Ever heard someone say “You are here,
but you’re just not here”? Pretty confusing eh, but there’s a lot of
truth in it. People tend to dwell so much on the past or worry so bad
about the future to such extent that they lose the opportunity to live
and savor the present. By making a fuss about what cannot be changed and
those that are yet to come the “now” becomes nothing but a frustration
and obsession to gain control over yesterday and tomorrow. Mindfulness
has a lot to do with living in the present. It enables one to live at
peace with what was was and what will be and simply enjoy the current
moment.
Mindfulness is a concept incorporated in both Eastern and Western cultures. It came from the Indian word “sati” which means awareness, attention and remembering. These three are completely different yet highly associated with one another. Awareness enables you to be conscious about what’s happening. Attention, on the other hand, is a more centralized version of awareness, it enables you to shift yet sustain your attention in any way you desire. As for remembering, it makes you take note of your experiences, from the memories of your childhood to the last person you called today. It came from the Latin words “re” which means “again” and “memorari” which is “be mindful of”.
Mindfulness is not a gift given to the selected few; it is a quality that can be learned and furthermore be developed. Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn pioneered mindfulness development in a therapeutic environment. He said that ‘Mindfulness can be cultivated by paying attention in a specific way, that is, in the present moment, and as non-reactively, non-judgementally and openheartedly as possible’.
There were four important elements that he mentioned; first Paying Attention, he meant that in whatever endeavor or activity you embark on you have to be mindful and honestly pay attention. Second is Present Moment which means that you have to make the most out of the present, being in the “now” needs you to feel it and be aware of it. Third is Non-Reactively which encourages response to the situation than reaction to thoughts. The former is a well – thought action while the latter is brought about by impulse and gives one with limited choices. Non – Judgementally is letting go of pre-concieved ideas and notions. This keeps you from seeing with tinted and personal judgements and enables you to look at things the way they really are. Finally, Openheartedly calls for the participation of your heart, to include kindness, warmth and friendliness in the whole idea of mindfulness.
Mindfulness meditation has been proven to bring a good number of benefits. It’s not just thinking about nothing but a process of focusing yourself into an idea, this later on makes you more adept with your thoughts, its habitual patterns and may even lead you to have a full grasp of your emotions. It has two types, the formal and the informal. Formal meditation focuses on mind training while informal meditation trains your mind to stick to the present and not wander away with thoughts about the past or the future.
Mindfulness is a concept incorporated in both Eastern and Western cultures. It came from the Indian word “sati” which means awareness, attention and remembering. These three are completely different yet highly associated with one another. Awareness enables you to be conscious about what’s happening. Attention, on the other hand, is a more centralized version of awareness, it enables you to shift yet sustain your attention in any way you desire. As for remembering, it makes you take note of your experiences, from the memories of your childhood to the last person you called today. It came from the Latin words “re” which means “again” and “memorari” which is “be mindful of”.
Mindfulness is not a gift given to the selected few; it is a quality that can be learned and furthermore be developed. Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn pioneered mindfulness development in a therapeutic environment. He said that ‘Mindfulness can be cultivated by paying attention in a specific way, that is, in the present moment, and as non-reactively, non-judgementally and openheartedly as possible’.
There were four important elements that he mentioned; first Paying Attention, he meant that in whatever endeavor or activity you embark on you have to be mindful and honestly pay attention. Second is Present Moment which means that you have to make the most out of the present, being in the “now” needs you to feel it and be aware of it. Third is Non-Reactively which encourages response to the situation than reaction to thoughts. The former is a well – thought action while the latter is brought about by impulse and gives one with limited choices. Non – Judgementally is letting go of pre-concieved ideas and notions. This keeps you from seeing with tinted and personal judgements and enables you to look at things the way they really are. Finally, Openheartedly calls for the participation of your heart, to include kindness, warmth and friendliness in the whole idea of mindfulness.
Mindfulness meditation has been proven to bring a good number of benefits. It’s not just thinking about nothing but a process of focusing yourself into an idea, this later on makes you more adept with your thoughts, its habitual patterns and may even lead you to have a full grasp of your emotions. It has two types, the formal and the informal. Formal meditation focuses on mind training while informal meditation trains your mind to stick to the present and not wander away with thoughts about the past or the future.
Comments
Post a Comment