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Touching Suffering, Coming Home

Thich Nhat Hanh · November 4, 2010 · Hong Kong · Audio Only
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Chanting generates the energy of mindfulness to touch the suffering inside, which reflects the suffering of the world. Understanding this suffering brings compassion, which has the power to heal and transform. The name of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara is chanted to focus attention on internal suffering. The sound of the bell serves as the voice of the Buddha, calling us back to our true home in the here and now. Breathing in, we listen; breathing out, the sound brings us back to the present moment where life is available. This deep listening invites all ancestors and parents present in every cell of the body to join in, allowing peace and joy to manifest.

In the five days of the retreat, we learn: to bring the mind back to the body and release tension; to recognize and embrace painful feelings or emotions; to generate a feeling of joy and happiness; to listen to our own suffering and the suffering of others to restore communication; and to transform suffering through powerful mindfulness and concentration. Noble silence is observed to aid in paying attention to every breath and step. Mindfulness is applied to daily activities like washing hands and brushing teeth, focusing entirely on the action to generate joy.

Mindful walking is a way to live deeply in every moment, using the phrases “I have arrived” and “I am home” to establish oneself in the present. The teaching of hiện pháp lạc trú, living happily in the present moment, emphasizes that conditions for happiness, such as having eyes in good condition, are already available. The Pure Land of Amita Buddha is found in the here and now, with Amita Buddha being one’s true nature. Instructions are provided for sitting meditation, maintaining three points of stability, and listening to Dharma talks like the earth receiving rain. Eating meditation is practiced as a family in noble silence, and commuters are encouraged to use traffic stops and telephone rings as bells of mindfulness.

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