Mindfulness is defined as paying attention purposefully and non-judgmentally to present moment experiences. It stems from Buddhist psychology practices. Key definitions include focusing on purposeful present moment awareness and non-judgment. Mindfulness has four fields - body, feelings, thoughts, phenomena. Interest in mindfulness has grown in recent decades within psychology, education, business and health fields like reducing stress, improving emotional regulation and reducing depression. Research shows mindfulness thickens attention-related brain regions and impacts immune function. It aids psychotherapy and reduces various clinical disorders. Physiologically, mindfulness lowers heart rate and blood pressure, reduces muscle tension and benefits cancer patients. It can be practiced in everyday life through focused activities and taking mindfulness breaks.

1. Mindfulness

2. Definition of Mindfulness
• Conceptual definition of mindfulness
has been continuously revised and
clarified
• Term ‘mindfulness’ stem from
Eastern introspective psychological
practices, specifically Buddhist
psychology

3. Definition of Mindfulness
• Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn - “paying attention in
a particular way: on purpose, in the
present moment, and non
judgmentally.”
• Thich Nhat Hanh -“keeping one’s
consciousness alive to the present
reality”
• Nyanaponika - “the clear and single-minded
awareness of what actually
happens to us and in us at the
successive moments of perception.”

4. Mindfulness in Buddhism
• Etymologically, the Pali term sati, which derives from
smrti in Sanskrit, means memory, but it was given new
connotations in early Buddhism.
• Sati has been translated by different people in different
ways, such as “Mindfulness” “conscience,” “attention,”
“meditation,” “contemplation,” “insight.”

5. Mindfulness in Buddhism
Four Fields of Mindfulness:
1. Kaya (the body) : Kaya-smrty-upasthana
2. Vedana (feelings): Vedana-smrty-upasthana
3. Citta (thoughts) : Citta-smrty-upasthana
4. Dharma (phenomena) : Dharma-smrty-upasthana)

6. Significance of the
‘Mindfulness’ Today
• Growth in study of Mindfulness in last 50 years
• Increase of literature on Mindfulness meditation

7. Significance of the ‘Mindfulness’ Today
• Major developments are now occurring in clinical and
health psychology, cognitive therapy, and neuroscience
• Growing interest in primary and secondary education,
higher education, law, business and leadership.

8. Mindfulness in Different Areas
and Research in those areas

9. Brain & Immune System
Study/ Research in this Area
 Thickens the cortical regions of the brain
related to attention and sensory
processing
 Counteract cortical thinning brought on
by aging
 Effects the regions of the brain
responsible for emotional regulation -
heightens emotional regulation
 Makes immune system to react more
robustly in antibody production
 Decreases the level of stress hormone
cortisol

10. Clinical Psychology
• Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis
(Fromm, Suzuki, & De Martino, 1960)
• Jon Kabat-Zinn : Mindfulness-Based
Stress Reduction (MBSR) - to help those
with chronic pain issues or stress-related
disorders
• Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy -
teaches individuals to recognize their
thoughts and feelings with a
nonjudgmental attitude.

11. Clinical Psychology
Studies / Research in this area say that
• Aids in Long term Psychotherapy
 Acts as a daily and personal form of psychotherapy
 Serves as a preparatory forum for the weekly
therapeutic session.
 Psychotherapy and mindfulness are technically
compatible and mutually reinforcing
• Helps in psychoanalysis :Self-awareness,
access to conscious material
• Helps the clients to come out of their
depression and all categories of chronic
pains

12. Clinical Psychology
Studies / Research in this area say that
• Helps professionals to improve their ability
to empathize with the patients
• Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy -
reduces Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder in children and in other age
groups
• Reduces the symptoms of - hypernoia, that
is, excessive mental activity, neurosis,
obesity, stuttering, claustrophobia, anxiety,
insomnia, hypertension, asthma, drug
abuse, alcohol abuse, and various other
behaviour disorders

13. The Physiological Effects of Mindfulness
• Investigation into some of the more
extraordinary feats of physiological
control performed by advanced yogis
in India during the 1920s and 1930s
• Groundbreaking feats of autonomic,
respiratory, and perceptual control
were possible through Mindfulness

14. The Physiological Effects of Mindfulness
The Cardiovascular System and Disease:
decreases heart beat rate - relieving
certain forms of cardiovascular
disease, reduces the stressful effects
Blood Pressure and Hypertension: helps
relax small muscles that control the
blood vessels

15. The Physiological Effects of Mindfulness
Muscle Tension: Reduces muscle tension -
the body’s lowered need for energy, slowing
of respiration, and deactivation of stress-related
hormones.
Cancer:
Improves on various measures
Reduce the stress and lessens mood
related disturbance.
Helps to deal with existential issues

16. Mindfulness in Everyday Life
• To let the present moment sink in;
to see it in its fullness, to hold it in
awareness and thereby come to
know and understand it better
• A number of ways of practicing
mindfulness in everyday life
– choosing to be mindful of one or two
regular daily activities
– punctuating the day with a few mini-mindfulness
exercises
– taking advantages of opportunities
for mindfulness as they arise.

18. • Becoming more mindful in mundane daily activities
make ordinary activities alive!
• All mindfulness activities, do not leave us too abruptly,
always helps to continue being mindful into the next
activity.

19. Conclusion