Living Peacefully Starts at Home and Includes All Species
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. referred to renowned spiritual leader and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh as “an apostle of peace and nonviolence” in a letter nominating his respected colleague for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Thây, as his Buddhist followers called him (Vietnamese for “teacher”), had certainly earned such high praise. Often compared to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Nhat Hanh devoted his life to helping humanity learn to coexist peacefully with one another and with the other sentient beings with whom we share the planet.
He knew that we could never achieve nonviolence without rejecting the subjugation and abuse of other species – and that a peaceful world begins on our plates. As he put it, “I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill and not to support any act of killing in the world.”
Nhat Hanh allowed PETA to use those words in a beautiful ad encouraging everyone who prays for peace on Earth to start in their own homes and to choose compassion three times a day. As we mourn the loss of Nhat Hanh, there is no better way to honor his legacy.
Michelle Kretzer
The PETA Foundation
Norfolk, Va.
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