Events

The Order of Interbeing, or Tiep Hien in Vietnamese, includes monastic and lay members whose lives and practice are inspired by our Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, a distillation of the Bodhisattva (Enlightened Being) teachings of Mahayana Buddhism. Learn more about the order.

For many years, Thich Nhat Hanh invited ordained members of the Order of Interbeing to gather at Plum Village France biannually for a 21-day retreat in June to spend time in fellowship, discuss topics of shared interest, and explore ways to practice engaged Buddhism in the world. 

In June 2026, to mark the 60th anniversary of the Order of Interbeing, OI members and others on the OI path from around the world will once again gather at Plum Village, from January 1-30. Information about the gathering, “Nurturing the Fire: Plum Village Retreats Celebrating Sixty Years of the Order of Interbeing, may be found here.

Ahead of the retreat, OI members and aspirants are encouraged to organize and take part in “firebuilding sessions” via their local Sanghas and local and regional groups of OI members, either in-person (where possible) or online. [Read the Firebuilding Invitation Letter here.] This will allow friends on the OI path to enjoy community, build harmony, and share their hopes and vision for the future of the Order and the global Plum Village community.

We want to bring Sangha members together in person, face-to-face, creating harmony through shared activities, before we meet to engage in discussions about our collective future. These sessions will focus primarily on strengthening the bonds within our spiritual family and to deepen our mutual understanding and aspirations. Gatherings should be organized in a way that fosters connections across different age and affinity groups in the Plum Village community, and should be inclusive of committed practitioners who are not formally OI members or aspirants.

Because of the global and decentralized nature of the Order of Interbeing, our hope is that these fire-building gatherings will arise organically and be organized and facilitated by OI members or other committed sangha members..

To provide some direction for these gatherings, the 2026 OI Retreat Envisioning and Planning Team has issued a Fire-Building Invitation Letter here. 

OI members are encouraged to share information about these gatherings, as they are planned, via local Sanghas, websites, social media groups, etc.

Share about your firebuilding experience by sending an email to firebuilding@plumvillage.org. 

In your email, please share the name and location of your Sangha or OI group, how many people participated, a photo, and any outcomes from the gathering.

As part of this effort it is our hope that local and regional Sanghas will offer financial assistance to young Wake Up members (ages 18-35) and others who practice wholeheartedly and may need support to participate in these retreats. Please reach out to your local Sangha if you wish to go and require financial support. 

No. In fact, because space is limited at Plum Village, we expect that many of our OI members and aspirants will not be able to attend the retreat. But your voice, and your presence, are still valued, and we hope you’ll consider organizing or attending a firebuilding session with others in your community, state, or region.

Ideally, our aspiration is for as many OI members, aspirants, and others on the path to come together in person locally or regionally for these gatherings. That said, we understand this is not possible or practical for some people. In those cases, gathering online–or offering a hybrid option–may be the only viable path. The important thing is to spend quality, mindful time together with one another ahead of this significant anniversary in 2026. 

If you don’t belong to a local Sangha, we encourage you to try to find one near you. Some Sanghas also meet online. You can search for Sanghas via plumline.org. If you are unable to connect with a Sangha and are a committed practitioner in the Plum Village tradition, we invite you to set aside time before the 2026 retreat to meditate, perhaps read from one of Thay’s books, and contemplate what the community means to you and what you would like to see happen within the community in the future.