Mindfulness is the ability to be fully present in the moment. Mindfulness has many benefits for us at work and in personal life, such as increased focus and happiness.
The practice can help us reduce stress and anxiety.

What it is: Mindfulness can be defined as “Non-judgmental, moment to moment awareness”.

What it isn’t: Emptying the mind, Achieving Relaxation or a Religion.

 

There are many ways to practice Mindfulness:

  1. Breathing:  Like most meditation techniques breathing is used as a way for us to relax and be mindful. 
  2. Scanning: Going through each part of our body from head to toe. It doesn’t only help bring awareness but also helps to acknowledge and let go of any tension we may be holding in any part of our body.
  3. Reflection: Once we are relaxed by utilizing breathing, we can move to reflecting by focusing on a particular topic. 
Short Into One Breath Meditation:

Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD, is considered the founding father of mindfulness-based stress reduction, as he created the practice in the 1970s. He has provided us with

Seven Attitudinal Foundations  are different ways of understanding what Mindfulness is about:

7 Mindfulness Foundations 9

1. Mindfulness Foundation – BEGINNERS MIND

 

We have never been in this moment before. If we can just be present, we can appreciate wonders that are happening around us all the time. A breeze flowing, a gaze, meeting someone, a hug, looking or perhaps stopping and smelling a flower.

By practicing Mindfulness we can cultivate this quality of being with possibilities that each moment brings.

READ MORE on Beginners Mind

Listen to our Podcast & Guided Meditation:

2. Mindfulness Foundation – Acceptance

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes…”

Mindfulness reminds us to to be present in this moment. To do so it helps to be relaxed and to relax one of keys is to Accept the way things are.

Acceptance is a important step to shift our thinking from always wanting to control the way we want things to be or struggling with the way things are. 

Acceptance does not mean that we accept our conditions and not do anything else. Rather we accept so that we can respond from a place of wisdom vs. reacting.

READ MORE & a Guided meditation on Acceptance

Guided Meditation

Listen to our Podcast & Guided Meditation on Acceptance:

3. Mindfulness Foundation – NonJudgement

“Only a non-judgmental mind has intelligence, because it is spontaneously responding to reality.”

OSHO

When we meditate, we have stream of thoughts; judging, judging, judging..

We start to see that we are constantly labeling and judging everything as: Good/Bad, This/That, Black/White, Like/Dislike, want or don’t want.

The practice of not judging is not so that there won’t be any non judging, rather its to help us recognize the constant way we operate.  It’s to help us cultivate Discernment – the ability to judge well.

If we can be aware of our thinking, the lens from which we see everything, if we can gently Non Judge then we will have Clarity, Understanding to see things as they are. From this we will have freedom and new way to Respond vs. Reacting.

Non Judgement: With embodying a willingness to witness the present without any judgement leads to clarity to see things as they are.

READ MORE & a Guided meditation on Non-Judgement

Guided Meditation

Listen to our Podcast & Guided Meditation on Non-Judgement:

4. Mindfulness Foundation – Non Striving

“Non-striving is trying less and being more.”

JON KABAT-ZINN

4. Mindfulness Foundation – Let Go & Let Be

We can cultivate Not-Clinging, Not-Holding, Not-Forcing or Pushing away.

Rather we can let go and let things be.

With practicing & observing breathing at end of each breath we let go so that next breath can come in.

We create room for next breath by not holding on to the last breath.

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