Mindfulness: the good and the bad

Mindfulness is extremely popular right now; you only have to do a Google search to see how many hits this topic gets. Mindfulness reportedly reduces stress and improves wellbeing; it is even being touted as the next big thing in health care and the workplace to improve health and productivity.

What is mindfulness exactly and is it as good for us as the reports say?

Mindfulness is about training the mind, controlling thoughts, observing and being aware of our surroundings and how we feel. It is purely a mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations. It is a state of observing your thoughts, surroundings and actions without thinking about or analysing them.

Mindfulness equals brain training – training the brain to pay attention and not to have its thoughts wander. It is often described as the opposite of being on autopilot.
Could it be that mindfulness is so popular because being more observant or in the now feels better and more calming than being absent minded or so full of thoughts that you seem to not be able to remember what you have done or where you have been?
But what if mindfulness were only a stepping-stone or the tip of the iceberg to a deeper state of being and connection that not only assists you to be more aware but actually brings union between the mind and the body – a union that permits the body to be in a natural rhythm and harmony?

Mindfulness while it may appear to be positive step in the right direction is in fact harmful if viewed as the answer or the end goal.

This is because mindfulness is about controlling the mind and its thoughts, when it has become somewhat out of control, and as such, does not develop our connection to or with the body and hence the mind is working in separation to the whole being – *a being that is designed to be at one or in union with itself.*

"The mind is made to have activity, and be an active expression. If you can empty the mind, you are empty and that means you are not love. The mind is made to be thinking what you are doing and your body doing what you are thinking. But this must be all at one and the same time. This is the true meaning of conscious presence"
Serge Benhayon Esoteric Teachings and Revelations Volume I, ed 1, p 417

Having the mind be focused or observant but not be with the body, as in mindfulness, means the body is seen as second to, or worse ignored by the mind.

By separating from the wisdom of our body, we are able to make choices or decisions without consideration of or for our body and hence live in a way that actually harms or damages our bodies.
The key to having the mind and body connected is to be wholly with yourself in what you do, to engage the mind in the fact that it’s making a choice and that choice is being carried out immediately while the mind stays with the action it is choosing to make. This is known as conscious presence.

Conscious presence is the ability for your mind and your body to be at the same place at the same time – not only with focused attention, but a union of the mind and body in its current and ensuing actions.

The more you are able to connect, the more you are able to understand your body and how your body communicates with you. And thus you develop a way of living that adheres to the natural rhythms and harmony of the body that in turn supports healing, health and well-being.

Filed under

Meditation, Presence, Conscious presence, Mindfulness

By Dr Rachel Hall, Dentist

Dentist, business owner, writer, author and presenter. Family woman, guitarist, photographer, passionate about health, wellbeing and community. Lover of Vietnamese food, fast cars, social media, café culture and people.