Breathe! You Are Alive

Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese poet, bestselling author and peace activist, has been a Buddhist monk for over 40 years. He was chairman of the Vietnamese Buddhist Peace delegation during the Vietnam War and was nominated by Dr Martin Luther King for the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1966 he visited the US and Europe on a peace mission and was unable to return to his native land. Today he heads Plum Village, a meditation community in south-western France, where he teaches, writes, gardens and aids refugees worldwide. Websites include: www.interbeing.org.uk and www.plumvillage.org

'Breathing brings the secret joy of meditation to you. You become joyful, fresh and tolerant and everyone around you will benefit.' The Sutra on the Full Awareness of Breathing is one of the three most essential teachings of the Buddha. In Breathe! You Are Alive, scholar, poet and Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh unfolds this core teaching, showing how to apply it to everyday life. He explains the methods of conscious breathing that are presented in the sutra and offers exercises for practicing those methods today. Moreover, his engaging commentary shows the profound nourishment that can be available to us when we slow down and get in touch with our breathing. Breathe! You Are Alive shows how we all begin to take in peace and happiness with each and every breath.