How Do I Start?

[Gareth]

This is the final artice that will be up on the main section of the new site. In this article, I want to convey they fact that there are a variety of ways that you can practise, but I also want to place a strong emphasis on the 8-week course which is a tried-and-tested introduction to mindfulness (although not the way I started). I am going to 'advertise' these topics on Twitter soon, to see if we can get some more input into how they should go. Here is what I wrote (extreme honesty again please):

There are a multitude of ways in which you can practise mindfulness. After all, there are an infinite amount of moments that can be experienced and a large number of aspects to any given moment. Many people practise mindfulness of breathing, because the breath is always there and always in the present moment. The breath is a wonderful anchor, and it can really get you in touch with your own body and what is going on there, but there are other ways ways to practise mindfulness too. You can be mindful of the sounds around you or you can be mindful of the taste of the food that you eat; infact, you can bring mindfulness to almost any aspect of your life. The more that you practise, the easier it gets - like most things in life. Mindfulness can be an alien concept to get your head around at first, particularly if you haven't done anything like this before. The 8-week mindfulness course is a tried-and-tested method of introducing someone to mindfulness, and it is taught all over the world. There are also a massive amount of books out there that explain the concepts of mindfulness, although in reality they are all extremely simple. Come along to our forum and join people that are undergoing the 8-week course or chat generally around the subject of mindfulness.

[JonW]

That's excellent, Gareth.
All I'd suggest is maybe a line or two about how mindfulness is not a quick fix solution for anything but is likely to bring benefits when practiced with patience, discipline and gentleness.

[BioSattva]

Looks good.

There are a multitude of ways in which you can practise mindfulness. After all, there are an infinite amount of moments that can be experienced and a large number of aspects to any given moment.

I understand what you are saying, however what the part in bold makes me think if I try to be more 'new' to all this, is that if there are an infinite amount or number of moments, then does that mean I can practise mindfulness in different timeframes? And if infinite moments are available to me does that mean I will never die? For those with established practises, it's easy to understand that a moment is 'here' as much in physical location as well as time or 'outside of time' after JKZ), but normally I think people consider moments mainly a feature of time that continues until they kick the bucket. It could sound like too much is being promised in an ambiguously poetic way.

Also, the large number of 'aspects' to a given moment could be a bit too broad - triggering a cascade of overwhelming complexity for the reader as he or she imagines immersing themselves in all the large number of features of the moment almost like an epileptic having a fit.

There are many aspects to a moment that wouldn't be considered healthy 'anchors' for mindfulness practise - such as fantasising or indulging in judging good or bad. Maybe some explicit mention of the necessity or role of anchoring oneself needs to be made beyond the examples you give?

There are also a massive amount of books out there that explain the concepts of mindfulness, although in reality they are all extremely simple.

This sentence feels a little strange for some reason. When you say "although in reality they are all extremely simple" it appears some kind of compelxity has been inferred by the first part of the sentence, but a massive amount of books is not necessarily a complex situation from where I am standing as an imagined new beginner. If they are all manuals for a relatively simple (yet difficult!) practise, then there needn't be an assumed complexity.... maybe a minor detail but the simple/complex duality seemed to arise out of nowhere as I read the sentence.

Hope any of that helps.

Bio.

[JonW]

"There are also a massive amount of books out there that explain the concepts of mindfulness, although in reality they are all extremely simple."

Maybe something along the lines of, "There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms."

[Gareth]

"Maybe something along the lines of, "There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms."

What about: There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms, because at it's heart mindfulness is an extremely simple concept.

[JonW]

A slight tweak suggestion:
"At its heart, mindfulness is very simple and straightforward. There are many books out there on the subject. The best of these books remain true to the spirit of the practice and explain it in a very straightforward way."

[BioSattva]

"Maybe something along the lines of, "There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms."

What about: There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms, because at it's heart mindfulness is an extremely simple concept.

Sounds good to me.

[Gareth]

This one has gone up as well today (a quiet day at work). I have made all the suugested changes and posted the following:

How do I Start?
There are many of ways in which you can practise mindfulness. After all, there are a large number of ways in which you can anchor yourself to any given moment.

Many people practise mindfulness of breathing, because the breath is always there and always in the present moment. The breath is a wonderful anchor, and it can really get you in touch with your own body and what is going on there, but there are other ways ways to practise mindfulness too. You can be mindful of the sounds around you or you can be mindful of the taste of the food that you eat; infact, you can bring mindfulness to almost any aspect of your life. The more that you practise, the easier it gets – like most things in life. Mindfulness can be an alien concept to get your head around at first, particularly if you haven’t done anything like this before. Mindfulness is not a quick fix solution for anything but is likely to bring benefits when practiced continually with patience, discipline and gentleness.

The 8-week mindfulness course devised by the pioneer of secular mindfulness Jon Kabat-Zinn is a tried-and-tested method of introducing someone to mindfulness, and it is taught all over the world. There are many books out there on the subject of mindfulness and the best of these manage to explain the practice in very simple terms, because at it’s heart mindfulness is an extremely simple concept.

Come along to our forum and join people that are undergoing the 8-week course or chat generally around the subject of mindfulness.