Faith is a Living Thing, Part 1

The word “siska,” or learning, in Buddhism does not mean you learn with your intellect. You learn with your body also. You have to train to practice, for example, mindful breathing. You have to really practice and you have to train so that you can enjoy every breath you take. And when you have succeeded, you don’t need to train anymore. You just live normally and you do it perfectly. We call that stage the stage of no more learning. No learning. It does mean that he or she no longer needs education. But education here means practicing. Not with the intellect, but with the whole person.

We like to train in chanting, in walking, and in breathing. In medical school, there’s also training. We can train to be a doctor or an architect. We learn with the mind, the body, with everything. Transformation is part of training. Man is an animal, so if animals need to be trained, then man needs to be trained. Animals may be trained against their will. But we want to be trained to be happy.

Thich Nhat Hanh
from Going Home; Jesus and Buddha as Brothers

to be continued . . .