Mindfulness practices: pathway to growth, connection
Although mindfulness may seem like a modern invention, it has been around for centuries, with its roots in Eastern contemplative practices. While definitions vary, mindfulness is generally understood as a state of intentional awareness and nonjudgmental acceptance of one’s moment-to-moment experiences. Mindfulness practices may include breath awareness, body scanning, letter-writing and journaling, and mindful walking and eating. The underlying philosophy is to approach feelings and thoughts as being impermanent and ever-changing. This discipline allows for a more objective self-perception, disrupts automatic negative thought patterns and fosters compassion toward self and others with deeper insights into human conditions and experiences.
Mindfulness has gained exponential popularity globally over the past two decades as many seek holistic wellness practices to complement traditional health care efforts. This popularity is bolstered by a substantial body of scientific evidence that highlights the physical and mental health benefits of mindfulness, such as enhanced heart rate variability, improved sleep and immune function, reduced psychological distress, better behavioral regulation and an overall sense of well-being. Regular mindfulness practices are also thought to increase resilience, enabling individuals to navigate adversity with greater composure and tolerance.
Mindfulness seems pervasive in popular culture and contemporary society. As an academic, I appreciate that universities incorporate mindfulness throughout campus culture beyond the walls of counseling centers. Faculty and administrators recognize it as a promising tool to help students understand their thoughts and feelings, ultimately fostering better self-awareness and emotional regulation. The impact of these applicable skills goes beyond traditional academic performance and grades, helping students approach life with curiosity, open-mindedness and personal wellness. This mindset is pertinent because, during college, students pursue self-discovery and seek to create a new trajectory by situating new and old experiences within their expanding and less self-centered worldview.
I was first introduced to mindfulness in an elementary school in Korea and practiced it regularly through middle school. Each morning, we sat quietly, listening to soft music or calming messages broadcast over the school’s public address system with themes of human triumphs, friendship, love for family and community or relational harmony. This proved to be quite challenging for rambunctious teenagers with wandering minds, but persistent daily practice made it easier. While reflecting on the meaning of the messages, we set goals for the day and contemplated ways to achieve them. At the end of the day, many knew that we failed, but learned that we could always start again, accepting self-disappointment as a part of growth and development.
This habit has carried over into adulthood as I now particularly enjoy mindful walking, or “pleasure walking.” Leaving my apartment every day after dinner, I try to bring my awareness and attention to things that give me pleasure. Lucky for me, a trail near my apartment exhibits the dynamic transformations in the natural world, including a shifting spectrum of colors from leafy spring greens to the beauty of bare winter trees. This joyful feeling intensifies as I join community members — many of them complete strangers — in mindful walking, during which we share our stories and a longing for genuine connection. I find pleasure in seeing children jumping rope, a young grandson fanning his grandmother to keep her cool, an old woman feeding stray cats with volunteers, foreign missionaries struggling to learn Korean for better communication and the sound of wind blowing through an empty playground. These common sights and sounds cultivate gratitude within me, with a reminder that we coexist and are largely responsible for each other’s happiness.
For me, mindfulness denotes communal experiences that promote a strong sense of connectedness; mindfulness practices are to sharpen this mindset into action. This tendency comes naturally to me because Korean culture endorses interconnectedness and interdependence. However, mindfulness in the United States, where I lived for more than a decade, seems to have been adopted with the traditionally Western emphasis on the individualized experience. In this way, mindfulness is reduced to simple stress management and relaxation techniques, oftentimes based on individual goals and rewards. Mindfulness enables people to observe emotions and thoughts as they arise without judgment or self-recrimination. This practice deepens self-exploration and understanding, offering an opportunity to reshape personal narratives.
Mindfulness cultivates a mindset that encourages us to speak and act with greater intention and purpose grounded on a new and different life perspective. It also helps rekindle connections that once existed among us. In this digital age, we are simultaneously more connected than ever before and yet disconnected from those nearest to us. Mindfulness is a path that may help reconnect us to ourselves and each other with authenticity and loving kindness.
Ma Kyung-hee is an editor and researcher specializing in mental health.