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What Is Mindfulness? (And How We Can All Benefit from It)

September 12, 2024 By Deb Chitwood Leave a Comment

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What is mindfulness? Many find the term confusing … and rightfully so. There isn’t just one definition for mindfulness.

What Is Mindfulness? (And How We Can All Benefit from It)

Disclosure: This post contains some affiliate links (at no cost to you).

What Is Mindfulness?

Autumn Lake

Mindfulness has its roots in Zen Buddhism. But there are too many definitions of mindfulness to limit it to Zen Buddhism.

Here’s a helpful article from Positive Psychology Program that makes it clear that there isn’t just one definition you have to agree with: ““What is Mindfulness? Explained. (20 Definitions That Clarify Mindfulness).” Psychology Today has an article with “3 Definitions of Mindfulness That Might Surprise You.”

Here’s a basic definition from Mindful.org that defines mindfulness as a quality that everyone already has:

“Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.”

What I like about that is that we can all benefit from a positive quality that we already have. We just need to find it.

And with so many different definitions, we really can choose the one that works for us.

Mindfulness on Amazon

Secular Mindfulness

Jon Kabat-Zinn, Professor of Medicine Emeritus, has done a lot to bring mindfulness to the West using scientific research and his Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program.

He talks about mindfulness and defines it as “presence of heart” here:

The Health Benefits of Mindfulness

We all need ways to reduce stress in our world today. That’s just one of the proven health benefits of mindfulness.

Check out ““The 23 Amazing Health Benefits of Mindfulness for Body and Brain” from Positive Psychology Program.

This is a fascinating video on the science of mindfulness with Professor Mark Williams of the Oxford Mindfulness Centre:

Here’s an interesting video on mindfulness meditation from Scientific American:
“How Does Meditation Change the Brain?” – Instant Egghead #54

Calm App

Calm App

If you’d like guided meditations for yourself and sleep stories for your kids, you might want to check out the award-winning Calm App on iTunes or Amazon. It has a 7-day free trial and then yearly subscription available.

What About Mindfulness and Christianity?

With so many health benefits alone, it would be unfortunate if mindfulness would be bad for Christians. With the way I view mindfulness, it works very well for me as a Christian.

Here are two helpful articles that can help you decide if would work well for you, too:

  • “Can Christians Practice Mindfulness?” from HuffPost
  • “All in the Mind? Psychology, Mindfulness and Christianity” from Centre for Public Christianity

Ultimately, you need to decide if mindfulness meditation is right for you. But, even if you don’t like the term or its Zen Buddhist roots, you can learn from the health benefits of mindfulness to spend extra time in your own prayer and meditation.

Christian Mindfulness on Amazon

I hope this helps you find a definition of mindfulness for you and a way to benefit from mindfulness in your own life.

Mindfulness Resources

You can find all my posts on mindfulness and free guided meditations (both secular and Christian) in my mindfulness category.

Here are some of my mindfulness posts from here and my LivingMontessoriNow.com blog:

  • Free Peace Printables and Montessori-Inspired Peace Activities
  • Montessori-Inspired Peace Education Activities
  • How to Prepare a Peace Corner
  • Friendship Flower Activities
  • Montessori-Inspired Friendship Activities
  • Free Friendship Songs and Rhymes {Character Education Resources}
  • Free Taking Turns and Sharing Songs and Rhymes {Character Education Resources}
  • How to Teach Toddlers and Preschoolers to Take Turns and Work Together
  • The Best Children’s Books about Taking Turns and Sharing
  • How to Prepare a Montessori Peace Tray
  • Montessori Services Peace Activities and Resources Review
  • Best Peace Quotes
  • The Silence Game {Montessori Activity to Develop Self Discipline}
  • Free Guided Meditations for Kids {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Free Guided Meditations for Deep Sleep and Relaxation {Mindfulness Resources for Teens and Adults}
  • Free Guided Meditations for Deep Sleep for Kids {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Best Nelson Mandela Quotes
  • Free Guided Christian Meditations for Teens and Adults
  • Free Guided Christian Meditations for Kids
  • Free Guided Gratitude Meditations for Kids {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Free Mindfulness Songs for Kids
  • The Ultimate List of Free Meditation Printables for Kids {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Free Peace Songs and Educational Videos
  • My favorite mindfulness books for kids
  • Free Peace Do-a-Dot Printables (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
  • Free Peace Cutting Strips (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download),
  • Free Relaxing Ocean Images, Sounds, and Music for Kids and Adults {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Free Guided Ocean Meditations for Kids {Mindfulness Resources}
  • Free Guided Ocean Meditations {Mindfulness Resources for Teens and Adults},
  • How to Make a 100 Hearts Sensory Bottle (100 Hearts Calming Bottle)
  • Thank You for Planet Earth (or Thank You, Planet Earth) Mindfulness Cards and Booklet
  • Free Mindfulness Resources from Calm
  • Animal-Inspired Mindfulness Affirmation Cards and Booklet in Manuscript and Cursive
  • Free Calming Printables and Montessori-Inspired Calming Activities
  • Free Yoga Do-a-Dot Phonics Printable (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download
  • Free Calming Cutting Strips (Montessori-Inspired Instant Download)
  • Free Guided Frozen and Winter Meditations for Kids {Mindfulness Resources
  • I Can Make Silence Poster or Card Pack
  • Best Mahatma Gandhi Quotes
  • Spring Art Appreciation – Meditation and Puzzles
  • Summer Art Appreciation – Meditation and Puzzles
  • Autumn Art Appreciation – Meditation and Puzzles
  • Winter Art Appreciation – Meditation and Puzzles
  • Kids’ Peace and Mindfulness Activities Pinterest Board

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Montessori at Home or School - How to Teach Grace and Courtesy eBookLearn more about my eBook Montessori at Home or School: How to. Teach Grace and Courtesy!

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Previous article: Free Courage Songs {Character Education Resources}
Next article: Free Worldwide Character Counts! Week Resources

Filed Under: Inspiration, Mindfulness, peace Tagged With: benefits of mindfulness, Christian mindfulness, mindfulness, mindfulness and Christianity, mindfulness definition, secular mindfulness, what is mindfulness

Previous Post: « Free Courage Songs {Character Education Resources}
Next Post: Free Worldwide Character Counts! Week Resources »

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