Understanding Our Mind: 50 Verses on Buddhist Psychology

by Thich Nhat Hanh

Nautilus Award Finalist

The renowned Zen’s monk’s profound study of Buddhist psychology—with insights into how these ancient teachings apply to the modern world
 
Based on the fifty verses on the nature of consciousness taken from the great fifth-century Buddhist master Vasubandhu and the teachings of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Thich Nhat Hanh focuses on the direct experience of recognizing, embracing, and looking deeply into the nature of our feelings and perceptions.

Presenting the basic teachings of Buddhist applied psychology, Understanding Our Mind shows us how our mind is like a field, where every kind of seed is planted—seeds of suffering, anger, happiness, and peace. The quality of our life depends on the quality of the seeds in our mind. If we know how to water seeds of joy and transform seeds of suffering, then understanding, love, and compassion will flower. Vietnamese Zen Master Thuong Chieu said, “When we understand how our mind works, the practice becomes easy.”

Genres: Buddhism, Spirituality, Psychology, Philosophy, Religion, Nonfiction, Zen

256 pages, Paperback

First published February 9, 2002

About the author

Thích Nhất Hạnh was a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist who then lived in southwest France where he was in exile for many years. Born Nguyễn Xuân Bảo, Thích Nhất Hạnh joined a Zen (Vietnamese: Thiền) monastery at the age of 16, and studied Buddhism as a novitiate. Upon his ordination as a monk in 1949, he assumed the Dharma name Thích Nhất Hạnh. Thích is an honorary family name used by all Vietnamese monks and nuns, meaning that they are part of the Shakya (Shakyamuni Buddha) clan. He was often considered the most influential living figure in the lineage of Lâm Tế (Vietnamese Rinzai) Thiền, and perhaps also in Zen Buddhism as a whole.

Reviews

[Smitha Murthy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have briefly flitted with turning into a ‘monkini,’ and the fact that there are Tibetan monasteries just two hours away from my city has made that flitting idea sometimes become more entrenched. But then, when I read a book like this, I wonder if I can really understand the complexities of the mind enough to surrender myself to it 24 hours a day. Can I become a monkini without really trying to understand these heavy Buddhist sutras?

This is one of Thich Nhat Hanh’s more technical books. I was completely at sea and missed the more easily accessible teachings on mindfulness that I had found in his other books. Somehow, in between the ‘store consciousness,’ ‘mind unconsciousness’ and all sorts of consciousness, I lost consciousness myself and just floated through the book. The rating is NOT a reflection on the quality of the book - it’s me saying “dear book, forgive me, I could not be friends with you right now, but I think we can connect again in the present moment which is our future.”

[Linda Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of Thay's more "technical" books. It is a rather detailed introduction to the complex topic of Buddhist psychology. This will deserve a second reading in a few months that will include many side trips to referenced texts and cross-referencing with other works on Buddhist psychology. If the subject of Buddhist psychology interests you, but delving into it has seemed like a daunting undertaking, this is a perfect place to start.

[Craig Werner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm in more or less ongoing search for the best book to introduce my non-Buddhist and/or atheist friends to a perspective that's central to the way I live day by day. Understanding Our Mind may well be the one I've been looking for. Nhat Hanh uses a set of 51 verses adapted from the Mahayana (Middle Way) tradition to introduce the practical implications of basic Buddhist notions such as interdepence, emptiness and a host of others. The voice doesn't predispose knowledge of Buddhism and focuses on the day by day relevance of ideas that might seem abstract out of context.

A very good place to begin an exploration of the Dharma.

