Poignant words from Thich Nhat Hanh on loneliness.
Excerpt from:
Source: What 5 Great Spiritual Leaders Have to Say About the Deadly Sickness of Loneliness – Waking Times
July 21, 2017
Thich Nhat Hanh
Vietnamese Buddhist monk and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh, also the author of many books including You Are Here: Discovering the Magic of the Present Moment, gives us perhaps the most thorough assessment of the roots of loneliness. He discusses the idea that we must come home to ourselves to find peace and happiness.
Once we are home, we no longer feel lonely. Home is a place where loneliness is happiness. But where is home? It is within the self, it is an island, a place inside ourselves where we must return to in order to be happy. Many of us have forgotten how to take this place with us in our day to day lives, and as such we drift further away…
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Find Your Middle Ground 
Profound, thank you – it spoke to me
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I’m glad it spoke to you 💛 Thank you for stopping by.
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I believe this to be true. I grew up as an only child (both brothers are considerably older) with older parents. I learned how to entertain and amuse myself very early in life. I also knew what made me happy. Maybe it was my nature or maybe the circumstances but I find that I am very comfortable with myself. I am never lonely. If I want companionship, I seek it out but I also enjoy and treasure alone time. I don’t need anyone to make me happy.
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So well said Kate. 💛 We learn so much when we are young. Independence and being okay by ourselves is a valuable gift.
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So very true Val, thanks for sharing this 🙂
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Thank you for stopping by Irene. I’m glad it resonated with you too 💛
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Much more than you can imagine, Val.
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Such an easily described philosophy yet so very hard for so many to follow. The journey inwards is the most mysterious and convoluted of them all! And so frequently commences from a realisation of being lost; of not knowing who one is!
Sorry, what was the question again? 🤔
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Smiling … it isn’t the question that matters. You do Paul 💛
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So true! Whenever I’m alone I get way more anxious-I think because the unknown in your heart can be scary! Better to face those insecurities though… 🙂
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Insecuties are created in our head … our heart knows the answer. Let go of the thoughts and tune into the breath this is the gateway to peace 💛
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I really enjoyed reading that. It’s great advice and something I need to remember.
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Connecting inwards is the answer, beyond remembering the words 💕
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wise words Val, thank you for sharing
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but some time loneliness give peace of mind !
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And that’s when loneliness becomes solitude. There is no lack… simply being with ourselves. Thank you Mubaz 💛
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Loneliness, the disease of our time. Sad, with a country with so much…
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Makes me wonder what we have so much of … and what is missing for many 💛
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This is wonderful! I love Thây and his special teachings.
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I’m so glad it resonated with. You Shielagh 💕
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To come home within and love our authentic self A gift for life.
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A gift indeed. Thank you Karen 🙏💛
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Beautiful post. One has to learn it with perseverance.
Loneliness is a negative state of mind. Aloneness is positive, notwithstanding what the dictionaries say. In dictionaries, loneliness and aloneness are synonymous — they are synonyms; in life they are not. Loneliness is a state of mind when you are constantly missing the other, aloneness is the state of mind when you are constantly delighted in yourself. Loneliness is miserable, aloneness is blissful. Loneliness is always worried, missing something, hankering for something, desiring for something; aloneness is a deep fulfillment, not going out, tremendously content, happy, celebrating. In loneliness you are off center, in aloneness you are centered and rooted. Aloneness is beautiful. It has an elegance around it, a grace, a climate of tremendous satisfaction. Loneliness is; beggarly; all around it there is begging and nothing else. It has no grace around it. In fact it is ugly. Loneliness is a dependence, aloneness is SHEER independence. One feels as if one is one’s whole world, one’s whole existence.
-OSHO
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I do enjoy how Osho is so forthcoming with his thoughts! Thank you Indira 💛
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An excellent post Val. Thich Nhat Hanh is an
incredible guide for our times. His brilliant words
and teachings can help many understand the
nature of the self and the world
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He is incredible, and so relevant for us all today. Thank you for your kind words and sharing here Eddie. Namaste 🙏
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Well said. Enjoyed your post.
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Glad you enjoyed this 💛
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Very much so😊
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This meant a lot to me Val as I have been drifting a bit. I have dropped spending time in reflection each day. Maybe time to get back to that. Thanks.
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It just takes one thought and one action, and we find our path again. Nothing is lost. Thank you Elizabeth 💛
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Great post! I love Thich Nhat Hanh. I wrote about loneliness myself today.
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Thank you Maranda. So glad it resonated with you 💛
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