Soul Nutrition

Be Calm, Be Happy is a mindfulness course in the Plum Village tradition of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. It provides a gradual introduction to mindfulness, meditation and key teachings on positive, happy living over 8 weekly Zoom classes of 90 minutes each, including breaks away from the screen.

Every class includes guided mindfulness exercises and meditations, group discussions and practical exercises in a warm, friendly atmosphere.

Course themes include:

• Stopping and calming
• Turning to the positive
• Loving communication
• Nourishing happiness
• Interdependence and community
• Guidelines for a happier life

Reported benefits

People who have taken the course have reported many benefits including:

• Increased enjoyment of life
• Increased ability to be calm and relaxed
• Increased control of emotions such as anger and anxiety
• Improved sleep quality
• Fewer feelings of anxiety and depression

Who is the course designed for?

This course is suitable for complete beginners as well as more experienced meditators, and is designed for adults wishing to gain an overview of the key mindfulness teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh, who was proposed for the Nobel Peace Prize by Martin Luther King Jr in 1967 and is revered throughout the world for his powerful teachings and bestselling writings on mindfulness and peace. 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 course is suitable for those of all faiths and none. Ticket prices are scaled to make the course as accessible as possible, regardless of your financial situation. Numbers are limited to just 12 people per course.

Commitment

For this course to be effective, we recommended that you commit to attending all 8 sessions. However sometimes people do miss a week, in which case I will do my best to help you catch up. An email with a handout, a recording of the meditation and sometimes a video to support your learning will be sent to everyone after each session.

It is also really helpful if you can commit to a minimum of 20 minutes daily practice for 5 days each week: this could take the form of 2 x 10 minutes. All practices are designed to be calming, relaxing and enjoyable. Many consist of simply doing what you do already, but with mindful awareness.

Creating a stable and strong practice of mindfulness is a habit that needs regular, ideally daily, practice, so you will be given plenty of guidance and support to ensure that all of the practices feel like a positive aspect to include in your life, rather than just another task to complete!

Course dates

Be Calm, Be Happy is taught as a live 8 weeks online course on Zoom every Wednesday evening, 8:00 – 9:30pm UK time (BST) on the following dates: 16th, 23rd & 30th September, 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th October & 4th November 2020.

If you’d like to participate in the course but can’t make these dates or times, please email me at katie@soulnutrition.org with your preferred schedule so that I can take this into account when planning the next course. Thank you!

Course leader

Katie Sheen has been practising in the Plum Village tradition since 2013, and has been facilitating Be Calm, Be Happy courses since they first began in 2016. For more information about Katie’s background, please see the Discover More page of this website, or click here for testimonials from previous Be Calm, Be Happy course participants.

Course price

There are concessionary rates available for this course, so if you are on a reduced income (defined as being less than the UK living wage) or have no income apart from state benefits, then please do contact me on katie@soulnutrition.org before buying your ticket.

20% of all ticket sales will be donated to Plum Village UK, the charity that supports the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh throughout the UK, in deep gratitude for their invaluable work.