Go Slowly, Breathe and Smile: Dharma Art by Rashani Réa with the Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh

By Rashani Réa and Thich Nhat Hanh

A Book of Mindfulness, Kindfulness, and Words of Wisdom

“Rashani’s extraordinary collages perfectly mirror Thich Nhat Hanh’s simple yet powerful teachings. An exquisite collection.” —James Baraz, author of Awakening Joy

#1 New Release in Zen Philosophy, Stress Management, Meditation, and Mental & Spiritual Healing

Thich Nhat is a spiritual luminary, second only to the Dalai Lama, and is globally renowned and admired. His words of wisdom are centralized in finding peace in every moment; whether you’re stopped at a red light or answering a phone, mindfulness grounds you into the present moment.

Start your day with these peaceful, empowering words of wisdom. All of these words are interwoven with meditative, inspiring images of celebration. Each page is designed to increase positive thinking and improve your mental health.

Life-changing mindful meditations. Strengthen your mindset with these empowering words of wisdom that are referenced as essential advice for how to grow spirituality and mentally strong. Meditation practices are essential to building mindfulness.

Go Slowly, Breathe and Smile is a unique convergence of wisdom and art, a beautiful tribute from a dedicated student to her teacher. Absorb Thich Nhat Hanh's words of wisdom and meditate on Rashani Réa's inspirational collages, and allow these pages to illuminate your heart and mind, inspire mindfulness, and reduce stress levels.

Read Go Slowly, Breathe, and Smile and find:

• Encouraging words of advice from the Wisest Monk Thich Nhat Hanh
• Words of wisdom to thrive in the mind and body
• Beautiful art by social activist Rashani Réa
• Life lessons and tools for mindful meditations

Thich Nhat Hanh’s other books include the bestselling Peace Is Every Step; No Mud, No Lotus; and How to Love. Rashani Réa's other books include Nurses Cry Too and The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation. If you liked The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching, or The Miracle of Mindfulness, you’ll love Go Slowly, Breathe and Smile.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Feb 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9781642507201

Book preview

Copyright © 2022 by Rashani Réa and Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism, Inc.

Published by Mango Publishing, a division of Mango Publishing Group, Inc.

Cover Design: Rashani Réa & Elina Diaz

Cover Photo/illustration: Rashani Réa

Interior Artwork: Rashani Réa

Photo of Thich Nhat Hanh © Dana Gluckstein

Photo of Rashani Réa © Kim Rosen

Layout & Design: Elina Diaz

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Go Slowly, Breathe and Smile: Dharma Art by Rashani Réa with the Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication number: 2021943211

ISBN: (print) 978-1-64250-719-5, (ebook) 978-1-64250-720-1

BISAC category code REL092000, RELIGION / Buddhism / Zen

Printed in the United States of America

To my partner—a luminous, loving gift of grace,

my parents who taught me the difference

between looking and seeing,

my brother who taught me to question,

my son who taught me to listen

and to Thich Nhat Hanh

who taught so many of us how to love.

—Rashani Réa

Table of Contents

Foreword

Part 1—Go Slowly

Artist’s Introduction—Rashani Réa

The Art Within the Art—Nel Houtman

Note to the Reader

Mindfulness is the basis of happiness.

The planet Earth is a realized bodhisattva.

Understanding is the fruit of looking deeply.

No mud, no lotus.

The real miracle is to walk on earth.

There is no way to enlightenment. Enlightenment is the way.

The flower, the sky, your beloved can only be found in the

present moment.

If you touch one thing with deep awareness, you touch everything. 51

We meet today, we will meet tomorrow.

For things to reveal themselves, we need to be ready to

abandon our views about them.

Reconciliation takes place within ourselves.

Each time we come back to the present moment,

we are making ourselves available.

My actions are my only true belongings.

You can’t calm the storm. What you can do is calm yourself.

Part 2—Breathe

Go Slowly, Breathe and Create—Mobi Warren

Be part of the miraculous moment.

Go slowly. Breathe and smile.

I hold my face in my two hands.

Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness.

Our true nature is the nature of no birth and no death.

On the long, rough road both sun and moon will shine,

lighting my way.

When mindfulness is present, the Buddha and the

Holy Spirit are already there.

Love live impermanence.

Suffering is not enough.

There is no enlightenment outside of daily life.

I have come to rebuild love.

Please call me by my true names.

How may I best love you?

To see that we are loved by the whole cosmos is important.

Selflessness is the interdependent nature of all things.

Part 3—and Smile

The Unbroken—Rashani Réa

The energy of love is abundant.

To love is to understand.

You are me and I am you. It is obvious that we inter-are.

The practice of peace is the practice of joy.

A smile can change the situation of the world.

Let us make today the happiest day of our life.

We practice in order to nourish the flower in us.

With mindfulness, each moment of your life is a jewel.

I walk for you. You smile for me. We awaken together.

Happiness is not an individual matter.

If we transform the present, we transform the past.

Just as a flower is made of non-flower elements,

Buddhism is made of non-Buddhist elements.

Smiling is very important.

The tears I shed yesterday have become rain.

Be beautiful. Be yourself.

Afterword—Rare Flowers of the Country

P.S.

About Rashani Réa

About Thich Nhat Hanh

Foreword

Joan Halifax

When we walk slowly, the world appears more clearly. We see the fine detail of fern and flower, as well as devastation and disruption. We often hurry because we don’t want to see. We’re afraid to let our senses touch the body of suffering or the body of beauty. Too often we feel as if we have to exhale all the time. The inhale is essential, but then we can exhale.

Our culture celebrates activity. The public performance of busyness is how we demonstrate that we’re important. The more people see us as tired and over-stretched, the more they think we must

Reviews for Go Slowly, Breathe and Smile

[bness2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Full of practical and simple advice. Whether you are a Buddhist, a Christian or no religion at all, the wisdom shared in this book is extremely pertinent to the disconnection so prevalent in modern life. We all need to be more mindful, living in the present. I have read several of Hanh's books, and so fa this is my favorite.

[aznstarlette · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very simply written and short but no less profound. "The Pain of Our Ancestors" is a particularly eye-opening insight and a direct hit to me personally. This book really helped me through a tough time.