Gwendolyn In fact, there is currently no absolutely unified definition in the industry. The mainstream consensus is that "meditation is a broad category of practice. Mindfulness is not only a type of practice under meditation, but also can refer to a state of awareness that is non-judgmental and dwells in the present moment." However, there are also many senior practitioners and researchers from different schools who would separate the two even further, and even believe that mindfulness can exist completely independently of meditation.
Let’s talk about the most straightforward scenario: you take 20 minutes after get off work, find a quiet corner and sit cross-legged, follow the guided audio to observe your breathing, do a body scan, or practice loving kindness blessings. No matter which type you practice, this is a meditation practice.； But if you were hit by someone when you were squeezing into the subway during the morning rush hour, and fire immediately rushed to your throat, you suddenly paused for half a second and clearly realized, "Oh, I am angry now, my temples are throbbing, and my hands are clenched." You neither cursed in anger nor blamed yourself for being so stingy, but just watched the emotion rise and fall. At this time, you are practicing mindfulness, but no one will say that you are meditating on the subway, right?
Of course, there are different opinions. For example, practitioners with traditional practice backgrounds will mention that mindfulness first came from the practice system of the Eightfold Path of Buddhism. Later, it was dereligated by Professor Kabat-Zinn and developed into contemporary mindfulness therapy. It is essentially a clearly directed awareness practice - you are required to actively pay attention to the current physical and mental state, without escaping or judging.； But the scope of meditation is much wider, from ancient Indian yoga meditation to Christian silent prayer, and even the popular sound wave meditation and sleep meditation. The core of many schools is to let you empty your mind and enter a state of deep relaxation, which is different from the goal of mindfulness practice.
I have been practicing for almost four years, and I was obsessed with the definitions of these two words at the beginning. Later, I felt that there was no need to take it too seriously. To give an inappropriate analogy, if adjusting the physical and mental state is compared to learning to swim, meditation means that you take time to go to the swimming pool to register for a class. No matter whether you are learning breaststroke, freestyle or butterfly, it belongs to the category of class.； Mindfulness means that whether you are practicing movements in the swimming pool, treading water on rainy days, or going to the beach in the summer, you can stabilize your center of gravity and always pay attention to the contact between your body and the water without panic.
Many courses on the market now tie "mindfulness" and "meditation" together, and that's actually true. What we often call "mindfulness meditation" is a meditation practice specifically aimed at cultivating mindfulness abilities. I also started with this type of practice at the beginning, but later I gradually discovered that those who do not Using mindfulness exercises specifically for sitting down, such as paying attention to the touch of the feet and the ground when walking, and carefully tasting the sweetness of every mouthful of rice when eating, has brought more obvious changes to my daily state - at least now I will no longer check my phone while eating, and I will not know what I ate after eating.
