Buddha. You cannot read this book like a novel, this is life itself.


Like a gentle walk in the forest, with no particular destination, stopping by the tiny grass flowers, or sharing a moment with the wild geese flying above your head.. one stops - stunned by the beauty and simplicity - of Buddha's words. It shatters the common misconception about buddhism and Buddha and of course, the very existence.


If one is courageous enough to walk with the buddha, not like a shadow, but as a living being throbbing with life, his companion, aware and with open heart, one can bask in this light without any effort. Each chapter opens up like a new flower in the sunlight, spreading its fragrance.


A few lines from the book:


He smiled, and looked up at a pippala leaf imprinted against the blue sky, its tail blowing back and forth as if calling him. Looking deeply at the leaf, he saw clearly the presence of the sun and stars—without the sun, without light and warmth, the leaf could not exist. This was like this, be cause that was like that. He also saw in the leaf the presence of clouds—without clouds there could be no rain, and without rain the leaf could not be. He saw the earth, time, space, and mind—all were present in the leaf. In fact, at that very moment, the entire universe existed in that leaf. The reality of the leaf was a wondrous miracle.
(- from Chapter 17 - Pipala Leaf)


This book is a treasure to those who want to touch the very core of their being.

About the Author:

Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk. He worked for reconciliation between North and South Vietnam; his efforts moved Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. He now lives in exile in Plum Village, a small community in France where he teaches, writes, gardens, and works to help refugees worldwide.