Mindfulness Essentials Series

What do we want to do with our one precious life? What is our deepest desire?

We all want our lives to be useful and meaningful. The aspiration to transform suffering—our own, each other’s, and the earth’s—can give us the energy we need to continue on a wholesome path. In How to Dream, Thich Nhat Hanh explains how to let our deep desire nourish us and, in turn, how to keep that desire alive. 

If our aspiration is lost, if it’s depleted, if we’ve slowly let it go, we must rekindle it. Whatever our role in society—activist, businessperson, teacher, parent, or politician—we can live into our deep aspiration and change the direction of civilization. And together, as a community with a collective aspiration, we have the energy to realize our dream.

Listening with compassion can solve our most pressing issues—across global politics and interpersonal relationships and within our own hearts and minds.

In How to Listen, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh demonstrates how deep listening is a fundamental building block of good communication. But perhaps more fundamentally, listening is central to our practice, a basic ingredient to strengthen our capacity for mindfulness, concentration, insight, and compassion. Learning how to listen with equanimity to life itself, we generate insight into the true nature of our deep connection to all things. And from this place of understanding—when we know that we aren’t separate—our capacity to listen deepens even further. 

With clear and gentle guidance from Thich Nhat Hanh, we learn how truly listening—to ourselves, to each other, to Mother Earth, and to the many “bells of mindfulness” that are available to us in each moment—is the foundation of our practice, an expression of love, and a solution to our deepest and most urgent large-scale conflicts. 

All Mindfulness Essentials books are illustrated with playful sumi-ink drawings by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

The latest book in the bestselling How To series: simple, refreshing meditations of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh give us inspiration and tools for transforming our suffering and cultivating happiness

In inspiring passages and simple exercises, Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh teaches us what he calls “the art of suffering.” He gives us teachings and tools for transforming suffering as well as ways to touch moments of happiness and smile even while suffering is still there.

Written with characteristic simplicity and wisdom, these insightful meditations—born from the Zen master’s lifetime of Zen practice and peacemaking—teach us how to come back to ourselves, calm our body and mind, and not let suffering overwhelm us.

When we’re willing to face our suffering and look deeply into it, we begin to understand its origins. Transformation and healing become possible, and along with it a greater capacity to understand the suffering of others and resolve conflicts in our relationships.

Creating peace and understanding in ourselves and our relationships in this way is essential for helping create true understanding and peace in our communities, society, and the world.

Thich Nhat Hanh offers practices for transforming our own suffering, listening deeply to the suffering of others, and especially how to cultivate our own smile and happiness.

All Mindfulness Essentials books are illustrated with playful sumi-ink drawings by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

The simple, refreshing meditations of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh give us the tools to cultivate concentration. Practicing mindfulness brings concentration, and concentration brings insight and understanding.

With our world experiencing the deep effects of loneliness, digital overload, and a proliferation of potential distractions, this pocket-sized How To book reminds us of the value of developing our concentration, so we can let go of misperceptions and cultivate the clarity of mind that is the basis for understanding ourselves, each other, and the world.
 
Written with characteristic simplicity and kindness, these wise meditations teach us that by practicing mindfulness in daily life, we are cultivating the power of concentration and fostering the conditions that bring insight, liberating us from misperceptions and misunderstanding.


The Mindfulness Essentials series is a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces readers to the essentials of mindfulness practice. All Mindfulness Essentials books are illustrated with playful sumi-ink drawings by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

We can restore our inherent connection to nature, each other, our ancestors, and ourselves, and remember our fundamental gift of belonging. 

The eighth book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

“We are here to awaken from the illusion of our separateness.”—Thich Nhat Hanh

With our world experiencing the deep effects of loneliness, environmental detachment, and digital overload, this pocket-sized How To book reminds us of our crucial need to connect to ourselves, our ancestors, and our planet. Written with characteristic simplicity and kindness, these wise meditations teach us how to remember, at any time, our fundamental gift of belonging.

Illustrated with playful sumi-ink drawings by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

Reach true clarity and insight by looking deeply, minimizing misperceptions, and having the courage to see things as they really are. 

The seventh book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

Profound and always approachable, Thich Nhat Hanh teaches us the art of looking deeply—in to our knee-jerk assumptions and runaway thoughts—so we can recognize the true meaning and essence of our lives. How to See teases apart the act of seeing-both inside and outside of ourselves, and points the way to developing true clarity.

