30 minutes

Introduce the mindfulness exercise by saying something like, "As Unitarian Universalists, we are committed to the concept of ‘reverence for life.’ But Zen Buddhist master and peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh, promotes reverence for life through the experience of mindfulness, the quality and experience of spirituality in everyday life. In the Miracle of Mindfulness, he says "Mindfulness…is the life of awareness: the presence of mindfulness means the presence of life…Mindfulness frees us of forgetfulness and dispersion and makes it possible to live fully each minute of life! Mindfulness includes the skill to be here now in the present moment. We can learn to become more mindful of our physical environment, and our thoughts, feelings, and actions. We need to focus completely on the moment at hand; maintain a relaxed awareness; and be as fully conscious as possible of our body, mind and spirit. As we grow in mindfulness, we gain awareness of our spiritual potential and enhance the spiritual quality of our lives."

Explain that you are going to read an excerpt, "Deep Listening and Loving Speech," from For a Future to Be Possible: Commentaries on the Five Wonderful Precepts, in which Thich Nhat Hanh describes a precept or principle of mindfulness. The principle is "to cultivate loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering."

There is a saying in Vietnamese, "It doesn’t cost anything to have loving speech." We only need to choose our words carefully, and we can make other people happy…

A person who has learned the art of listening and speaking deeply in order to help people let go of their fear, misery, and despair…opens…the "universal door." If we practice listening and speaking…we too will be able to open the universal door and bring joy, peace, and happiness to many people and alleviate their suffering.

The universal door manifests itself
In the voice of the rolling tide.
Hearing and practicing it, we become a child,
Born from the heart of a lotus,
Fresh, pure, and happy,
Capable of speaking and listening
In accord with the universal door.
With only one drop of water
Of compassion
From the branch of the willow,
Spring returns to the great Earth.

I learned this beautiful poem when I studied the Lotus Sutra at age sixteen…

In the "Universal Door" chapter of the Lotus Sutra…voice is described in five ways: the wondrous voice, the voice of the world regarded, the brahma voice, the voice of the rising tide, and the voice of the world surpassing. We should always keep these five voices in mind.

First, there is the wondrous voice. This is the kind of speaking that will open the universal door and make everything possible again. This voice…is refreshing and brings calm, comfort, and healing to our soul. Its essence is compassion.

Second, there is the voice of the world regarded… " the one who looks deeply into the world and hears the cries of the world." This voice relieves our suffering and suppressed feelings, because it is the voice of someone who understands us deeply-our anguish, despair, and fear. When we feel understood, we suffer much less.

Third, there is the brahma voice. Brahma means noble-not just the ordinary voice of people, but the noble speech that springs forth from the willingness to bring happiness and remove suffering through Love, compassion, joy and impartiality…

Fourth, the voice of the rising tide is…a powerful voice, the kind of voice that silences all wrong views and speculations. It is the lion’s roar that brings absolute silence to the mountain and brings about transformation and healing.

Fifth, the voice of the world surpassing is the voice with which nothing can be compared. This voice does not aim at fame, profit, or a competitive edge. It is the thundering silence that shatters all notions and concepts.

The wondrous voice, the voice of the world regarded, the brahma voice, the voice of the rising tide, and the voice of the world surpassing the voices we are to be mindful of…

Engage participants in a conversation around the definition of mindfulness. Then tell them that they are going to have the opportunity to experience mindfulness.

Ask the participants to count off by twos. Invite each pair to find a place in the room to sit face-to-face. Ask the first person to speak and the second person to listen, and then they will reverse roles. They are to speak for four minutes on "the best or the worse thing that happened to me last week." Signal beginning and ending time with a bell or chime. Allow a minute of silence between role reversals.

After 10 minutes gather the group and invite them to share thoughts and feelings about their mindfulness experience.

After this sharing, discuss how they might use mindfulness, especially "deep listening and loving speech," in everyday life.