The Spiritual Practice of Smiling

Before I became a minister, I had a career as a software engineer working for IBM. Once during my time at IBM, I was to give a presentation to IBM's vice president and chief scientist in New York about some of the work at our San Jose laboratory. This man had a reputation for chewing people up and spitting them out if he didn't like what they were saying, so I was quite nervous before the presentation. As I was about to begin, I looked at him - and he smiled at me. I felt this flood of relief and had no problem going through my presentation.

So, what was that magic that happened? He smiled and I suddenly became calmer and more sure of myself. Something I would now characterize as almost chemical had happened in my brain, almost like an invisible anti-anxiety pill. And, just from a smile. Just from a smile.

Here's another more serious anecdote I heard from a friend: A woman had decided that her life was hopeless and wanted to end it. But she turned back because on her way, someone, a stranger, smiled at her. A smile, from a complete stranger yet, accomplished what all the professional therapy she had received was unable to do. I'm wondering if the fact it was from a stranger made it more effective.

This is powerful stuff, indeed.

So, today, I'd like to reflect some on what I have come to understand as a spiritual practice: smiling. Because this magic is so powerful, there are people who have done research on smiling.

Here is some of what they have found:

Smiling Makes Us Attractive to others. There is an automatic attraction to people who smile.
Smiling Changes Mood. If you try, even when it's difficult, to smile when you are not feeling good, there is a change it might improve your affect and change the way you are feeling.
Smiling Contagious. Others will want to be with you. You will be helping others feel good.
Smiling Relieves Stress. Stress does express itself right in our faces. When we smile, it can help us look better, less tired, less worn down.
Smiling Boosts the Immune System. Smiling can actually stimulate your immune response by helping you relax.
Smiling Lowers Blood Pressure. When you smile, there is evidence that your blood pressure can decrease.
Smiling Lowers Heart Rate. Smiling slows the heart and relaxes the body. This lets the heart work without overworking.
Smiling Releases Endorphins and Serotonin. Research has reported that smiling releases endorphins, which are natural pain relievers, along with serotonin, which is also associated with feel good properties.

Wow! And to think we can have all of these benefits for free! And without side-effects!

Is it just any old smile that elicits these properties? If you smile with just your mouth, it doesn't work. People can tell the insincerity just by looking at you.

You need to really genuinely smile with your mouth, your cheeks and your eyes. These are called Duchenne smiles, named after Guillaume Duchenne a 19th century French physician who is one of the founders of modern neurology and a pioneering researcher of smiles. It turns out that Duchenne smiles are the only type of smile that creates this positive effects. These smiles engage the muscles in the mouth, cheeks, and eyes and are considered to be genuine smiles.

Therefore, when you smile at someone else and they smile a real smile in return - you are helping to create physiological changes in their bodies that may benefit them, as well as yourself.

Researchers conclude that while smiling can deliver a wide range of health benefits, the Duchenne smile - the authentically joyful smile - holds the real power. With the Duchenne smile, you're using some of nature's best medicine to open the secret floodgates to well-being.

In addition to these secular advantages, smiling has also been advocated for spiritual benefits. Here are some quotes:

We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do. -Mother Teresa

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. - Leo Buscaglia

They might not need me;
but they might.
I'll let my head be just in sight;
a smile as small as mine might
be precisely their necessity.

- Emily Dickinson

The late Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh suggests that smiling is an essential part of meditation, especially the kind of meditation that he was known for practicing and teaching - walking meditation. Here is a video where he teaches walking meditation.

[See the complete video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdO1vZJgUu0 ]

So, he believes that smiling shows that you have sovereignty and control of yourself. That's pretty powerful - a way to assert that you are the master of your own destiny.

In his book "Being Peace" Thich Nhat Hanh connected smiling to mindfulness meditation and said:

"I would like to offer one short poem you can recite from time to time, while breathing and smiling:

Breathing in, I calm body and mind.
Breathing out, I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment
I know this is the only moment."

"You know the effect of a smile. A smile can relax hundreds of muscles in your face, and relax your nervous system. A smile makes you master of yourself. That is why the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are always smiling. When you smile, you realize the wonder of the smile. "

I'd like to ask the congregation here if you have ever noticed a time when a smile made a difference for you? If you would like to share your story, we have time for a couple. [Call on a couple of people.] If we don't get to you, you can come and tell me after the service.

For homework practice, I'd like to suggest you give this a try and see what the effects Duchenne smiling are in your life, mentally, spiritually, relationally, occupationally and health-wise. You can start during coffee hour!

So be it.

Amen.

Benediction

Did I offer peace today?
Did I bring a smile to someone's face?
Did I say words of healing?
Did I let go of my anger and resentment?
Did I forgive?
Did I love?
These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits.
- Henri Nouwen

Go in peace.
Return in love.
Amen.