As summer draws to a close, we pause with gratitude for the moments of practice, connection, and growth that have shaped these past months, and we are joyful to share our September newsletter with you.

Shortly after returning from Estes Park, Colorado, our Sangha hosted the True Love Heals Online Retreat for 250 friends from around the world. One friend shared:

Last weekend, we began our Peace is Every Bite Mindful Cooking Course with over four hundred participants from around the world. Although registration is now closed, we aspire to run another round of this course next year.

This Sunday, September 20, we warmly invite you to join us at Deer Park Monastery for a our second annual “Sun Day” Day of Mindfulness celebrating the Sun, the radiant source of energy that sustains all life on our beautiful planet.

And in October, the Buddha the Scientist Retreat (Oct 1-4) will take place at an off-site venue near Big Bear, California, while the Symposium will be held at UC San Diego on October 5. We warmly invite you to join us as we practice mindfulness and explore the intersection of contemplative practice and scientific inquiry.

We are happy to announce that registration is now open for the third cohort of the Who is Thich Nhat Hanh? course. Starting October 11, you’ll embark on a 15-week journey (synchronous with the Rains Retreat) to explore the life and teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. New and returning students are welcome to join us and new content will be added to the existing curriculum.

As we transition into a new season, may we carry the warmth, clarity, and mindful presence of summer with us into the days ahead, along with a renewed sense of compassion and kindness.

With love and gratitude,
Your Brothers and Sisters at Deer Park Monastery

Who is Thích Nhất Hạnh? Online Course Registration Now Open

Join us for the third round of the Who is Thích Nhất Hạnh? course, a 15-week online course inviting you on a transformative journey into the life, teachings, and legacy of Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh. This online course offers a deep dive into the wisdom and insights of one of the most influential spiritual leaders of our time. The course will run from October 11, 2026 – January 31, 2027.

Learn More & Register Here

Oct 1-5, 2026 - The Buddha the Scientist Retreat & Symposium

The Buddha the Scientist Retreat & Symposium brings together a remarkable community of researchers, educators, healthcare professionals, neuroscientists, and Dharma teachers who are exploring the meeting place of contemplative wisdom and modern science. This is our final in-person retreat of the year. If you’ve been longing for time to practice, connect, and nourish yourself in the presence of the Deer Park monastics, we warmly invite you to join us for the Buddha the Scientist Retreat.

Register for the Retreat & Symposium

Register for the Symposium

Sep 20 - Sun Day: A Day of Mindfulness & Gratitude for the Sun

This Sunday, September 20, we warmly invite you to join us at Deer Park Monastery for a special Day of Mindfulness celebrating the Sun, the radiant source of energy that sustains all life on our beautiful planet. A children’s program for children 6-12 will be available.

Reserve your spot

Help Reopen Our Residential Retreat Program

For more than two decades, Deer Park Monastery has been a refuge where people from every walk of life have come to pause, breathe, and rediscover the peace that is already within them.

In order to reopen our residential retreat program and continue serving practitioners from around the world, we must complete a significant renewal of the monastery's facilities and infrastructure. This work cannot happen without the generosity of our worldwide Sangha. We hope you will consider offering a gift to help support this work of care and renewal. Learn more and donate to our fundraiser here.

Donate to Deer Park

Sister Đẳng Nghiêm’s New Book is Now Available

Live Beautifully, Die Beautifully is a memoir and spiritual guide about transforming suffering through mindfulness, compassion, and healing. In this tender, deeply insightful book, beloved five-time author Sister Đẳng Nghiêm, MD (“Sister D”) writes from the heart of her own story: a childhood marked by war and disappearance, a young adulthood shaped by displacement, and a turning point of grief that led her to leave medicine and follow the socially engaged Buddhist teachings of peace activist Thích Nhất Hạnh.

