“There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way.”

—  Thich Nhat Hanh

Last update Sept. 2, 2025. History

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Thich Nhat Hanh photo
Thich Nhat Hanh 169
Religious leader and peace activist 1926

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The source is likely to be either modern Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh, or Calvinist clergyman Abraham Johannes Muste. The phrase appears in Thich Nhat Hanh's writings; but it also appears in a volume of US senate hearings from 1948, when Thich Nhat Hanh had not yet been ordained as a monk. Muste is known to have used a variant of the phrase – "'peace' is the way" in 1967, but this was not the first time he had used it, and he had a connection with the 1948 hearing.
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