According to the dictionary, mindfulness is a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on living in the present moment (which is not the same as thinking about the present moment), while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.
When we are being mindful, our thoughts tune into what we’re feeling and sensing in the present moment rather than worrying about the future or thinking the past. There are tons of things we can’t control. It’s better to live the moment then letting the past or future scared us.
“Mindfulness is awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally,” said Jon-Kabat-Zinn, the founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program (MBSR).
Mindfulness has seven main elements:
Initial heart: Keep curiosity and treat every encounter with things as it is the first time you are facing it and try to maintain a fresh experience.
Acceptance: Observe yourself, accept the thoughts or the original appearance of the environment for the physical and mental phenomena of facing things.
Do not judge: Take an unbiased observation attitude as much as possible, and don’t rush to make good or bad judgments, right or wrong.
Self-compassion: Accept yourself and cherish yourself, accept the original you, develop trust in yourself, believe in yourself, and do not hurt yourself or judging your personality.
Equality: All experiences of the body and mind are faced in a welcoming and gentle way, allowing attention to be averaged within and outside the body freely.
Do not deliberately strive: When thoughts arise, let the mind and body stay in the current state, you don’t need to suppress or escape that feeling, do not insist on reaching any preset goals in righteous thoughts, or hope to change or get something.
Let it be natural: Look at the original things calmly, accept their existence and development, and follow the changes or rhythms of things, observe the changing process in this, and do not exert pressure on the body and mind.
For instance, have you ever been travel from point A to point B, and then have no idea what you saw while traveling to point B? Our brains are often overwhelmed by many things, such as planning, what to do, what assignment has not been done, where to shop, what to eat for dinner, etc., and because we often think about these things and ignore the perception of the present — What emotions do I have now? What is the feeling of the body? What are the surrounding environments?
Try to grasp the current state while you walk from point A to point B. Feeling the foot while walking, what foot is in contact with the ground, what the other parts of the body feel. When you walk, you can see the colors around you, count the sounds, and focus on your breathing.