Purchase a Copy

Book Release: 12 Step Zen: Pathways of Recovery

Local Lay Dharma Teacher, Peter Kuhn, recently published 12 Step Zen: Pathways of Recovery, combining decades of recovery experience, Buddhist teachings, and the Twelve-Step tradition into a practical path for healing and spiritual awakening.

Through honest personal stories and practical tools, Kuhn explores how Buddhist practice and Twelve-Step principles can complement and deepen one another.

Pre-order Now

Sep 18 - TNH School of Interbeing Global Online Opening Ceremony

We invite you to join us on September 18, 9-10AM PT for a global online gathering to celebrate the school’s opening and offer our shared wishes for children, with Br. Phap Luu & Head of School Dr. Kim Nolan.

Register here for zoom link

TNH School of Interbeing Featured in Lion’s Roar Article: A New Vision for Education

The Thich Nhat Hanh School of Interbeing was featured in a recent Lion’s Roar article exploring the future of Buddhist education for children.

The Mindfulness Bell: Submissions Call

The Mindfulness Bell welcomes you to share about your practice of mindful eating, mindful cooking, growing and sharing food, plant-based recipes, and related practices. October 15 is the deadline to be considered for print inclusion.

Submission Guidelines

Q&A with Brother Pháp Lưu

Our friends at Clear Mountain Monastery interviewed Brother Pháp Lưu about his path to monasticism, early Buddhist texts (Pāli Canon), monastic community dynamics, Socially Engaged Buddhism vs. Applied Buddhism, rebirth, vows, and continuous transmission in the present.

Love Letter to Deer Park: Tender Pockets of Grief

While visiting Clarity Hamlet, a practitioner begins to heal tender pockets of grief by practicing meditation, walking, mindful eating, noble silence, and walking for her ancestors. Read the Love Letter here.

Deepen Your Practice: Letting Go of Stress

When you have trouble sleeping, follow your breathing in and breathing out. Bring your awareness to the different parts of your body in turn, and allow them to relax. Read the full “Deepen Your Practice” article here.

Looking Ahead:

• Sep 13 - Oct 11, 2026 - Peace is Every Bite Mindful Cooking Course (registration is now closed)

• Sep 20, 2026 - Sun Day: A Day of Mindfulness & Gratitude for the Sun

• Sep 27, 2026 - Day of Mindfulness

• Oct 1 - 4, 2026 - The Buddha the Scientist Retreat (off campus)

• Oct 5, 2026 - The Buddha the Scientist Symposium @ UCSD

• Oct 9, 2026 - Jan 18, 2027 - 90 Day Rains Retreat

• Oct 11, 2026 - Day of Mindfulness & Ordination Ceremony

• Oct 11, 2026 - Jan 31, 2027 - Who is Thích Nhất Hạnh? Online Course [Cohort 3]

• Oct 18, 2026 - Day of Mindfulness & Opening Of Rains Retreat

View All Events on our Events Calendar here.

As summer unfolds, we are grateful for the many ways our Sangha continues to practice, learn, and come together—across monasteries, retreat centers, classrooms, and our homes.

Many of our monastics are currently in Estes Park, Colorado, where they are gathering with friends for The Sun, My Heart Retreat at the YMCA of the Rockies. A d…

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We thank you all for the outpouring of support, generosity, and care following the recent on-campus retreat cancellations. Despite these unfortunate circumstances, we are still open throughout the summer for Days of Mindfulness and will be offering several off-campus and online offerings to support your mindfulness practice.

We are ha…

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We recently celebrated Vesak, the Buddha’s birthday, with more than 350 friends gathered at Deer Park Monastery. Vesak is one of the most important observances in the Buddhist tradition, honoring the birth of the Buddha and commemorating his enlightenment and passing into nirvana. It was a joyful day of practice, community, and grati…

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Families are carrying so much right now. Many parents are navigating overwhelm, disconnection, technology overload, and the challenge of finding moments of true presence together. At the same time, we know how deeply healthy relationships, mindfulness, and compassionate community can support the well-being of children and families.

