26. august 2023
What is mindfulness?
Think of meditation as a training session for your mind. And mindfulness is a skill - the 'mental muscles' - you get from this mental workout. Mindfulness, in its essence, is about maintaining an accepting, unattached moment-to-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and the surrounding environment, without judging them. Mindfulness is to carve out a mental space, in which you can be present, and in which you can "wake up" from a kind of sleeping state where we act, think, and feel on autopilot, controlled by unconscious internal processes and concepts. Mindfulness involves cultivating a deeper source of happiness, changing your brain for the better, and mental training so that you can see, taste, smell, think and feel more clearly. And all this is possible with a complementary approach, meaning you can sustain a successful career and nurturing relationships. Depending on your meditation direction of choice, you can meditate to gain the mental and physical benefits, to deepen your connections, and/or to gain profound insights into e.g. the nature of the mind and the mysterious self,
Mindfullness defined
Definition from Oxford Language:
mindfulness
/ˈmʌɪn(d)f(ʊ)lnəs/
noun
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1.
the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something.
"their mindfulness of the wider cinematic tradition" -
2.
a mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.
APA Dictionary of Psychology:
mindfulness
noun. awareness of one’s internal states and surroundings. The concept has been applied to various therapeutic interventions—for example, mindfulness-based cognitive behavior therapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction, and mindfulness meditation—to help people avoid destructive or automatic habits and responses by learning to observe their thoughts, emotions, and other present-moment experiences without judging or reacting to them.
Mindful is a verb. To be mindful can refer to the act of using your mental strength and awareness, just like using your physical strength to play sports. When you say "be mindful" to someone you are essentially asking them to enter or maintain a state of present-moment awareness and non-judgmental acceptance. In simpler terms, you're encouraging them to focus on the present moment, and to pay attention to their thoughts, feelings, sensations and surroundings without getting distracted or lost in thought or caught up in the past or future.
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Our minds tend to wander
Humans, unlike other animals, have the unique ability to think about things not immediately present . This realization leads us to a fascinating insight from a study published in the journal Science. It reveals that about 46.9% of our waking hours, our minds tend to wander — that is, we are thinking about something unrelated to the current experience. That is mind-wandering. More strikingly, this wandering sometimes links to unhappiness, and the same study showed that the frequency and direction of our mind-wandering significantly influence our happiness.
We often find our minds elsewhere, despite our physical presence in one place. Mind wandering leads to daydreaming, planning, reminiscing, or worrying, resulting in a lack of present-moment awareness. Furthermore, our propensity for multitasking, particularly exacerbated by social media, hinders our ability to concentrate on single tasks effectively.
Mindfulness means being consciously aware of the present moment without judgement or a desire to alter it. It involves stepping out of the constant stream of thoughts into a heightened awareness of the current internal and external happenings.
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Mindfulness allows for appropriate responses in the present moment, rather than emotional reactions based on past experiences. It enables us to discern the difference between current and past situations, fostering a more appropriate response to the present. This understanding is just one aspect of mindfulness, highlighting why mindful living is a sought-after goal.
The great thing about mindfulness is that you can use it in everyday life. For instance, when your mind drifts off during a conversation, at work, or while traveling, mindfulness helps you bring your thoughts back to what you're doing at that moment. Mindfulness makes the world feel alive and makes your world feel great! This is because mindfulness allows you to be fully aware of your thoughts and to choose to focus on the present.
From Effort to Ease - Begin Again
Mindfullness is an expertise refined through diligent practice, akin to any form of physical training. The key lies in steadfast commitment and perseverance. As you cultivate this practice, you will get results along the way, and observe a gradual enhancement in your capacity to remain mindful and immersed in the present. This path towards mindfulness transcends mere reduction of mental distraction; it serves to profoundly enrich your life's experience, cherishing each invaluable moment more.
The evolution of mindfulness practice typically transitions from an initial stage of deliberate, strenuous mindfulness to a state of effortless, natural awareness. At the outset, mindfulness may seem like an exerted effort, an intentional mental action to focus attention on present experiences such as breathing, auditory sensations, or physical feelings. However, with continuous practice, this state of mindfulness evolves to become more instinctive and uncontrived, feeling less like a deliberate endeavour and more as an inherent quality of consciousness.
Meditation teaches us the art of beginning again. When we notice our minds wandering, we learn to return to the present moment without judgment. This clear awareness of our thoughts, sounds, breaths, or bodily sensations trains our minds to be free from the past. Even when distractions lead to frustration or self-judgment, recognizing these feelings as mere appearances in consciousness is crucial. These moments, whether filled with frustration or joy, reveal the intrinsic freedom, openness, and selflessness of consciousness.
This practice of starting afresh is not only a mental exercise but also an ethical one. It lays the foundation for forgiveness, allowing us to 'reset the clock' and approach situations anew. This mindset offers resilience and numerous daily opportunities for application, whether in challenging conversations, unproductive hours, or lackluster efforts at the gym. By acknowledging and letting go of past mediocrity, we open ourselves to making the next moments more meaningful. Instead of dwelling on past narratives, we should engage fully with the present, recognizing our current thoughts and feelings as fleeting experiences in consciousness, and then, simply begin again.
The difference between meditation, mindfulness and related concepts
Have you ever wondered about the difference between meditation and mindfulness? Though often mentioned together, they're not the same. Think of meditation as a training session for your mind. It's like doing a workout, but for your mental health. Mindfulness is a skill you get from this mental workout - the result or the mental muscles you get from this mental workout. Mindfulness is a state of alert, awake and present awareness, which can be strengthened through meditation but is not synonymous with it. Mindfulness is a broader term than meditation, about being in the present moment. It means paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings without judging them. When you're mindful, you fully experience what's happening right now. Mindfulness is an attitude towards life and a way of living more fully.
Mindfulness encompasses a multifaceted concept, serving variously as a mental state, a feature of the mind, and a form of behaviour. It is frequently conflated with akin notions such as meditation, concentration, attention, awareness, consciousness, focus, cognition, and perception. Moreover, it is interlinked with qualities like tranquility, insight, wisdom, and being present in the moment, thereby creating a dense network of associations. A critical distinction is drawn between mindfulness and its antithesis, mindlessness, which is characterised by distraction and an absence of awareness.
It is crucial to acknowledge that these terms may possess nuanced differences in meaning depending on the context
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Mindfulness vs. Concentration: Mindfulness entails a broad, open-ended awareness of the present moment, welcoming all perceptions and thoughts without judgment. In contrast, concentration involves narrowing one's focus to a single point of interest or activity, often excluding external stimuli to maintain a specific focus.
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Mindfulness vs. Attention: Attention is the cognitive process of selectively concentrating on one aspect of the environment while ignoring others. Mindfulness expands upon attention by not only noticing what captures our attention but also adopting an attitude of curiosity and acceptance towards it, without clinging to or rejecting the focus of attention.
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Mindfulness vs. Awareness: Awareness is a general state of being conscious of something, which can be broad and non-specific. Mindfulness is a form of awareness that is not only conscious but also engaged in the present experience with a non-judgmental stance, fully acknowledging and accepting what is happening.
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Mindfulness vs. Consciousness: Consciousness encompasses the totality of one's awareness, including thoughts, feelings, and perceptions, at any given moment. Mindfulness is a practice or quality that one brings to consciousness, characterized by a deliberate focus on the present experience in a non-evaluative manner.
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Mindfulness vs. Focus: Focus is the ability to direct one's attention steadily towards a specific object, task, or thought. Mindfulness involves a type of focus, but it is differentiated by its inclusive awareness that observes all aspects of the present moment without attachment or aversion.