[Kristy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Thich Nhat Hanh unpacks fifty fifth-century Buddhist verses on the nature of consciousness and relates them to modern life. This is pretty heady stuff, and a lot more technical and philosophical than my other dabblings into Buddhism, but I really enjoyed it. The translations of the verses themselves are beautiful, simple, and moving, and Thich Nhat Hanh's usual clear and compassionate writing style makes the complicated nature of reality stuff land more smoothly than it would in the hands of another author. I particularly liked his advice in the introduction to read just a bit each day, don't worry too much if you aren't understanding every word, and to "Allow the teachings to enter you as you might listen to music, or in the way the earth allows the rain to permeate it." By following his advice, I feel like I got a perspective on my own mind and existence that I didn't have before. Maybe don't start here if you have never read anything about Buddhism, but don't be put off by the complexity of the content if this is something you'd like to dig into a little more deeply.

[John Stepper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading commentaries on ancient texts. It gives me a sense of accessing ancient wisdom.

I read this slowly, one verse and corresponding commentary each day or so. I confess that the original text would be impenetrable, meaningless to me, without Thich Nhat Hanh’s prose.

It feels like all the answers to living a good life are contained in this text, and yet I know am barely scratching the surface. I look forward to reading it again.

[Eric]

Thich Nhat Hanh is THE master of mindfulness practice, in my limited opinion... This book holds one key to understanding Buddhism - the drive to understand the mind as it really is.

[Chanita]

This profound look at Buddhist psychology offers important insights into how Buddhism's ancient teachings apply to the modern world. Basing his work on the writings of the great fifth-century Buddhist master Vasubandhu and the teachings of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Thich Nhat Hanh focuses on the direct experience of recognizing the true nature of consciousness. Presenting the basic teachings of Buddhist applied psychology, he shows how the mind is like a field, where every kind of seed is planted — seeds of suffering, anger, happiness, and peace. The quality of life, he writes, depends on the quality of the seeds. By learning how to water seeds of joy and transform seeds of suffering, understanding, love, and compassion can flower."
(from Amazon)

[Priya · Rating 5 out of 5]

The concepts in this book, if applied properly, can be very useful for individuals as well as for professionals working with clients suffering from mental afflictions. This book supports the ecological relationship between individuals and their social environments. Some of the ideas presented can also be useful in promoting culturally informed psychotherapeutic practices.

[Jon Mehlhaus · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are like me and wary of the ways in which our culture looks to commercialize and medicalize 'mindfulness' practices, this is a terrific book. Thich Nhat Hanh does a service to the underlying spiritual philosophy of mindfulness from his own tradition in a way that avoids alienating those unfamiliar with the finer point of Buddhist doctrine while also not cheapening or dumbing down the rich texts that his views come from.

So, the next time someone encourages you to meditate or you contemplate an ad on the train for a mindfulness app, I'd recommend reading this book first. It isn't that this is the only way into mindfulness, but it explains with appropriate depth *why* mindfulness became such a central feature of other spiritual traditions thousands of years before the West got word. And it gives some understanding of why we feel we need it so much now but also how that strong desire for mindfulness to 'fix' us is not really what the transformation of suffering is all about.

[Sterre · Rating 3 out of 5]

These 50 Verses are truly beautifully written! Multiple times I've quoted some simple but clever analogy Thich Nhat Hanh uses to let you understand a concept. For example:

"Clouds are the past life of rain. Rain is a continuation of the clouds."

However, in each verse there's quite some repetition and because of that it gets a bit boring at the end of the book. At other times though, I came across a verse that required much effort to understand it. But once you do, you see the interconnectedness of it with the other verses. So, in short, Understanding Our Mind is a beautifully written work, but sometimes falls into repetition of already explained concepts or requires a lot of your concentration.

One thing after reading this book is clear though: it's all about mindfulness :)

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very broad perspective on a very complicated subject - the mind. Thich Nhat Hanh brings his gentle language to explaining what brings about mental turmoil and how to alleviate that suffering in a detailed and thorough manner.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult to read. One must really have their full attention and a quite space to contemplate the teachings. I need to read this again as I feel a lot of the material has escaped.

