The Novice: A Story of True Love
by Thich Nhat Hanh
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Thich Nhat Hanh
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The Novice: A remarkable story of love and truth Kindle Edition
by Thich Nhat Hanh (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.7 out of 5 stars 11 ratings
Length: 162 pages Word Wise: Enabled Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Page Flip: Enabled Language: English
A devoted student and diligent worker at the Dharma Cloud Temple monastery, Kinh Tam is not who he appears to be. And yet the novice's true identity cannot be revealed without Kinh paying a terrible price.
To continue on the path to enlightenment, Kinh must suffer false accusations, physical hardship and public humiliation without complaint. With absolute grace, astounding compassion and unwavering resolve, the novice perseveres in the face of every challenge. Ultimately, Kinh Tam's moving fate will transform lives and offer hope for us all.
In these pages, Zen master, poet and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh retells an ancient Vietnamese folk tale, sharing Kinh's story as a teaching and proposing a real way of being in the the world that is utterly relevant now, in the twenty-first century.
Product descriptionAbout the Author
Thich Nhat Hanh, a world-renowned writer, poet, scholar and Zen Buddhist monk, lives in the monastic communities he has founded in France and America. The author of the hugely popular Anger and the classic The Miracle of Mindfulness, as well as numerous other books, he conducts public workshops throughout the world and peacemaking retreats with Vietnam veterans, Palestinians and Israelis. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967. --This text refers to the paperback edition.
Review
One of our most treasured spiritual teachers tells a story that will touch your heart. So beautiful. -- Marianne Williamson, author of A Return to Love
Thich Nhat Hanh has given us a luminous book. The Novice is both instructive and haunting. Its heroine holds a lantern for all seekers. -- Julia Cameron, author of The Artist's Way
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. -- Martin Luther King, Jr., in nominating Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize
Thich Nhat Hanh shows us the connection between personal, inner peace and peace on earth. -- His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Thich Nhat Hanh writes with the voice of the Buddha. -- Sogyal Rinpoche, author of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying --This text refers to the paperback edition.
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Product details
File Size : 272 KB
Word Wise : Enabled
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Print Length : 162 pages
Enhanced Typesetting : Enabled
Screen Reader : Supported
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Publisher : Ebury Digit
Customer reviews
4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
Top reviews from other countries
robin
5.0 out of 5 stars A book of courageReviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2014
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I loved its simplicity.
The choice between right and wrong is sometimes not easy and it takes courage and inner strength to make the right decision. Sometimes the right decision can lead to painful consequences and this can make it all the more harder.
This book will bring comfort to anyone who inwardly can understand its message and is looking for inner courage necessary to make painful decisions.
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Zubin
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiration to BE!Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 September 2012
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This is an amazing story and so well told. The two contributions at the end by Sister Chan Khong and by Thich Nhat Hanh show us so clearly how we too can rise above our 'conditioned self' to manifest who we really are, the Compassion and Divine Unity that we all really ARE. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone and have done so already. If you haven't got it ... GET IT! It's a book you will return to again and again ;D
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Kevin Glyn Hearth
5.0 out of 5 stars Simple yet elegantReviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 August 2014
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As per my subject line. I found it naive in a positive sense. I like all of the books written by Thich Nhat Hanh that I have read, and this was no exception.
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liz little
3.0 out of 5 stars Easy to readReviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 July 2013
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I enjoyed reading this story but it wasn't my favourite book by Thich Nhat Hanh. My personal favourite is 'Peace is Every Step' which is wonderfully simple and yet very profound.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars BrilliantReviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 February 2013
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This book gives a lot of food for thought and if we could live our lives in this way then the world would be a much better place to live in.
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4.02 · Rating details · 1,017 ratings · 133 reviews
Fans of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Peace is Every Step and Anger, and Deepak Chopra’s Buddha, will appreciate Hanh’s wisdom and storytelling in his novel The Novice, which contains universal themes that transcend all boundaries of faith, creed, country, and era.
Through the parable of a young woman who stays true to herself and her faith in the face of adversity, Vietnamese Zen Buddhist master and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh enables readers to embark on their own path of introspection and self-discovery.
