Thanks to our Friend for sending us this beautiful photo
~*~
"The Basic Mechanism of Mindfulness"
"Our bodies can react to our thoughts as if those thoughts were reality itself. This allows us to habitually indulge in daydreaming and fantasies - absent-mindedness - in order to overcome boredom and stressful situations. However, this indulgence comes at a huge cost because allowing our imaginations to have such a habitual grip on our physical existence means that when negative predictions arise - imagined catastrophic scenarios - there is no 'reality gap' between those negative thoughts and our nervous systems - we react physically, as if our future worries were happening right now. In this way we can habitually allow our reflexively thinking mind to take hold of our body whether we want it to or not. Thus, we can very quickly find ourselves suffering from insomnia or a panic attack, and without any perceived hope of avoiding a similar event in the near future.
Mindfulness brings in a different way of dealing with boredom and necessary stressful situations - it encourages us to expose ourselves to any necessary stressors while distracting our attention from our judging thoughts as we relax into the innate positive intelligence of our bodies in the here-and-now. Our innate intelligence can anchor us in a more peaceful place - the place our energetically-conservative body always wants to be in - allowing us to bring finer clarity of perception and better physical coordination to our situation. This means that we can gain a tolerance for the inevitable pains in life - things like getting ill, becoming older, and losing loved ones; all natural and normal events that every person must face.
By practicing mindfulness one finds that, over time, one's thoughts hold less power over one's physical condition because one is more busy enjoying living in the physicality of the present moment, rather than the illusory world of the imagination. In this way mindfulness can enable one to become more emotionally resilient and more sensitive to habitual and often unnecessary negative reactions, thus bringing more peace to one's life. Of course, the amount of peace one experiences will be dependent on how much mindfulness practice one engages in - what one puts in, one gets out. There are no short-cuts.
The key factor for becoming more mindful is to readjust one's habitual relationship with one's body - to literally re-body, or re-member oneself - to be physically present as much as possible wherever one finds oneself. This physical 'waking up' to one's regular daily environment demands certain lifestyle changes, and so mindfulness training courses often tend to revolve around lifestyle management themes. The course guides or trainers gently encourage and support the continued growth of more wholesome appetites and perspectives for enjoying the simple things in life, such as appreciating physical movement, daily tasks, nature, social interaction, eating, resting, etc. Through this process, participants come to understand that mindfulness is definitely a lifestyle rather than a philosophy - it is something to be lived rather than pondered or contemplated."
(great website on mindfulness)