[Prabhat Saraswat]

Another gem. 50 verses amazingly put together. Takes on the labyrinth of a journey in our mind, thoughts and consciousness..

should read. a good read

[Akshunya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember when I read this book for the first time, I could not go beyond 100 pages, and whatever i read that also involved a lot of struggle. Now when I read this book after more than an year I have realized that it is not a book to just read, but you need to study it carefully for deeper understanding.

There is a well designed hierarchical structure of consciousness as understood in Buddhist philosophy, and you need to have some basic understanding of that system if you want to unlock the message hidden in these 50 verses of Vasubandhu, on which Thich That Hanh has done the commentary. It is not that it is not explained in the text itself, however one tends to not pay enough attention, and with weak understanding of those concepts, struggles to understand the core message.

For example he starts with eight levels of consciousness in the first chapter, and then the further chapters discuss about various concepts like modes of perceptions which are again related to one or the other levels of consciousness. So if you did not pay attention in the beginning itself, whatever you read further keeps evading your understanding.

The core message that is conveyed here and looked upon from so many different angles is the message of interdependence, that is how every object and phenomenon depends on each other to be able to exist or manifest. This is something happening right in front of our eyes, however because of the delusions of the mind, remains hidden from our view.

The 50 verses are quite in-depth and comprehensively cover everything ranging from unconscious mind, ego, nature of mind, behavior, habits, sensory perceptions, nature of delusions, practice of mindfulness, importance of working in a Group and so on, explained in great detail for a beginner.

I am glad that i have finally read the whole of it this time. I think the title of this book suggests as if it is a simple and straightforward text about how our mind works, however it is way more complex than that, just like our mind. The writing is dense, and may require multiple readings. I think going forward, i will not only NOT judge the book by its cover, but also NOT by its title. What appears to be simple and straightforward, may not actually be one. Having said that, the (tough) journey has been truly rewarding!

[Norman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engaging exposition of the psychic apparatus as understood by the buddhist tradition, the book takes a verse and expands on it for each chapter delving deeper into it while adding insight from the mind of a truly impressive practitioner.

This book is fantastic in many ways: it has a logical structure and goes systematically trough each of the parts of our mind in a way that each chapter remains clear while furthering understanding of what follows. The style of writing betrays TNH's mastery at teaching, showing a great use of metaphors and examples,keeping his chapters succint enough not to lose your attention but profound thanks to his perspective to set the mind on fire. Just like on buddhist sutras TNH's uses gentle repetition to make buddhist understanding as clear as it can be and he does it in a way that it's not annoying or intrusive; he rephrases absolute key points a few times to make sure a seed is firmly planted in the reader.

The absolute best quality of this book is that it reads like wisdom and not simply a dry psychological exposition of religious thought. The insights in this book give the impression of a great intelligence filtered trough a loving soul, there's open mindedness and compassion here. I wouldn't consider it a beginners introduction to buddhism and it's not aimed at that kind of audience. Everyone can learn something from this book but they will certainly get more out of it after having some general idea of the buddhist tradition.

If that weren't enough TNH's has poetry in his soul as well and some of the verses are genuinely beautiful specially after you've rumminated on the explanation of the chapter and can read them again with a new understanding, particularly some of the more abstract ones. At times it feels like another layer of meaning that was always there but incomprehensible is now open, this type of experience just serves to impress even more and leaves an unforgettable imprint on the mind. Outstanding work.

"The arms of perception embrace all, joining life to death..."

[Bryan Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly a great book with lots of life-changing tidbits of advice scattered throughout, just way too much filler in between, with a full breakdown of each of the 50 verses, overly descriptive with the 8 types of consciousness and the 16 wholesome actions along with the 22 unwholesome actions and 12 neutral actions composed of 4 levels each of.....

Buddhism is simple concepts in the end, but just about every text on the subject seems so pompous,
condescending, and massive amounts of deep studying to really have a complete grasp of the concepts. Also why does every other word have a sanskrit translation next to it? The bible doesn't have aramaic translations next to everything. Buddhisms determination on clinging to and respecting the past only hurts its future growth, in my opinion.