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We invite you to pause, take a deep breath, and gently receive this month’s newsletter, filled with mindfulness offerings and volunteer opportunities at Deer Park Monastery.

A delegation of Dharma Teachers are traveling around the East Coast this month to visit Dartmouth for the fourth year in a row, as well as visits to Harvard a…

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As we welcome the freshness of spring, let this season remind us to breathe deeply, embrace new beginnings, and cultivate kindness toward ourselves and others. We are currently in the middle of the Wake Up Retreat, our annual mindfulness retreat for friends ages 18-35. Over the weekend we offered a Chanting for Peace Ceremony to …

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As the first hints of spring stir beneath the soil, we arrive together at a significant threshold: Tết, the Lunar New Year, and the beginning of the Year of the Fire Horse.

Tết is our tradition’s most cherished celebration. It is a time for togetherness as well as a sacred pause to bow to what has been, to tend what is here, and to…

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As we step together into this new year, we pause to bow in gratitude for all that has been and to open our hearts to what is unfolding. May 2026 be a year of deepened practice, tender connection, and renewed commitment to walking the path of mindfulness — for ourselves, for one another, and for our precious Earth.

We are happy to s…

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As 2025 draws to a close, we pause with joy and gratitude to reflect on our journey together. This year, our community has grown and flourished, welcoming new friends while cherishing long-standing ones. Thank you for your continued support and connection. We look forward to seeing you all in the new year, whether that be in person…

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On this day before Thanksgiving, we pause to honor the land ancestors—the Luiseño people of the Kumeyaay Nation, the indigenous peoples who tended this sacred mountain with wisdom and reverence, and all the plants, animals, minerals, and elements that continue to nourish our lives.

With gratitude for their endurance and teachings, and with …

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As the maple trees ripen to red and the dewy morning air turns crisp and cool, our Sangha continues to gather in gratitude, remembrance, and renewal. Earlier this month, more than two hundred friends joined us for our annual Day of the Dead celebration, honoring our ancestors and all those who have walked this path…

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This week, we pause in mindfulness to honor the Indigenous Peoples of this land on which Deer Park Monastery now rests. Long before we arrived, the Kumeyaay and Luiseño peoples lived, loved, and practiced their ways of harmony—with one another and with the natural world.

Their presence is still alive in the stones …

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A historic moment is approaching for our global spiritual family. Plum Village practitioners around the world are invited to host local “fire-building sessions” to shape our collective future. We invite you to read more about this important initiative in September’s issue of Coyote Tracks.

We are happy to announce a second cohort o…

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The footsteps on the dirt path to the Stupa quietly remain as reminders of our friends who visited last weekend during our annual Vietnamese Retreat. This was a special time of deep practice, cultural celebration, and connection across generations.

In this month’s issue of Coyote Tracks, we are delighted to share several joyful ann…

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Our annual Family Retreat concluded with many joyful footsteps and tender moments of connection. The sound of children’s laughter still echoes through the trees in the Oak Grove in Clarity Hamlet. Now, the monastery is alive with the vibrant energy of Teen Camp, as we welcome many young people who are practicing together with sinc…

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We are happily celebrating the partial completion of a newly paved road here in the Hidden Mountain. Thank you to all who donated to the Road Repairs fundraiser.

If you are looking for peace and practice, we invite you to come stay with us this year for an upcoming Special Retreat, such as the Vietnamese Retreat or Rains Retreat, o…

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On April 11th, New York City officially named “Thích Nhất Hạnh Way” at the intersection of Broadway and West 109th Street, honoring our teacher and globally revered Zen Master Thích Nhất Hạnh. Read about the events of the day and view photos here.

It is with great joy that we share with you the dawn of a new Deer Park online exper…

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Engaged Buddhism Speaker Series:

Meeting Today’s World with the Bodhisattva’s Eyes and Hands

with Roshi Joan Halifax, PhD

Thursday, April 24, 2025

2:00pm – 3:30pm
U.S. Pacific Time

Held on Zoom

Learn More

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