Written with his signature warmth, these pithy meditations are accompanied by playful sumi-ink drawings by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

Turn disagreements and conflicts into opportunities for growth, compassion, and reconciliation. 

The sixth book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

Nhat Hanh brings his signature clarity, compassion, and humor to the ways we act out in anger, frustration, despair, and delusion. In brief meditations accompanied by whimsical sumi-ink drawings, Thich Nhat Hanh instructs us exactly how to transform our craving and confusion. If we learn to take good care of our suffering, we can help others do the same, and reach reconciliation between family members, coworkers, and even nations.

How to Fight is pocket-sized with two-color original artwork by California artist Jason DeAntonis.

Stop, relax mindfully, and recharge to control stress and renew mental freshness and clarity. 

The fifth book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

Thich Nhat Hanh says that when we relax, we “become calm water, and we will reflect reality as it is. If we’re not calm, the image we reflect will be distorted. When the image is distorted by our minds, it’s not the reality, and it causes lots of suffering.” Relaxation is essential for accessing the tranquility and joy that lead to increased personal well-being. With sections on healing, relief from nonstop thinking, transforming unpleasant sounds, solitude, being peace, and more, How to Relax includes meditations you can do to help you achieve the benefits of relaxation no matter where you are.

Scientific studies indicate that meditation contributes tremendously to well-being, general health, and longevity. How to Relax is a unique gift for those who want a simple guide to achieving deep relaxation, controlling stress, and renewing mental freshness and clarity, appropriate for those practicing in any spiritual tradition, whether seasoned practitioners or new to meditations.

With sumi-ink drawings by celebrated artist Jason DeAntonis.

An introduction to mindful walking, which can be done anywhere, at any time—even on a commute to work or school.

The fourth book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

Slow, concentrated walking while focusing on in- and out-breaths allows for a unique opportunity to be in the present. There is no need to arrive somewhere—each step is the arrival to concentration, joy, insight, and the momentary enlightenment of aliveness. When your foot touches the Earth with awareness, you make yourself alive and the Earth real, and you forget for one minute the searching, rushing, and longing that rob our daily lives of awareness and cause us to “sleepwalk” through life.

Thich Nhat Hanh shares amusing stories of the impact mindful walking has on both the walker and those who notice him, and shows how mindful walking can be a technique for diminishing depression, recapturing wonder, and expressing gratitude. Pocket-sized, with original two color illustrations by Jason DeAntonis, How to Walk is a unique gift for all ages, sharing a simple practice that can have a profound effect on practitioners.

The most popular book in the “How To” series: advice, practices, and food for thought from a Zen Master on our most universal emotion. 

The third book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

Nhat Hanh brings his signature clarity, compassion, and humor to the thorny question of how to love. He distills one of our strongest emotions down to four essentials: you can only love another when you feel true love for yourself; love is understanding; understanding brings compassion; deep listening and loving speech are key ways of showing our love.

Pocket-sized, with original two color illustrations by Jason DeAntonis, How to Love shows that when we feel closer to our loved ones, we are also more connected to the world as a whole. With sections on Love vs. Need, Being in Love, Reverence, Intimacy, Children and Family, Reconciling with Parents, and more, How to Love includes meditations you can do alone or with your partner to go deep inside and expand your own capacity to love.

Scientific studies indicate that meditation contributes tremendously to well-being, general health, and longevity. How to Love is a unique gift for those who want a comprehensive yet simple guide to understanding the many different kinds of love, along with meditative practices that can expand the understanding of and capacity for love, appropriate for those practicing in any spiritual tradition, whether seasoned practitioners or new to meditation.

An invitation to a joyful and sustainable relationship with all aspects of eating, including gardening, food shopping, preparing, serving, and even cleaning up after a meal. 

The second book in the bestselling Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice.

These short meditations cover everything from eating with others and enjoying our food to connecting with the Earth. How to Eat is a welcome reminder that the benefits of mindful eating are both personal and global. 

With sumi-ink drawings by Jason DeAntonis.

“Sit” = “Meditate.” Clear, simple directions for anyone wanting to explore mindfulness meditation. 

The first book in The Mindfulness Essentials series, a back-to-basics collection from world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh that introduces everyone to the essentials of mindfulness practice. 

In short, single-paragraph chapters, Nhat Hanh shares detailed instructions, guided breathing exercises and visualizations, as well as his own personal stories and insights. This pocket-sized book is perfect for those brand new to sitting meditation as well as for those looking to deepen their spiritual practice.

With sumi-ink drawings by Jason DeAntonis.