In my previous article, we explored the origins, early members, and structure of the Order of Interbeing, an international community of monastics and lay practitioners. The Order was established by Thích Nhất Hạnh in 1966 in response to the suffering and ideological conflicts of the Vietnam War, and sought to end violence and promote social justice without siding with any political force.
Members of the Order of Interbeing are committed to mindful and socially engaged living, guided by the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings. We traced its development from six founding members to a global community of more than 600 monastics and 2,000 lay members today.
The Order consists of two branches: the core, and the extended community. Together, they support practitioners in deepening their commitment through mentorship, community practice, and the transmission of the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings.
Understanding the Order of Interbeing helps illuminate the spirit behind these Mindfulness Trainings. In this article, we take a closer look at the Order before turning to the trainings themselves.
Four foundational principles of the Order of Interbeing
The Order of Interbeing, with an emphasis on the bodhisattva (enlightened being) ideal of Mahāyāna Buddhism, holds that spiritual practice should be the foundation for all actions in daily life.
According to Thích Nhất Hạnh, its members “seek to change themselves in order to change society in the direction of compassion and understanding by living a joyful and mindful life.” (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998)
To do this, the following four principles are observed:
(1) Non-attachment to views – This is the foremost teaching of the Buddha; it means not being caught in ideologies, preconceptions, beliefs, or conventions.
(2) Direct experimentation – This principle highlights that insight, which is not the same as intellectual understanding, does not come from research findings. Rather, insight into truth arises from direct experience of reality.
(3) Appropriateness – For the Buddhist teachings to be helpful, they need to be relevant to the needs of people and the realities of society.
(4) Skillful means – These are the methods and images used to provide guidance, in accordance with individuals’ abilities and situations, in walking the path shown by the Buddha.
Thích Nhất Hạnh pointed out that the first and second principles, which are conducive to open-mindedness and compassion, are the keys to true understanding. The third and fourth principles, which are conducive to creativity and reconciliation, show the way to act in daily life. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998)
Grounded in these principles, the Order draws inspiration not only from the Buddha’s teachings but also from other spiritual traditions. Without adopting any particular Buddhist scriptures as its fundamental discourse, the Order aims to actualize the essence of the Buddha’s teachings found in all scriptures, regardless of whether they are from early Buddhist traditions or later Buddhist schools.
As Thích Nhất Hạnh explained: “It seeks all forms of action that can revive and sustain the true spirit of insight and compassion in life. It considers this spirit to be more important than any Buddhist institution or tradition.” (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998)
Building on this foundation, we turn to the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, the ethical framework through which members cultivate understanding and compassion.
The origin of the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings
The Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings are a contemporary version of the 58 bodhisattva precepts listed in the Sūtra of the Net of Brahma (Brahmajāla Sūtra) of Mahāyāna Buddhism. They serve as guidelines for people who wish to live a mindful lifestyle in accordance with the Noble Eightfold Path. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998, 2003)
As discussed in my previous series on Thích Nhất Hạnh’s renaming of the Five Precepts as the Five Mindfulness Trainings,* the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings were also previously known as the Fourteen Precepts. For an explanation of why they were named “Mindfulness Trainings,” see my previous article, “Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Five Mindfulness Trainings, Part 1.”
Like the Five Trainings, the Fourteen Trainings are updated regularly so that they can be more applicable to an ever-changing society. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998) Each of the Fourteen Trainings also begins by addressing the mind first: “Aware of the suffering” or “Aware that.” (Plum Village 2023) In contrast, when they were previously referred to as “precepts,” the wording took the imperative form “Do not . . .” (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1993)
The approach of placing the mind first differs from the rules or commandments found in many other religions, which focus first on bodily actions by forbidding certain behaviors. This is because, for the Buddha, everything starts with the mind. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998)
To understand the deeper intention behind these trainings, it is important to return to the historical context in which they were developed.
