Be Still and Know
What is Mindfulness?
Practicing mindfulness is proven to have a positive impact on the management of physical pain, stress, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and burnout, to name a few. Nevertheless, it is far more than stress and symptom management. Mindfulness is not a new skill to be acquired. We are all born with the innate capacity to be mindful. The purpose of going through mindfulness training is to remember the inherent quality that we all have and develop the capacity to maintain awareness in our everyday lives, regardless of the situation or inner experiences we are going through.
Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (2011) described mindfulness as awareness and looking deeply, keeping one’s consciousness alive to the present reality. By looking deeply, we can see the essence of things, leading to understanding and insight. He emphasized that practicing mindfulness is a way to realize liberation, peace, and joy in our everyday lives. When body and mind are one, the wounds in our hearts, minds, and bodies begin to heal.
From a more traditional lens, in Pali, the word sati (Sanskrit: smrti) means “to stop” and “to maintain awareness of the object.” There are four areas of mindfulness, four areas where mindfulness has to penetrate in order for us to be protected, for joy to be nourished, for pain to be transformed, and for insight to be obtained. These four establishments, or foundations, are body, feelings, mind, and objects of mind.
Hanh, T. N. (2011). Awakening of the heart: Essential Buddhist sutras and commentaries. Parallax Press.
From a scientific point of view, the Oxford Mindfulness Foundation described mindfulness as a natural capacity we all have to pay attention, without judgment, to the present moment. Since the development of MBCT in the early 90’s, the core elements of modern psychology and ancient wisdom have been integrated. Throughout the past decades, the MBCT training and other scientifically proven, mindfulness-based interventions have given practical ways for practitioners to learn how to be more present in their lives and relate with themselves, others, and the world with more clarity, kindness, and ease.
Through different mindfulness programs, practitioners will learn how to live more fully and cultivate present-moment attention to whatever arises in the body, mind, emotion, and impulse as they are. By recognizing the auto-pilot mode, one can understand thoughts are not facts, and choices are always available despite the most challenging situations and unavoidable pain in life. In a structured mindfulness training program, the following elements are incorporated to facilitate the learning process:
To recognize how often our minds run on autopilot, and practice bringing mindfulness to present-moment experience.
Skills in how to pay attention.
A range of formal and informal mindfulness practices and exercises.
Keeping our balance through life’s ups and downs, responding skilfully when difficulties arise, engaging with what is most important to us, and opening up to moments of joy, contentment, and gratitude. We learn to flourish.
Source: https://www.oxfordmindfulness.org/learn-mindfulness
My mindfulness journey starts here…
I first learned about “mindfulness” back in 2006 during my master’s degree study. Intellectually, I knew every single word in the definition, but I don’t feel like I truly understand the meaning of mindfulness. Later, when I started my weekend practices with the Plum Village Sangha, I realized this was more powerful than what I knew in the textbook. The practice brought me a gradual yet profound transformation. I felt more at ease in handling challenges and found more clarity in my everyday experiences. The changes were too pronounced to be overlooked. One day, a good friend asked me, “Hey, Venus, what did you do to yourself? I can tell you are much happier in the past few years!”
Through my work with people in teaching and training, I sometimes felt the seemingly unresolvable distress in their lives. Many felt trapped and unable to see a way out. This compelled me to share the benefits of mindfulness to help them find peace, clarity, joy, and understanding in life. The training through the Oxford Mindfulness Foundation provided a solid scientific foundation for me to share the practice. Reflecting on my personal development and teaching over the past 15 years, I am convinced that integrating traditional and scientific approaches to mindfulness is crucial. This inclusive approach is essential to make mindfulness accessible to a wider audience.
Today, I still remember the taste of peace after my first sitting practice, the struggles on the path, and how to work through the challenges of my life in the presence of fellow practitioners. The learning never ends. I am teaching, and I am still learning.
Jon Kabat Zinn once mentioned that when you meditate, life becomes your teacher, the sky becomes your teacher, the mountain becomes your teacher, your children become your teacher, and your difficulty at work becomes the curriculum at the moment. Let your practice become a love affair, and practice mindfulness as if your life depended on it.
Do you want to know more about how mindfulness can change your life? Online resources, apps or drop-in mindfulness sessions are good ways to start. Yet, the impact of joining an online or in-person group is different. Recognizing the shared experiences, having someone listen to you attentively, exploring other possibilities to move on in life, or simply the presence of each other can be life-changing.
Come and See! I am looking forward to working with you in our mindfulness groups.