On Mindfulness

Reading books about mindfulness is fine. It can be helpful, instructive and explanatory. But it is only an intellectual entertainment and will stay purely that if you don’t put away that book and finally do this simple exercise that is described in it. There is nothing wrong with entertainment, just call it what it is and don’t confuse it with practice.

Reading cookbooks will not put a sophisticated meal on your table, you have to get up and DO the cooking. Neither reading books about playing guitar will make you a guitar player, you have to get up, find a guitar and start exercising it.

To learn an activity takes more than reading about it; it takes practice. You simply can’t do it without a bit of bodily effort.

Mindfulness meditation is an activity that needs to be learned and exercised. It is experiential not theoretical practice. It needs to be done not read about. So stop reading, sit down, close your eyes and feel your body. MEDITATE.