This past weekend, I attended an incredible sound healing event that was presented by an organization called Mission Be, which brings mindfulness, compassion and altruism to schools in Northern California and New York. It was a spectacular immersive music and sound healing experience with an astonishing array of celebrated musical artists which honored Thich Nhat Hahn. For those not familiar with the incredible work of Thich Nhat Hahn, he is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk and peace activist and founder of the Plum Village Tradition. He spent most of his later life residing in the Plum Village Monastery in southwest France, travelling internationally to give retreats and talks.

Also known as a poet, his writings and teachings are revered around the world for his philosophy around mindfulness and peace. Martin Luther King called him an “Apostle of peace and nonviolence.” His key teaching is that, through mindfulness, we can learn to live happily in the present moment—the only way to truly develop peace, both in one’s self and in the world

The goal of course was to share this deep sense of inner peace, compassion and connection within a growing mindful community inside a magnificent space. And, one of the most magnificent spaces in the San Francisco Area is indeed Grace Cathedral if you’ve never been.

They featured artists Jai Uttal, who is a devotional singer, artistic director Gary Malkin, vocalist Linda Tillery, sound healer Loriel Starr, Musical Shaman Bodhi Setchko, World musician Jah Levi and Timothy Surya Das for Sound Immersion. Also present on stage was Sarah Cruse who introduced performers and Carine Winter, CEO of Mission Be.

Since 2013, Mission Be, has brought eight-twelve week mindful education program to 86+ schools in NY and the Bay Area, trained thousands of teachers and reached over 64,000 children. Check out their film to learn more about their work. Here are some wonderful shots from the evening’s performers and meditations.

A gift was given to a friend and student of Thich Nhat Hahn on stage that evening and she led a beautiful meditaton for the very full crowd who gathered at San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral that evening. The work they are doing is incredible and deserves support, so if you can contribute to keep things alive and to allow more of this mindfulness training to filter down into more schools, please contact Mission Be CEO Carin Winter at carin at missionbe dot org or call 631.513.6151.