Mindfulness Meditation, a Modified Ancient Technique

 Mindfulness is an ancient practice in India, though not mentioned by this name, that is more than 2000 years old. It is a practical method of developing self-awareness while keeping our attention to the present moment and maintaining an attitude of non-judgemental of any feelings or thoughts that may arise from the body and mind. Since the time Buddha or even before that mindfulness meditation has been practiced by many, as the natural method of meditation was of that nature, though the name was not mentioned. 

The very practice of mindfulness meditation is to self-learn how the mind functions and help us to self-learn our state of mind in different situations of anger, hatred, jealousy, empathy, happiness, or joy. This will equip us to stay away from the mental states which are understood as the delusions of our psychological drama. 

Mindfulness meditation derived its root from sati, an essential element of the Buddhist tradition. Sati is mindfulness or awareness.  It is a spiritual or psychological faculty (indriya) that forms an essential part of Buddhist practice. It is considered the first factor of the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. The "Correct" or "right" mindfulness is the seventh element of the Noble Eightfold Path of Buddhist meditation practice. Hence the origin of modern mindfulness meditation is linked to Zen, Vipassana, and Tibetan meditation practices. 

The definitions and methods of mindfulness meditation are varied and wide-ranging, but the traditional Buddhistic methods explain how past, present and future moments arise and disappear as momentary sense impressions and psychological phenomena. 

The important practices for effective mindfulness meditation include:

• Focus on your breath going in and out
• Pay attention: attention to everything in and out to deepen the awareness.
• Live in this moment: The past is gone and the future is uncertain, hence have mental clarity with the focus of the mind to this moment.
• Accept yourself:   Accept yourself the way you would accept a good friend. 

These important practices are used in modern mindfulness practices to stay from the distractions and hallucinations of the mind and derive sound health both mentally and physically. 

People who have popularized mindfulness meditation in the modern Western context include ThíchNhấtHạnh,  Jon Kabat-Zinn, Richard Davidson, Herbert Benson, and Sam Harris. The modern method of mindfulness meditation practice is known to have been popularized by Jon Kabat-Zin, an MIT-trained Molecular Biologist. He has developed a program popularly known as Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) that mainly combines meditation with medicine which claims to have the benefits of mindfulness of the ancient concept of nonjudgmental meditation technique.

The reality is that Kabat-Zinn developed MBSR after he learned meditation from his spiritual leader Thich-Nhat-Hanh, who is a traditional Zen monk. This proves very well that the modern mindfulness practice is nothing but a little extension of the ancient Buddhist or Zen version of mindful meditation like Vipassana or Zen meditation.

Modern medical practitioners of research continue to favor mindfulness as an adjunct therapy in patients with depression and anxiety, and it is going to increase as group mindfulness meditation therapy shortly. Modern clinical trials have illustrated the brain’s plasticity and have very well proven that mindfulness meditation has a positive effect on managing mental issues like anxiety, depression, and pain.