Children have a special place in the Plum Village tradition of Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh. There are special practices, vows, and programs designed especially for children and teens, and Thich Nhat Hanh often fashions the first part of his dharma talks with them in mind. He regularly takes questions from children, and by and large adults can identify with what they ask. Children may be smaller and younger and they may have a funny way with words, but their questions reveal that they, like adults, are grappling with the human condition. What follows are real questions from children and Thich Nhat Hanh’s insightful answers from a new illustrated book, Is Nothing Something? “I always try to give an answer that offers the best of myself,” Thich Nhat Hanh says. “I am much older than the children who asked these questions, but when we sit and breathe together, it seems that we are the same.”

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is energy. This energy helps us enjoy what is happening right now. Mindful energy can bring us a lot of joy. It helps us suffer less and learn from our suffering. A good way to get some mindful energy is to close your eyes and breathe easily. Just pay attention to your breath. If you can enjoy your in-breath and out-breath, you are creating mindful energy.

Is nothing something?

Yes. Nothing is something. You have an idea in your head of nothing. You have an idea in your head of something. Both are things that can create either suffering or happiness.

How can I remain calm when I see so many bad things in the world?

Whenever I see violence or cruelty, it still makes me angry. We all get angry sometimes. But we can learn to take care of our anger. If we look closely, we can notice that people who are cruel have a lot of suffering inside. When we see this, we can be compassionate, and help the situation by creating peace, even if what is happening around us is not very peaceful. We can use our breath and our mindfulness to transform the energy of anger into the energy of compassion. When we have the energy of compassion, we can do a lot of things to help people suffer less.

To read more of Thich Nhat Hanh's article, please click here.