Mindfulnessmindfulness（Mindfulness）, meditation, "right mindfulness" and Buddhist practice seem to be the buzzwords of recent years; anyone who cares about mental wellbeing will have come across them at one point or another. They appear to be intricately related, yet not quite the same, and there is always a certain air of mystery about them. So what exactly are mindfulness, meditation, "right mindfulness" and Buddhist practice? And must they have something to do with religion or the spiritual? This article unpacks each one in turn.
Mindfulness
In Chinese, "Mindfulness" can be rendered by two different terms, but in the context of modern psychology the two are essentially interchangeable. According to Google Trends data, one of these Chinese renderings most likely originated in Hong Kong, as it surfaced there before anywhere else. To this day, Hong Kong leans towards one translation while other Chinese-speaking places such as Taiwan and mainland China lean towards another — but in substance they point to the same concept.
So what does mindfulness actually mean? Essentially, it is being fully present in the here and now — not trying to suppress any thought or notion, and keeping an attitude of observation towards whatever arises in the mind (1). Whatever the feeling, pleasant or painful, one remains a relaxed, unattached observer. A good deal of psychological research has found mindfulness to be an effective route to reducing stress (2), as well as helpful in cultivating mental states such as happiness (3) and focus (4). For this reason, many forms of psychotherapy take mindfulness as their central axis (MBCT, MBSR and so on) or use it as a supporting element (DBT and the like) — together known as the third wave of psychotherapy (Third Wave Psychotherapy).
Meditation
So what does meditation mean? Essentially, any practice — religious or non-religious — that uses methods such as silence or sitting still as a form of mental training can be called meditation. For instance, Christians have their own meditative practice (Christian Meditation), which is not necessarily connected to mindfulness or Buddhism. What psychology recognises, however, and what this article recommends, is mindfulness meditation (Mindfulness Meditation) — that is, a meditative method that takes mindfulness as its aim.
As noted above, mindfulness is a mental state, and mindfulness meditation is the practice aimed at cultivating that state. A mindfulness-based course will generally include a mindfulness meditation segment. There are many kinds of mindfulness meditation; the most common is to pay attention to one's own breathing. During the process you will notice your mind wandering from time to time; noticing that your attention has drifted, and gently bringing it back to the breath, is precisely the practice of mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation can take many forms and styles, but the common thread is to place your attention on something — it can be a sound, a bodily sensation, even walking — and so even hiking can be a kind of meditation practice. Practise mindfulness meditation regularly, and you will naturally cultivate the quality of mindfulness in everyday life, and enjoy the benefits it brings as described above.
Right Mindfulness (rendered in psychology as: Mindfulness; in traditional Buddhist translation: Right Mindfulness)
As mentioned above, the two Chinese renderings of "mindfulness" can usually be used interchangeably, so why set aside a separate section to write about "right mindfulness"? For that we have to begin with the history of the term. "Right mindfulness" originates from the "Noble Eightfold Path" in Buddhism (5) — the eight forms of practice that lead to "nirvana", the state of release from all worldly suffering: right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration. Right mindfulness is one of these eight. The use of "right mindfulness" in Buddhism and its emphasis in psychology differ: it is not a stand-alone method of stress reduction, but must be combined with the other seven paths in order to attain enlightenment. Although "mindfulness" in modern psychology was inspired by the Buddhist "right mindfulness", because their aims differ their methods of practice also diverge considerably.
As said above, places such as Taiwan tend to favour the "right mindfulness" rendering, but that term does not necessarily carry a Buddhist connotation; which sense of "right mindfulness" is meant has to be judged by the context.
Buddhist Practice (Bhavana)
"Buddhist practice" broadly refers, within Buddhism, to the cultivation and nurturing of the mind and spirit (6); meditation and sitting in stillness are part of it, but by no means the whole. Unlike modern mindfulness, the main purpose of Buddhist practice is not happiness or stress reduction, but to directly realise Buddhist teachings such as non-self and dependent origination; like cultivating the Noble Eightfold Path, Buddhist practice takes nirvana as its goal. Besides sitting meditation, its content generally also includes paying homage to the Buddha, chanting and studying the dharma (7), so it is usually guided by an organisation with a Buddhist background.
The term "Buddhist practice" essentially carries a Buddhist connotation. Granted, certain parts of mindfulness meditation and Buddhist practice are extremely similar — for example, focusing on the sensation of the breath. This is, of course, not without its disputes, but it is not unreasonable to say that mindfulness meditation is one part of Buddhist practice. Yet does this mean mindfulness meditation must have a Buddhist element? Not necessarily, for in the end mindfulness meditation simply refers to training one's awareness of the present moment, and this, we believe, belongs to no religion at all.
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