The historical context of the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings
As discussed in my previous article, the establishment of the Order of Interbeing was a response to the suffering created by the Vietnam War, which, for Thích Nhất Hạnh, was a battle between different ideologies. He pointed out that it is more dangerous to cling to an ideology as the only truth than to carry a gun, because while the latter can shoot a few people, the former can kill millions. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 2005)
Thích Nhất Hạnh said: “The First Mindfulness Training—non-attachment to views, freedom from all ideologies—was a direct answer to the war. Everyone was ready to die and to kill for their beliefs.” (Thích Nhất Hạnh 2008)
With this background, we can better understand the First Mindfulness Training as a response to the war.
The First Mindfulness Training
Below is the full description of the First Mindfulness Training, titled “Openness:”
Aware of the suffering created by fanaticism and intolerance, we are determined not to be idolatrous about or bound to any doctrine, theory, or ideology, even Buddhist ones. We are committed to seeing the Buddhist teachings as guiding means that help us develop our understanding and compassion. They are not doctrines to fight, kill, or die for. We understand that fanaticism in its many forms is the result of perceiving things in a dualistic and discriminative manner. We will train ourselves to look at everything with openness and the insight of interbeing in order to transform dogmatism and violence in ourselves and in the world. (Plum Village 2023)
Thích Nhất Hạnh emphasized that right view (the first path factor of the Noble Eightfold Path) is not a particular view but “the absence of all views” because wisdom and insight are not views. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 2008) He further warned of the consequences of such attachment:
Clinging fanatically to an ideology or a doctrine not only prevents us from learning, but also creates bloody conflicts. The worst enemies of Buddhism are fanaticism and narrowness. . . . Holy wars do not have a place in Buddhism, because killing destroys the value of Buddhism itself. The destruction of lives and moral values during the Vietnam War was very much the fruit of fanaticism and narrowness. (Thích Nhất Hạnh 1998)
This training teaches that approaching everything with openness and the insight of interbeing helps transform dogmatism and violence in ourselves and in the world. This suggests that conflict begins not with external conditions, but with the mind’s tendency to clings to views and divides reality.
Conclusion
Guided by the four foundational principles—non-attachment to views, direct experimentation, appropriateness, and skillful means—the Order of Interbeing seeks to cultivate ways of living that sustain the spirit of insight and compassion in daily life.
Formed amid the ideological division and immense suffering of the Vietnam War, the Order articulated the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, a contemporary version of the 58 bodhisattva precepts of Mahāyāna Buddhism. They express the Order’s aspiration to embody the bodhisattva ideal, guiding its members in cultivating ethical conduct, compassionate action, and mindful awareness in every aspect of life.
The First Mindfulness Training, with an emphasis on non-attachment to views, stands out as a direct response to the Vietnam War. It addresses the dangers of fanaticism and ideological attachments that contributed to the suffering caused by the war. In doing so, the training demonstrates that openness and the insight of interbeing are the foundation for transforming conflict and violence.
In the next article, we will continue this exploration by examining the remaining thirteen Mindfulness Trainings in detail.
* Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Five Mindfulness Trainings, Part 1 (BDG), Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Five Mindfulness Trainings, Part 2 (BDG), and Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Five Mindfulness Trainings, Part 3 (BDG)
References
Thích Nhất Hạnh. 1993. Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism. Berkeley, California: Parallax Press.
Thích Nhất Hạnh. 1998. Interbeing: Fourteen Guidelines for Engaged Buddhism. Berkeley, California: Parallax Press.
Thích Nhất Hạnh. 2003. Opening the Heart of the Cosmos: Insights on the Lotus Sutra. Berkeley, California: Parallax Press.
Thích Nhất Hạnh. 2005. Being Peace. Berkeley, California: Parallax Press.
Thích Nhất Hạnh. 2008. “History of Engaged Buddhism.” In The Mindfulness Bell, 4–9.
Plum Village. 2023. The Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings. Retrieved from https://plumvillage.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/The-Fourteen-Mindfulness-Trainings-2023-March.pdf
Related features from BDG
Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, Part 1
