Shadowing Practice: Realizing Nirvana | Teaching by Thich Nhat Hanh | #mindfulness - Learn English Speaking with Video
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42 sentences
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1
When we look into a flower, we can see the fact that the many have come to the One.
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many conditions have come together in order to help the flower to manifest as a wonder of light
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that flower has been produced by the whole cosmos the sunshine the rain and a multitude of other elements
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and you a human being, you are also a wonder of life.
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The whole cosmos has come to produce us.
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The many have come to be in the One.
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We distinguish between the many and the One.
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So the many has come to the One and have the One to manifest.
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and then the question is where does the one go to where I'm going to after I die
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after this body disintegrate where shall I go is there any continuation is there anything that is called afterlife
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The answer is maybe the one goes to the all, go back to the all.
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But the question here is whether it is necessary to go somewhere.
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Have you really come from somewhere in space or time?
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There's no need to come and to go.
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Our true nature is the nature of no coming and no going.
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that is the insight realized by the Buddha no coming no going
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when conditions are sufficient you manifest
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when conditions are no longer sufficient you don't manifest in that way you manifest in other ways according to the conditions
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creation means from nothing you suddenly become something
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and death destruction means from something you become nothing from being
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you become non -being from someone you have to become no one and many of think of death as becoming no one.
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What a pity!
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What a wrong perception!
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And in fact, you are free from all these pairs of opposites.
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The greatest relief is obtained only when you are capable of touching the ground of your being,
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the ground of your non -being.
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Our true nature is the nature of no coming, no going, no birth, no death,
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no being, and no non -being.
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Because these are concepts, they are notions that cannot describe the ultimate reality.
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The ultimate reality is free from both notions, being and non -being, birth and death.
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It is wrong to say that God is.
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It is wrong to say that God is not.
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Because to be or not to be, that is not the question.
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If you practice looking deeply enough, you realize that the true nature of reality is no birth, no death.
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Otherwise, the dualistic view will prevent you to understand what God really is and what really is not.
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Because to me, God is the ground of our being, but also the ground of our non -being.
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And being and non -being are notions that cannot scare us.
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once we have been able to touch nirvana.
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Nirvana means the silence, the extinction of all notions and concepts.
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Most of our sufferings come from our thinking, our notions, our ideas.
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We suffer very much because our notions our fear our despair our anger all these
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suffering are born from our ideas and our notions this is the message from the Buddha So, let's go.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Realizing Nirvana”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: notions, manifest, nature, conditions, ground. This video has 50 sentences and 541 words to shadow. The speech runs for 6:47. The speaker talks slowly, about 80 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 89% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| notion noun | /ˈnoʊʃən/ | Mental apprehension of whatever may be known, thought, or imagined; idea, concept. |
| manifest noun | /ˈmæn.ɪ.fɛst/ | A list or invoice of the passengers or goods being carried by a commercial vehicle or ship. |
| flower noun | /ˈfloʊɚ/ | A reproductive structure in angiosperms (flowering plants), often conspicuously colourful and typically including sepals, petals, and either or both stamens… |
| sufficient | /səˈfɪʃənt/ | An adequate quantity of; enough. |
| cosmos noun | /ˈkɑzməs/ | The universe regarded as a system with harmony and order. |
| element noun | /ˈɛləmənt/ | One of the simplest or essential parts or principles of which anything consists, or upon which the constitution or fundamental powers of anything are based. |
| silence noun | /ˈsaɪ̯ləns/ | The absence of any sound. |
| suffer verb | /ˈsʌfɚ/ | To undergo hardship. |
| deeply adverb | /ˈdi(ː)pli/ | To a deep extent or degree; very greatly. |
| anger noun | /ˈæŋɡə/ | A strong and unpleasant feeling of displeasure, hostility, or antagonism, usually combined with an urge to yell, curse, damage or destroy things, or harm… |
| obtain verb | /əbˈteɪn/ | To get hold of; to gain possession of, to procure; to acquire, in any way. |
| destruction noun | /dɪsˈtɹʌkʃən/ | The act of destroying. |
| volunteer noun | /ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/ | One who enters into, or offers themselves for, any service of their own free will, especially when done without pay. |
| insight noun | /ˈɪnsaɪ̯t/ | A sight or view of the interior of anything; a deep inspection or view; introspection; frequently used with into. |
| perception noun | /pɚˈsɛpʃ(ə)n/ | The organisation, identification and interpretation of sensory information. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| go back to verb | To stem from; to originate in. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have come · has been produced · has come |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | has been produced · is called · is obtained |
Pronunciation to watch
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: notion /ˈnoʊʃən/, sufficient /səˈfɪʃənt/, destruction /dɪsˈtɹʌkʃən/, perception /pɚˈsɛpʃ(ə)n/, sunshine /ˈsʌnʃaɪn/
- Long words — get the stress right: continuation /kənˌtɪnjʊˈeɪʃ(ə)n/, disintegrate /dɪsˈɪntɪɡɹeɪt/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like notion, manifest, flower.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.