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Mindfulness
Mindfulness, in French called pleine conscience or l’attention juste, in English is mindfulness, is the energy generated from awareness—the consciousness of the present moment. In Sino-Vietnamese characters, the word “niệm” consists of the character for “present moment” and the character for “mind,” meaning the mind returns to the present instead of wandering in the past or future. Mindfulness, concentration, and insight inter-are: mindfulness gives rise to concentration, and within concentration there is insight, demonstrating the principle of interdependent co-arising and the Avatamsaka teaching. We all have the seed of mindfulness in our consciousness; when we touch it, it manifests as a field of energy that helps us recognize our presence.
The method of returning to the breath—Anapanasati—is the fastest way for the mind to be with the body, leading to the realization of “body and mind as one” after just one breath. The Anapanasati Sutra teaches sixteen breathing exercises, of which the first four are enough to heal body and mind:
- Breathing in—I am aware of my in-breath
- Breathing out—I am aware of my out-breath
- Following the length of the breath (long or short)
- Breathing in, I calm my body; breathing out, I allow my body to relax
Practice simply, without judgment, without craving or attachment, helps us to dwell—arrived, home—in the present moment. Mindfulness is not only for sitting meditation but can be applied in all daily activities such as eating, brushing teeth, or going to the toilet, to find peace, freedom, and the capacity for self-healing from the claws of the past and the future.