Would easily be a 5 star book if it was focused on the important concepts instead of trying to cover everything. I loved it anyways, but lots of sections were a struggle to get through and felt like I was studying for an exam.

[Jeffrey Spitz Cohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Understanding Our Mind” really helps you understand your mind. As advertised.

Drawing on the teachings of a Fifth Century Buddhist master, Naht Hanh uses the metaphor of seeds to illuminate consciousness. Our mind is a storehouse of an ever-growing collection of seeds, which are ideas, experiences and interpretations. Through the practice of mindfulness, we can discern between helpful seeds and damaging seeds, nurturing the former and loosening the grip of the latter.

While the metaphor of watering and fertilizing helpful seeds certainly works, Naht Hanh would be the first to admit that metaphors, ideas, interpretations and conceptualizations obscure our perceptions of reality. In other words, this metaphor of seeds has value, but limited value.

This is not one of Naht Hanh’s typically pithy books. It has some heft. And although its repetitive, I suppose repetition is necessary to penetrate our thick skulls and drive home the nature of reality.

[Mehdi Hassan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read! Thich Nhat is a Buddhist by heart and a scientist by nature. The book highlights the nature of reality and the various levels of conscious that our mind is made up of. He denounces duality and reconstructs phenomenons as spectrums. He captures the process through which reality is perceived through human mind. He distinguishes between representations, images and dynamism. One needs not to be interested in Buddhism to enjoy this book. One only needs to be curious in exploring models of thought to enjoy this fascinating breakdown of real life systems. The language is very informal and gives the reader a feeling of conversation with the writer. I cannot wait to read his other volumes.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read several books by Thich Nhat Hanh. I find his philosophy and perspective on living to be very helpful. This book incorporates psychology with the teachings of Buddhism. I read it in small chunks, reflectively, often rereading portions so as to better process them. There were some dense parts which, for me, were not accessible on a first read. However, I found that the more I reread and reflected, the more the insights became clear for me. I expect to return to the ideas in this book again and again, as a kind of spiritual guide.

[James Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a way to water the seeds in the garden of of your store consciousness. While developing an intellectual understanding of Buddhism is insufficient on its own, this book is powerful when read in conjunction with mindfulness meditation and yoga. Hanh uses modern scientific and social developments to add depth to his description of these ancient verses.

[Patrick Mak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars are not enough to express how much I recommend this book!

Thich Nhat Hanh has the rare ability to teach complex concepts in Buddhism in a simple and understandable way.

This book really deserves a second or even a third read. I recommend this book to all people that are interested in Buddhism.

[Vinayagamoorthy Kuppusamy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was just awesome. Took 4 levels of notes and took it into my mind. The concept of store consciousness, Manas consciousness, Mind consciousness and the other 5 sense consciousnesses was really helpful to me. Decided to observe the insance levels of busyness in my mind. Everything else will be taken care of automatically.

[liwia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐️

Odczułam wielką euforię po przeczytaniu tej książki. Cieszę się, że od niej zaczęłam moje wdrażanie się w nauki buddyzmu i wiem, że na pewno zacznę je stosować w moim codziennym życiu. Niesamowite.

[Kandachamy Vijayakumaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for those who want to know how our mind works. The Buddha has found 2500 years ago, the answers to the questions our psychologists are grappling with for years. Thich Nhat Hanh is a teacher of exemplary capacity to make us understand the most complex subject.

[Sisilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that I will need and want to read a few times 😊

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Understanding Our Mind takes you beautifully through complex mindfulness concepts that take years to conceptualize alone by the hand of the narrator Thich Nhat Hanh.

[Yash Kapoor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very technical book, at some point of time you will loose interested still it reaches lot of things

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a slow read. It took several months to read and innerstand the message.

[HM Teow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful works

A simple way to understand how our mind works. Recommend reading this book slowly. Thanks for all the great works.

[David K. Glidden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books on the epistemology and phenomenology of Buddhist Mahayana thinking.