Dictionaries commonly define mindfulness as: a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feeling, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.
Not a bad definition on the face of it. However, with a little digging you’ll notice that this definition allows no room for one’s spiritual self. It is not uncommon for modern proponents of meditation to completely remove or at least minimize all traces of spirit from consideration.
I think we can agree that some allowance for our experience of our spiritual nature should be reintroduced into the notion of what is mindfulness.
Another element which has snuck (or sneaked if you prefer the pre the 19th century form) its way into the definition of mindfulness is a sharp distinction between me and the environment. Feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations are considered as mine and appropriate for experiencing. The rest of the stuff is not me and would presumably fall outside of the realm of experience.
I think we can also agree that it might be best if we let the distinction between me and not me be a little fuzzy. We don’t have to blur the line completely. But, we definitely want to smudge it a little.
Given these modifications perhaps we could consider a broader definition of mindfulness as: a state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s experience in the present.
I suppose one method of achieving mindfulness would be to give oneself the instruction to “focus your awareness on the present, while calmly acknowledging and accepting your experience in the present.”
That could work for some. But, for the rest of us 99.99% we need something a bit more detailed — maybe even something with hand-rails, training wheels, and hints along the way.
Fortunately you can find many such inductions and meditations. One of the simplest and most effective of these is Zen Basics.
Zen Basics is deceptively simple. It doesn’t even have theory or mention awareness. The Zen Basics Process consists of one simple, easy-to-follow instruction “Touch A Rock.” The Zen Basics Process was introduced to the West by E.J. Gold 30 years ago. Since then it has traveled the world with workshops and events around the globe.
In the age of the internet it is time to make this powerful method available everywhere. The Zen Basics Kit consists of one mp3 file and a set of instructions. The mp3 file is digitally remastered from the original workshops in 1986. This is ideal for solo and group work. The instructions are straight-forward advice on how to find suitable rocks for doing Zen Basics, and simple advice on setting up your meditation space.
I will post a link to the downloadable version of the Zen Basics Kit in a couple of days. Until then you can reserve your pre-publication copy on the Prosperity Path Form.