The eschatology of religious orders that originated in the Indian subcontinent Advaitism, Buddhism, Jainism, etc is often seen to ignore the social and political turmoil of the time, focussing instead on enlightenment and salvation. Thich Nhat Hanh, who died at 95, put paid to that idea and illustrated time and again his model for a spiritual politics what he called engaged Buddhism. His teachings and actions, the notions of interconnectedness and awareness he provided, can continue to serve a divided world that faces global challenges.

Born Nguyen Xuan Bao in 1926, he was a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk. At the peak of the US invasion of Vietnam in 1966, he travelled to the country to tell Americans of Vietnams suffering and had a deep influence on Martin Luther King Jr. In Singapore, after the war, he helped Vietnamese refugees find safe harbour. He met Popes and presidents, activists and leaders, and was instrumental in setting up the Paris peace talks for a settlement of the Vietnam war. At the core of his engagement was the idea of mindfulness, of being in a state of meditative awareness about the self and the world. His concept of interbeing, that all life is part of a singular whole, is a crucial element in the discourse around addressing climate change.

The contemporary moment often seems like one that is dominated by the cynical use of religion for polarising politics, by international relations predicated on irrational self-interest visible in global warming and vaccine hoarding. It is precisely because of the pervasive moral and spiritual deficit in public life that figures like Thich Nhat Hanh and Gandhi and Desmond Tutu are more relevant than ever. For them, religion became a tool to expand justice and empathy, not a means to build exclusive identities or focus only on individual salvation. For that reason, among so many others, he will be missed.

This editorial first appeared in the print edition on January 25, 2022 under the title Spiritual activist.

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Thich Nhat Hanhs teachings will continue to be important in a divided world facing large transitions, challenges - The Indian Express