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The Wonderful Sound of the Bell: Transcending Suffering
*Thirty years ago, in a dream, there appeared two “students” identical in appearance, aged 21–22, who were selected to join the class of a renowned professor—an allegory for youthfulness and the limitless capacity to learn regardless of age. On the highest floor, the classroom transformed into a great Bodhisattva assembly taught by the World-Honored One, opening up a lesson on patience, faith, and gradual enlightenment. The confusion when asked to present music—something not within one’s strengths—helped Thay Phap Hoi realize that the practice bell he used at age sixteen was a means of “meditative music”: monastic life itself is a journey of learning sacred music through chanting, reciting, and inviting the bell.
*The act of “inviting the bell” is a mindfulness practice with a specific sequence:
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Bow to the bell as if welcoming a Bodhisattva, recite Om Mani Padme Hum and memorize the four gatha lines:
“Body, speech, and mind in perfect oneness,
I send my heart along with the sound of this bell.
May all who hear it awaken from forgetfulness
And transcend all anxiety and sorrow.” - Prepare for at least eight seconds (in-breath 3s, out-breath 5s) before inviting the “half bell” as a signal, then invite three full bell sounds interspersed with nine breaths (three breaths for each bell) and recite, “Listen, listen… This wonderful sound brings me back to my true home.”
- Conclude with two breaths and the opening gatha so that body, speech, and mind are in harmony, then bow to the bell.
*The wondrous teaching of the unborn and undying transcends the duality of “birth–death, being–nonbeing,” illustrated by the cloud, the sheet of paper, and the flame: nothing is born from nothing, nothing dies into nothing, but is in constant transformation. Practicing this contemplation helps untangle suffering, nourish love, and water the seeds of happiness—not only for oneself but also for the whole family—through a “breathing room” at home, three sounds of the bell at the start of the day, family meetings with three mindful breaths before anger dissolves, and establishing a tradition of happiness that connects parents and children in mindfulness.