With his trademark insight, Hanh presents a path to greater awareness of the means to manifest peace both inside oneself and in the world at large. (less)
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ebook, 160 pages
Published August 23rd 2011 by HarperOne (first published August 18th 2011)
Original TitleThe Novice: A Story of True Love
ISBN006209257X (ISBN13: 9780062092571)
Edition LanguageEnglish
Other Editions (21)
The Novice: A Story of True Love
The Novice: A Story of True Love
The Novice: A Story of True Love
El monje. Una historia de amor verdadero
Wenn es auch unmöglich scheint: Eine Geschichte wahrer Liebe
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Average rating4.02 · Rating details · 1,017 ratings · 133 reviews
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Vicki
Jan 06, 2013Vicki rated it it was amazing
Shelves: favorite-books, mindfulness
It is amazing how a book sometimes finds it way to you when you need it most. I've read other books by Thich Nhat Hanh so I knew this would be a great story but I didn't expect it to have such an impact on me, I read it in one sitting. I needed to be reminded of how important it is to forgive. The story line is simple and yet so thought provoking. A young woman who wishes to be a buddhist monk disguises herself as a young man and becomes a novice. Another young woman in the village accuses the "monk" of raping her and inpregnating her. Further complicating matters, the monk then begins raising the baby allegedly conceived by the rape. If the monk reveals her secret, she will no longer be able to be a monk and achieve the buddha nature she so longs for. If she says nothing, then she tacitly endorses injustice and the false accusation. I won't tell the whole story here. :)
In addition to being a wonderfully simple story that is well written, this reminds each of us to reflect on the daily injustices, judgements and wrongs that occur in our daily lives. It helps us to understand how we can respond to such issues tactfully, with grace, and in such a way that order is restored. This book is a lovely way to introduce yourself or someone else to the Buddhist concepts of loving-kindness and compassion. (less)
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Crystal Lacy
Oct 14, 2015Crystal Lacy rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: things-on-the-shelf
I stumbled upon this book because I'm planning a short story collection based on Vietnamese folk stories and renovated operas centered around women, and wanted to see if anyone had written a story about Quan Am Thi Kinh in English yet. I was pleasantly surprised to find that one had been written by Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, whose name is famous within the Buddhist community. I ordered it immediately.
The volume is thin, but packs a punch. Anyone looking for a bit of spiritual wisdom will benefit greatly from reading this. Having grown up around the Thi Kinh legend, I didn't think this would be anything new. On some levels it's not--the story is well known and this version doesn't mess TOO much with the original material. However, Thich Nhat Hanh pays attention to all the minor characters that one doesn't really hear much about in most retellings, and does so in a compassionate way that highlights their humanity.
In reading this, one should keep in mind that the author is not a novelist and that the book's purpose is to convey Buddhist teachings to the reader. There's a lot of explanation about the teachings of Buddha, the writing style is pretty basic, and it can be a tedious read for someone who reads a lot of good fiction. You likely won't find anything very commendable about the prose itself; it's the lessons one learns from the book that are important. I definitely struggled to read through it because it was so preachy, but I was glad I did read it.
Overall, a good book to read if you're curious about Buddhism but can't stomach nonfiction. I am not very religious, but I felt significantly more reverent after reading this book.
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Monty
Jun 27, 2013Monty rated it really liked it
If Buddhism or Guan Yin are not of interest to you, then a two or three star rating would be in order. The story of Kinh Tam and how she became known as Quan Am Thi Kinh (Guan Yin) is elaborated on by Thich Nhat Hanh in an uncomplicated, easy manner, as if he were talking to young people. This teaching style is deceptively simple because it covers several Buddhist principals. I was surprised at the end of the story when I had tears in my eyes. I'm not sure where the tears came from though I suspect that at least, in part, they were stimulated by my attempts to grasp the true meaning or what it is like to accept all people, whether they let you down, falsely accuse you, belittle you, ignore you, treat you like a non-person, and more. Kinh Tam, who experienced those judgments from others was able to maintain equanimity towards all beings by practicing Buddhist principles of compassion and non-judgment.
The 100 page story was followed by an essay by Sister Chan Khong, an expatriate Vietnamese Buddhist nun and peach activist who has worked closely with Thich Nhat Hanh for over 50 years. Part of the essay includes examples of how Vietnamese Buddhist monastics and social workers were discriminated against and even murdered by those in power in both the 1960s and the 2000s. There is a brief essay at the end of the book by Thich Nhat Hahn where he explains how, no matter what is happening to us from the outside, we can always find refuge in the true home within ourselves.
This book is obviously not for everyone, though I would recommend it to those whose curiosity has been aroused. Here is a link that discusses Guan Yin. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guanyin
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Kali Srikanth
Jun 07, 2020Kali Srikanth rated it really liked it
Shelves: books-changed-the-way-i-see-life, short-shots, feminism, spirituality
A Young woman (Kinh Tam) who wishes to be a Buddhist monk disguises herself as a young man and becomes a novice. Another young woman (Thi Mau) in the village accuses the "monk" of having a sexual affair that made her pregnant. If the monk reveals her secret, she will no longer be able to be a monk and achieve the Buddha nature she so longs for. If she says nothing, then she tacitly endorses injustice and the false accusation.
