Accredited by the International Association of Counseling Services, inc.
Quick Links
Meditation Group
Success Strategies
Additional Links
Division of Student Affairs
NDSU Home
Meditation for Stress Management
Basic Definition of Mindfulness:
(from Kabat-Zinn, J.,1994, Wherever you go, there you are: Mindfulness meditation in everyday life. New York: Hyperion., p. 4).
“Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally."
“Formal” and “Informal” Mindfulness Practice
Mindfulness is usually cultivated via formal, concentrated meditation practice periods each day, with the idea that we can then carry this mindful awareness with us into in all our daily activities.
Mindfulness Meditation
The approach during mindfulness meditation involves fostering a spacious awareness and observing whatever comes up in the mind without judging it or getting caught up in it, welcoming and allowing experience with equanimity and “bare attention.” Mindfulness involves pure moment-to-moment awareness: non-judgmental inner listening, silent observation, letting experiences unfold from moment to moment and accepting them as they are. In the ancient Pali language, this type of mindful investigation is called vipassana, or “seeing things as they really are” (literally, “special seeing”). Mindfulness is like a mirror, reflecting the reality of what is there without judgment.
During meditation, it is common for the mind to become either restless and distracted, or dull and sleepy, either of which can temporarily remove us from the present moment. As you notice either agitation or sleepiness of the mind, or your reactions to outside distractions, do your best to just observe and note these processes as they occur, without judgment. With practice, we begin to notice more and more quickly when our attention has wandered; we can then note what took our attention away, and gently bring our awareness back to the breath. There may be a tendency to become frustrated or impatient when we notice that our attention has wandered, but the more frustrated we get about it, the more distracting it becomes. Instead of fighting whatever might occur during meditation, attempt to accept that this is how things are right now. As best you can, have patience with yourself (however, if you do find yourself getting impatient, you can simply observe that reaction with equanimity).
Vipassana meditation is a chance to observe the ways in which all phenomena—thoughts, feelings, and sensations—arise and pass away into the stream of consciousness. Meditation offers an opportunity to observe many of the things that are going on in our minds all the time without our awareness, so just starting to become aware of them is important in itself. When we can observe and experience thoughts, feelings, and sensations with equanimity, we realize we are not these; we become less identified with them, and can rest in a calm, spacious awareness. As we do this, the mental activity tends to settle down more and more, like going under the surface of the ocean, beneath the activity of the waves to a deeper, more still place; or like the sky, whose basic nature does not change as the clouds and weather patterns pass through it.
Basic Meditation Instructions (Adapted from Full Catastrophe Living, by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. New York: Dell Publishing, 1990)- Bring attention to the breath.
- Give full attention to the feeling of the breath as it goes in and out.
- Dwell in the present, moment by moment, breath by breath.
- Observe your mind with moment-to-moment awareness.When attention wanders, note it and then gently bring awareness back to the breath.
- Continue to watch the breath, accepting each moment as it is.
Once a measure of stability of attention is attained, you may begin to expand into "choiceless awareness" during meditation, in which rather than guding the attention back to the breath, whatever object is prominent in your field of awareness at any given moment becomes the primary object of attention. This involves expanding your awareness to observe with mindfulness (present-moment, investigative, nonjudgmental awareness) the arising and falling of each event in your field of awareness as it occurs, allowing the awareness to rest on whatever is most salient in your experience in the present moment, then shifting as that recedes and something new appears. Whenever the attention wanders or feels “lost,” you maygently bring it back to the breath as your anchor into the present moment
With longer-term practice observing your mind during meditation, you may begin to develop insights regarding the impermanence of all phenomena, the dissatisfaction caused by clinging to some aspects of reality and resisting others, and the lack of a solid, stable, unchanging self that is separate from other phenomena. These insights are not verbal or conceptual, but rather involve direct perception of the nature of reality through our immediate experience during meditation.
Potential Benefits of Meditation Practice (Portions adapted from Full Catastrophe Living, by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. New York: Dell Publishing, 1990)
-
Time to sit quietly and “just be,” rather than actively “doing,” increases our sense of peacefulness and well-being, and gives us time to dwell in a state of deep relaxation. (“Being” mode is accepting and non-conceptual, in contrast to “doing” mode).
