The 4 principles of Buddhist philosophy embodied in Mindfulness

The practice of Mindfulness is inspired by these key ideas of Buddhist thought.

Mindfulness is a therapeutic intervention modality inspired by traditional meditation techniques that emerged in Asia more than 2500 years ago. It is also a state of consciousness that can be promoted both to manage or overcome psychological disorders and to enhance emotional balance in general.

In this article we will see how it relates to key ideas that form the core of Buddhist philosophy..

The potential of Mindfulness

Mindfulness, also known as Mindfulness, is a phenomenon that has been popularized for several decades in the Western world, being raised in the 70s especially from the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn. It is currently one of the most widespread and demanded practices in psychology practices around the world.

The practice of Mindfulness has been shown to have beneficial effects especially in the management of emotional problems such as depression or anxiety, and also in chronic pain.

The fact that scientific research has been carried out on the psychological effects of these practices, as well as improving their functioning and eliminating unimportant aspects, is due to the fact that Mindfulness is above all a therapeutic resource, not a ritual linked to religion and based on a system of symbols of diffuse meaning..

However, it cannot be said that there are no parallels between what Mindfulness proposes, on the one hand, and the fundamental pillars of Buddhism and Hinduism, belief systems from which the forms of meditation that Jon Kabat-Zinn focused on emerged. If the Indo-Tibetan meditation techniques had not existed, Mindfulness would probably not exist today.

So... what are the aspects in which Mindfulness is reflected in Buddhist philosophy? Let's take a look.

4 ideas of Buddhism that are embodied in Mindfulness

One of the characteristics of Mindfulness is its simplicity; in fact, many of its exercises can be done by very young children and used in schools. In this sense, this practice contrasts with the tradition of meditation associated with Buddhism and Hinduism, since these are based on a framework of ideas and beliefs of a very abstract nature and linked to centuries of literature and the development of religions.

However, beyond their simplicity beyond its simplicity, in Mindfulness we can also appreciate elements of this philosophy of life more typical of Asia than of the West.and which so many people today find inspiring.

These are the main aspects in which the ideological background of Buddhism is reflected in what Mindfulness proposes.

1. The dissolution of the line that separates the "I" from the world.

Something that many of the great religions that emerged in Asia have in common is that they place the human being in the humble position of one more of the elements of which nature is composed; therefore, for example, thinkers such as Lao Tse and Confucius emphasized the importance of not disturbing the natural flow of things. the importance of not disturbing the natural flow of things, of not adopting a disruptive or disruptive character.Therefore, thinkers such as Lao Tse and Confucius emphasized the importance of not disturbing the natural flow of things, of not being disruptive and of not trying to dominate our surroundings.

In this sense, wisdom and goodness would be characterized by our ability to stay on the path of the dynamics that have been going on for thousands of years and that keep everything in balance.

In Mindfulness also appears this dissolution of the line that separates us from what is around us. Thus, in Mindfulness we perceive our thoughts and sensations as elements that are part of us and of reality in general.

2. The renunciation of wanting to control nature

As we have seen, Buddhism does not see progress as a phenomenon in which we learn to modify the environment to fit our needs, but quite the opposite.It must be the human being who assumes his humble role in the universe. In the same way, Mindfulness favors a psychological state in which we stop taking for granted that we need to cling to all the material goals without which we believe we could not be happy.

3. The philosophy of letting go of clinging to thoughts.

One of the keys to Mindfulness is that it is based on the idea of letting thoughts flow, without clinging to any particular one.Letting the flow of consciousness take its course. This fits with Buddhist epistemology, which leads us to let go of the contents of our mind and let them go naturally, at their own pace and as they arrived (they did so beyond our will and awareness). Experiencing how they fade away, we can connect with the latent wisdom within us.

4. Acceptance and compassion

Buddhism proposes an advance towards wisdom based not on the accumulation of ideas and mental contents, but on understanding that what arises in our mind also comes to fade away; becoming aware of this flow, the denial of an inherent essence to the different things that cross our mind.

That is why in his ethical system, much more emphasis is placed on compassion towards others and towards oneselfthan on the need to make rigid interpretations of right and wrong and to antagonize. This tendency to acceptance allows us to avoid the struggle of egos, which means actively working to generate suffering.

Do you want to learn the keys to Mindfulness?

In our psychology center we offer both psychological therapy and Mindfulness training programs.. If you want to know more about our personal development course with Mindfulness and training in Tibetan techniques, please contact us.

Bibliographical references:

• Craig, F. & Chambers, R. (2014). Mindful learning: reduce stress and improve brain performance for effective learning. Exisle Publishing.
• Didonna F. (2011). Mindfulness clinical manual. Desclée de Brouwer.
• Kabat-Zinn, J. (2009). Mindfulness in everyday life. Wherever you go there you are. Paidós.