Present Moment. Moment by Moment.

[James123]

At the end of a Jon Kabat-Zinn Q&A I watched last night, I found it interesting when he said (words to the effect) that although formal meditation itself is obviously important to mindfulness, the real meditation practice is how we live our lives moment to moment, with huge self compassion.

I'm guessing what JKZ means by living moment to moment is a mixture of fully using your senses (including your mind) and being mindful of this very moment. Moment to moment.

For example, does this mean when you're walking down stairs to make a cup of tea notice your thigh muscles working, feet landing on the steps, aware that you are walking to the kitchen, perhaps any smells, the sun coming through the window feeling warm on your skin, your arm stretching out as you reach for a cup, notice your hand moving when putting the milk in etc etc etc?

I guess my real question is two fold: 1) Is the above correct/incorrect? 2) for the experienced mindful meditators, how do you live your life moment to moment?

[Gareth]

It comes with time. And practice.

I have been practising solidly for three years now, and my day-to-day awareness has grown slowly over that time. Informal practice is so much easier now than it used to be.

That said, there are still times when mindfulness is more difficult than others and there are still times when you need your mind to go into the future, or times when it's nice to think about good stuff in the past.

It's kind of hard to explain really. I am a different person to the one that started practising, but it has taken this continued practice to make me so.

[James123]

Thanks for replying Gareth, but could you, and other experienced mindfulness meditators on here, expand on your own day to day mindfulness. Moment by moment.

Are you paying attention, on purpose, to the present moment by noticing body movements, muscles working, engaging with all senses etc etc? Noticing every time your focus leaves the present moment and gently bringing it back.

Is that what it is? It's just JKZ didn't expand on what he actually meant.

Thanks.

[Cheesus]

Are you paying attention, on purpose, to the present moment by noticing body movements, muscles working, engaging with all senses etc etc? Noticing every time your focus leaves the present moment and gently bringing it back.

Yes. To a different extent for different people depending on how long they have been practising and what is going on in their life. I find informal practice to be much more rewarding than formal.

I don't think the term 'using all the senses' is quite correct, at least in my experience. I would prefer to say that its simply being present for what you notice. Most often that is the feeling of the ground on my feet if I am walking, or the shape of my body if I am sitting. I am not using all the senses, rather I am merely noticing a very small aspect of my sensory experience with keen intrigue.

One other thing in that quote which is very often overlooked, is that JKZ mentions we should do these things with compassion. People (myself definitely included in this) often jump into mindfulness with an intention to focus non-judgementally on our experience. However, it is often the case that they can do this quite harshly and forcefully at first. However, we should come from a place of compassion. The question ought not be 'how much have I managed to remain in the present moment?' But instead 'how gentle have I been with myself?'

These days I really suspend the question of what it is I am doing with my practice, preferring only to gain insight into that aspect when it offers itself easily. Rather, I decide to focus on how I practice. It's not the feeling of the carpet on my feet that matters, it is the gentle curiosity with which I approach that feeling which pay dividends, and ultimately the gentle acceptance and kindness that I pay to my imperfection (in practice as in all other things) and impermanence which really matters.

[James123]

Thanks for the feedback Cheesus. All this type of guidance helps.

I'm working on getting a basic understanding of mindfulness. There sure is a lot of info and direction to take on board. But I'm sure I'll become more knowledgeable and comfortable with it in time, with practice, patience and a big fat dollop of self compassion.

[JonW]

"Noticing every time your focus leaves the present moment and gently bringing it back."
Yes, that's it, exactly.
That might occur when I'm showering. I'll catch myself ruminating about something or worrying about something that might happen, then bring my attention back to the feel of the hot water on my skin, the texture of the soap etc.
When walking my dog along the beach, I'll realise that I've been carried away by the thought stream, and gently bring my attention to the waves, the seagulls, the sky, the sensation of the wind on my face etc.
It's important, I feel, not to put any pressure on oneself to be constantly in the moment. Even the great sages would find that an impossible challenge. The key is gentle self-compassion. Just noticing that you've been tugged away from the present, and gently leading yourself back by seeing, rather than thinking.
All good things,
Jon

[James123]

Thanks Jon.

Well at least I'm going down the right track as that is what I've trying to implement. Remembering to be in the present is pretty hard work, eh? I feel its going to be a life long practice.

After nearly 5 weeks I'm definitely feeling more relaxed/positive and the cognitive part of it has been a great help as I'm finally starting to understand how parts of the brain works. At times it's been a frustrating journey during the formal practice and especially as there is a lot of info thrown at you with many gentle do's and don'ts. But this is where learning the self compassion part really helps.