7 key insights into what mindfulness is—and what it isn't—that might be surprising, from drjasonnlinder
concepts. To illustrate this point, renowned Buddhist monk Ajan Brahm distinguishes between two modes of being in the world: themode. In the first , we're sensing and feeling into our experience, outside and beyond words, concepts, narration, and storytelling. In experiencing mode, we're unmoved by external circumstances, resting our attention and awareness in just noticing or observing.
When perpetually lost in this default, often mindless, all-too-common way of being in the world, we can get easily and frequently stuck in a , myopic, and redundant self-oriented narrative that depletes us of our vital energy. Over-involvement with the second, conceptual mode has been referred to as the mind'sTo illustrate the importance of cultivating the mindful, experiencing mode, at a retreat I attended in 2014, Ajan Brahm told a story. It was of a disciple who, when hiking with his master, mentioned how beautiful the weather and the scenery were.
Mindfulness is what’s happening beyond concepts, thoughts, ideas, and language. It’s about opening up to the unfolding of our experience, raw sensing with your five senses, other body sensations, feeling, and noticing. The words will always fall short, and at worst are a distraction, a trojan horse that can hijack your mind in the most crucial moments, although on the surface they can appear intensely seductive.
; you can't experience it without having one and any verbal explanation of one will always fall woefully short.As we learn to marinate in the first experiencing mode, we'll first notice how deceptively challenging it is. If we're persistent and consistent, you may start to experience a few of the following insights that can make our lives happier, easier, and calmer. They come from both my academic study of mindfulness, as well as my own daily practice since 2010.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Without Well-Being Nothing Else MattersWhy one teacher begins her classes with a minute of mindfulness, by kquinnsmith
Read more »
There's More to Mindfulness Than You Might ThinkMindfulness is not a quick fix, but it can be a powerful tool—as long as you take its many complexities into account, writes swhitbo
Read more »