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TEACHINGS | EASTERN HORIZON 13

And you may practice it in correctly. In this case, and unwholesome tendencies with faults and faultless,
you’re recalling something you learned in the past. inferior and refined, dark and pure, gathered with their
2. You remember the object of your practice. In the counterparts.”
first stage of mindfulness you typically focus on an
object like the breath, a physical form like a statue Nagasena’s definition of mindfulness intimately
or a flower, or a sense experience like hearing the connects the practice with happiness and suffering,
sounds that arise around you. You lightly place which results from acting upon wholesome or
your attention on the selected object. But you have unwholesome tendencies.
to remember to keep it there, don’t you? This is
present-centered mindfulness. When you get caught in anger, jealous, or envy, you’re
3. You recollect what to do if your mind becomes likely to feel unhappy, right? When you focus on peace,
agitated or dull and you lose your mindfulness. kindness, and compassion, you’re likely to feel happier,
This entails remembering what to do in the future. right?

Strictly speaking, in a Buddhist context, mindfulness can The regular practice of mindfulness creates more space
involve the past, the present, and the future. in your mind, In that space, you can more easily discern
between thoughts, words, and actions that bring benefit
Mindfulness and Remembering in Everyday Life and ones that bring harm. With this clarity of mind, you
Mindfulness isn’t limited to meditation. In fact, we can make wiser choices.
practice mindfulness meditation so we can be more
mindful in every moment. Simply said, a mindful person is aware of the
consequences of their action. They resist knee-jerk
While taking my calcium this morning, I realized how reactions based in attachment or aversion. They
uncomfortable it would be if I were to mindlessly consistently choose to engage in beneficial behaviors.
swallow the small plastic tube contained in the bottle,
presumably for freshness. It’s about the same size as the That’s a simple formula for happiness.
calcium capsules, making it a scary possibility.
It would be easy to do, wouldn’t it? The Buddhist definition of mindfulness automatically
includes a caring attitude (Skt. “apramada”).
When we’re lost in thought, we sometimes don’t see
what’s right in front of us—the small plastic tube in the Mindfulness requires a mix of several different mental
vitamin bottle, the freeway exit, or a critical instruction factors. The primary ones include mindfulness (the
on the paper in our hand. ability to remember to stay present to the object of your
attention), alertness, and a caring attitude.
Aside from possibly saving you from choking,
mindfulness can assist you in another critical way. It The caring attitude protects the mind from straying into
can help you educe negative thoughts and emotions and the negative and keeps it on a positive track. That’s what
increase positive ones, thus leading to a happier life. you want, isn’t it?

The Indo-Greek King Menander I (Milinda in Pali), who Concluding Thoughts
ruled a large ancient kingdom from 160 to 130 BCE, The definition of mindfulness differs between modern-
asked the enlightened Buddhist monk Nagasena, “What day mindfulness and Buddhism. But it’s not a matter of
is mindfulness?” one being right and the other being wrong.

Nagasena replied: The popular definition of mindfulness originated with Jon
“Mindfulness when it arises it calls to mind wholesome Kabat-Zinn and his Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction