The Past Informs the Present
Excerpt from Mindful Breathing
As a practice mindfulness has been informed by centuries of buddhist teachings and ancient yogic traditions. The practice of meditation has existed for thousands of years. In its current form, mindfulness was borrowed from the principles of Theravada Buddhism and insight meditation and is based upon two key concepts taken from the Pali language: vipassana, which means insight and samatha, or concentration and tranquility. In an ancient sutra (aphorism or teaching from the ancient Indian religion called Buddhism) we learn about the Four Establishments of Mindfulness that were focused on the body, feelings, mind and on the objects of mind (suggesting that the observer and the body become one within the mind.) When we are mindful of our body, it forms a conscious interdependence between mind and body. The two entities exist as one, forming mindfulness. It is this ancient knowledge that helps to shape our understanding of the relationship between the body and mind practices from ancient times and how they are capable of shaping our thinking about meditative breathing and mindfulness in the present. Simply put, mindfulness is about “here and now”.
Noted buddhist scholar and monk Thich Nhat Hanh has provided western societies with an understanding of mindfulness and what he describes as “looking deeply” into oneself to form a greater awareness of self. He demonstrates how the observer must form an awareness of the body, feelings and mind as an exploration of self. Hanh points out that being aware is the first step in developing consciousness of breathing. It is this link between mind and body that Hanh explains so beautifully as ”embracing the breathing is a means of being mindful of the body.” Developing consciousness of breathing is not normally something we do because breathing is controlled by the autonomic nervous system. While we are aware we are breathing, we generally don’t attempt to control how we breathe. Breathing exercises in mindfulness meditation are viewed as a way to calm both the body and the mind. The control of breathing or ‘pranayama” as practiced in India required years of practice to master. It was believed to be life enhancing by purifying the breath. The combination of purification of the breath and calmness of the mind resulted in the revitalization of the spirit which is closely linked to spiritual enlightenment.
It is not surprising that mindfulness has achieved an increased level attention in scientific circles and work-related contexts. I illustrate this point with an actual experience…I was sitting attentively listening to a talk by my new provost when she uttered the word “mindfulness”. She stated she was interested in the related practice of self gratitude. Her comment suggested that she was being intentional in her willingness to look more deeply at herself and find ways to bring that mindfulness of self and gratitude to her dealings with others. This is often the case when we are exploring something we have heard about but don’t fully understand, something that has benefit to us that can be harnessed to improve the quality of our life or to potentially improve our relationships with others and our ability to do our job well. I found this a promising start to our relationship.
Mindfulness begins with a positive intention to understand and improve oneself, but It also requires discipline and commitment. The benefits of a personal practice may be evident on the very first day, but with sustained effort and practice the rewards become more visible and meaningful. Mindfulness research is demonstrating that it can make us feel better about who we are deal with stress and anxiety.
You can learn more about Mindful Breathing at www.mindfulbreathing.net
