“The only way to live is by accepting each minute as an unrepeatable miracle”
– Jack Kornfield
Mindfulness is an ancient practice that has enjoyed a recent rise in popularity as we search for ways to improve mental wellbeing in the modern world that can empower the individual and provide an alternative to unnecessary medication.
Have you tried it? If you have made some space in your life to practice mindfulness, would you know if you had achieved it?
Jon Kabat-Zinn the American professor, who developed the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme, describes mindfulness as “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally[1].”
Author of the incredible book ‘ the Power of Now’ Eckart Tolle calls mindfulness “presence” and describes the state of presence as “awareness without though[2].”
Mindfulness is about existing actually in the now rather than through the filter of our thoughts about it.
A lot of the time our minds are full of thoughts, thoughts about the past and worries about the future. These create emotion. A negative thought can generate fear, remorse, guilt, anger or shame. This is negative body chemistry and these chemicals are not good for us. Since most psychologists agree that the greater part of our thinking is both negative and repetitive, we probable spend a good proportion of our lives experiencing some kind of unpleasant body chemistry. This further influences our thinking and beliefs and generates more negative emotion and unhelpful behaviours. We can become stuck in a self-perpetuating loop of fear and negativity and end up manifesting exactly what we were dreading.
Eckhart Tolle suggests that most anxiety is a product of projecting our thoughts out of the present moment and into the past or future. When we remember events, we apply our fearful filters, assuming fault or altering the narrative and so memory cannot be relied upon, and when we project into the future we see a ‘worst case scenario’ or a situation where we have failed because that is what we fear. We do not remember the past accurately and we cannot predict the future, and so engaging our thoughts from this perspective is not rooted in truth, nor is it good for our wellbeing.
Eckhart goes on to explain that when we bring ourselves into the present moment using all five senses, there is usually very little drama, and if there is, we are so busy dealing with it that we are not anxious.
Thoughts about the past and future are illusions. The only thing that is guaranteed is this moment. Whatever is happening now – is all we have.
Below are links to some of our articles about mindfulness each of which has a practical tool at the end that you can try. Practise mindfulness every day to bring balance and calm into your life.
Know that it is from a place of being fully awake to the present moment that we move mountains!
For more insights on mindfulness and a host of tools and techniques for exploring the Self and improving your human experience see our book:
[1] Kabat-Zinn, J. The Healing Power of Mindfulness: A New Way of Being (2018) Barnes & Noble
[2] Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. (2004). Namaste, Vancouver
Pure gold ladies...authentic pure gold!
Alan