-
Trains the mind to be less reactive and more stable, helps develop patience and acceptance, and builds and deepens the mind’s strength and concentration.
-
We cannot always change or control our external circumstances, but mindfulness can help us relate differently to life’s “ups and downs.” Helps us to develop acceptance and act with wisdom, intention and perspective rather than in a reactive or knee-jerk fashion.
-
Practicing “bare attention” and maintaining equanimity helps us gain balance and perspective regarding what is going on around and inside us. Slowing down and becoming aware, we see things more clearly.
-
Helps us “get to know our own mind.” Provides a chance to look dispassionately at the reactions and habits of our own mind, at its fears and desires. Helps us see through our likes, dislikes, and opinions to experience things as they actually are.
-
Being centered in the present moment, we become more present and engaged in our lives. and we may begin experiencing our daily activities and interactions as less mundane and more meaningful. Focusing on one thing at a time, rather than multi-tasking, is a relief and can even improve our relationships.
-
Mindfulness meditation helps cultivate compassion, because we recognize that we all have the same basic nature, and that the suffering we experience is the same, at its core, as that experienced by all beings, regardless of superficial differences.
How Mindfulness Can Help With Managing Stress (Portions adapted from Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy For Depression, by Zindel, Williams, and Teasdale, Guilford Press, 2002)
-
Mindfulness allows us to view thoughts, feelings and sensations as passing events in our field of awareness, rather than over-identifying with them, becoming attached to them or repelled by them, or seeing them as “me” or as “reality”.
-
Helps us be aware and grounded in the present moment, allowing us to fully engage in the richness of moment-to-moment experience and to make aware and conscious decisions about responding. Moves us away from “automatic pilot” mode.
-
Focuses attention on moment-to-moment experience, and away from ruminative cycles of thoughts that tend to bog us down in negative mood states and can contribute to anxiety and/or depression.
-
We learn to handle things “one moment at a time.” Being present with “just this breath" can be grounding and calming.
-
Each moment, each breath, is a chance to begin anew.
-
We see that all "problems" come down to the same basic issue: wanting things to be different than they are. Mindfulness helps us to develop the awareness to be able to accept the things we cannot change, and take skillful action to change the things we can.
-
Pain x Resistance = Suffering (or "pain is inevitable, suffering is optional"). We see that it is not as much the pain itself, but our own reaction to it that causes our suffering.
NDSU Counseling Center Meditations:
- Mindfulness meditation with guided body relaxation (44 minutes)
- Brief mindful breathing exercise (5 minutes)
- Short Mindfulness meditation with guided body relaxation (29 minutes)
- Calm abiding meditation with guided body relaxation (42 minutes)
- Short Calm abiding meditation with guided body relaxation (25 minutes)
Insight Meditation Society Meditations
Mindful Awareness Research Center (UCLA) Meditations
Recommended Readings :
Mindfulness in Plain English, updated and expanded addition, by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (Wisdom Publications, 2002) or read earlier addition online at http://www.budsas.org/ebud/mfneng/mind0.htm
Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. (Hyperion Books, 1994) or other books by Jon Kabat-Zinn
A Path With Heart , by Jack Kornfield (Bantam, 1993)
Beginning MIndfulness, by Andrew Weiss (New World Library, 2004)
Calming Your Anxous Mind, by Jeffrey Brantley, MD ( 2nd Edition, ew Harbinger Publications, 2007).
Breath By Breath, by Larry Rosenberg (Shambala Classics, 1998)
The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh (Beacon Press, 1975) or Peace in Every Step (Bantam, 1991) or other books by Thich Nhat Hanh
Emotional Alchemy, by Tara Bennett-Goleman (Three Rivers Press, 2001)
The Mindful Way Through Depression: Freeing Yourself From Chronic Unhappiness, by Mark Williams, John Teasdale, Zindel Segal, and Jon Kabat-Zinn (Guilford Press, 2007)
Vipassana Instructions (PDF File) from New Hope Sangha at http://www.newhopesangha.org/vipassana_instructions.pdf