As intriguing as it may sound, the rest of the story doesn't really resonate with the story-conflict. Infact, it is more of a series of events that follow the secret life of Kinh Tam. On top of that, the Buddhist literature, the mantras & chants (My personal favourite The Great Bell Chant which you will find in Youtube) TNH tried to forcefully infuse into the story feels on the nose and out of place at times.
But having said so, there is something profound about the book that struck a chord in me, especially the bonus insight towards the end. Its relevance was only clear to me after reading it; the suppression of Buddhist religious leaders and followers by Police force & local Communists back in 1960s and how Thay and his student monks endured and fought back with loving-kindness and inclusiveness that resonated loudly in the book.
This is a small book, with a powerful message which is may well very-relevant to our times. Despite the shortcomings in its writing I still feel it's a beautiful read. 4/5
This World doesn't need more successful people. The World desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds.
~Dalai Lama (less)
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Karith Amel
Oct 28, 2018Karith Amel added it
Shelves: audio, santa-cruz
A book filled with gentle wisdom and true compassion. A small life - faithfully lived - made large by the transforming power of love.
Brief though it may be, this story is not allegory or parable or empty didacticism. The characters breathe with their own life and truth, and the power and relevance of their choices come holistically through the telling. Yet the greatest treasure is probably Sister Chan Kong's summary of Thich Nhat Hanh's life which follows the narrative, and lends depth and credibility to the truth it contains - the hope that it offers.
As a final note, I find Thich Nhat Hanh's complete disregard for gender utterly refreshing. A soul is a soul is a soul. There is an unaffected egalitarianism in his writing (and teaching) that one rarely finds within the leaders of my own tradition (something I find myself thirsting for desperately). (less)
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♥ Ibrahim ♥
Oct 15, 2013♥ Ibrahim ♥ rated it it was amazing
Shelves: spirituality, thinkers-i-adore
I like the way the story of Kinh is told in a simple, clear and charming style. A child at any age as well as an adult can read or hear this story and enjoy it just as much. Because I am an Easterner, I can relate to that village girl Kinh and know how she exactly must have felt having to deal with frustrated hopes and aspirations and her only problem is that she is a girl in an Eastern society. I like the spiritual nuggets spread here and there as I keep reading the story. A story is meant to be a story, not a religion lesson, and indeed Thich does a marvelous job at that. Only Thích Nhất Hạnh has the amazing ability to teach you Buddhism through a story like this without letting you feel that you are being "taught". He is just having conversation and when he speaks, he does, indeed, speak to your heart.
Even though the novice, Kinh Tam, is falsely accused and beaten to the point of bleeding, he is able to maintain such carefree and tranquil composure. What was his secret? It is because he has learnt and is applying the practice of inclusiveness that he is able to avoid into falling into suffering and reproach. Practicing magnanimity brings us away from the shore of sorrows and over to the shore of freedom and happiness. Our goal is to be clear-minded, and those who are caught in cravings are no longer clear-minded. We have to magnanimously persevere, and then our hearts and minds will be at peace (See the collection on the Sixth Paramitas). When we truly practice looking deeply, then we have a chance to understand better and to be more accepting. Our hearts naturally open up, becoming vast like the oceans and rivers. In understanding the sorrows and difficulties of others, we are able to accept and feel compassion for them, even if they have caused us difficulties, treated us unfairly, brought disaster on us, or unjustly harrassed us.
Am I like the Earth which quietly receives everything without feelings of pride, grievance, or being humiliated? The Earth has the embracing capacity and has the ability to receive and transform whatever it takes in. Is my heart-mind boundlessly immense like water? Do I have the ability to receive and transform all injustices and grievances?
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Yann
Mar 23, 2013Yann rated it liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: mindfulness
Unfortunately I have to agree with some of the reviewers that this book's writing is somewhat off-putting. TNH is one of my favorite authors, and I understand that this is meant as a Buddhist lesson. But still... I could never really get into the story because of the writing, so I might not have learned the lesson as well as I was supposed to... Not a bad book per se but I would basically recommend any other book by TNH rather than this one.
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Shannon
Mar 08, 2012Shannon rated it really liked it
It is not a grand literary read.
However it is very peaceful, and quick and easy. One of those reads that really helps bring peace to the mind.
And it's great because one gets to learn about Vietnamese folk lore... I love to learn things.
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