Excitingly, Plum Village podcast series The Way Out Is In will be hosting its second live show on September 12th, at London’s Light Auditorium in Friends House. Co-hosts Brother Phap Huu and Jo Confino will be joined on stage by a special guest, writer Ocean Vuong, for a mindful journey to cultivate joy and togetherness in the midst of hardship.
With this event approaching, I’ve been reflecting on the transformations that have unfolded since the last live show in London, over a year ago.
Then, as a member of the organising team, I had the privilege of picking up Brother Phap Huu from the airport.
Overcome with excitement at meeting my most recent hero, I felt what I call my ‘exploding euphoria box’ pounding in my chest, causing me to practically skip through the terminal. When Brother Phap Huu saw me, he gently beckoned, saying, “Take your time, breathe.” Ahhhh, yes—a welcome reminder from a voice that grounds me instantly.
As we sat side by side on the London Underground, I tried to breathe through this surreal moment—feeling my way through the fan-girling—and took the chance to ask a question that had been weighing on my heart…
At the time, my academic and activist work was heavily focused on global war and conflict. I asked: “Can we use our anger in these situations to fuel action—to respond to the atrocities we’re witnessing? Doesn’t rage help motivate us to stand up to injustice?”
Over a year later, I still return to his response.
Brother Phap Huu reminded me that we must choose the path of peace and non-violence, of communication and dialogue. Taking action from a place of anger can easily lead to further violence. As long as we act from rage and hold anger in our hearts, war will continue to exist.
He explained that one of the greatest actions we can take is to cultivate a daily practice of transforming the rage in our hearts—to break the victim/perpetrator cycle in our own lives. Because the external world is a reflection of our collective internal state.
This resonates deeply: as always, the most important work we can do is in the quiet privacy of our own hearts.
This year, I’ve tried to apply this wisdom to conflicts in my personal life. Of course, in practice, it’s difficult—to let go of injustice that sits heavy on the heart, to forgive when no accountability has been taken, to choose peace while the pain is still fresh.
But Brother Phap Huu’s words continue to give me the strength to try—to find a way to break the cycle. Recognising that each conflict is a microcosm of the greater struggles in our world makes the pursuit of peace essential. It is work we do not only for ourselves, but for the collective. Through my forgiveness, through my transformation of anger, I help to grow the muscle of our shared human heart.
Now, with the second London live viewing of The Way Out Is In coming this September, I bring a lighter heart and a curious mind to the next perspective-enhancing dialogue that will unfold.
You’ll find more on these topics in the following episodes:
📌 ‘Being the Change We Want to See in the World: A Conversation with Christiana Figueres (Episode #21)’
📌 ‘War and Peace (Episode #24)’
Photos by Monica Max West
Thank you for your beautiful words, Alicia.