"Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability
to listen to others, I am committed to cultivating loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering.
I am determined to speak truthfully, with words that inspire selfconfidence, joy and hope.
I will not spread news that I do not know to be certain and will not criticize or condemn things of which I am not sure.
I will refrain from uttering words that can cause division or discord, or that can cause the family or the community to break.
I am determined to make all efforts to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.
Fourth Mindfulness Training, Thich Nhat Hanh in
The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching
Deep listening is at the foundation of Right Speech. If we cannot listen mindfully, we cannot practice Right Speech.
The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching
"It is said that in the course of his long training for enlightenment over many lives, a bodhisattva can break all the moral precepts except the pledge to speak the truth. The reason for this is very profound, and reveals that the commitment to truth has a significance transcending the domain of ethics and even mental purification, taking us to the domains of knowledge and being. Truthful speech provides, in the sphere of interpersonal communication, a parallel to wisdom in the sphere of private understanding. The two are respectively the outward and inward modalities of the same commitment to what is real. Wisdom consists in the realization of truth, and truth(sacca) is not just a verbal proposition but the nature of things as they are. To realize truth our whole being has to be brought into accord with actuality, with things as they are, which requires that in communications with others we respect things as they are by speaking the truth. Truthtful speech establishes a correspondence between our own inner being and the real nature of phenomena, allowing wisdom to rise up and fathom their real nature."
The Noble Eightfold Path by Bhikku Sodhi