What is Right Mindfulness?

Mindfulness meditation is increasingly popular nowadays, but its roots go back to early Buddhist texts associated with the seventh stage along the Eightfold Path. We will delve a little into these texts and attempt to flesh out the key aspects of mindfulness meditation in the early tradition.
Two books I recommended in the video:
Anālayo: Satipaṭṭhāna, the Direct Path to Realization: amzn.to/2qyy7CD
Joseph Goldstein: Mindfulness, a Practical Guide to Awakening: amzn.to/2H1SPpw
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Please visit the Secular Buddhist Association webpage!
secularbuddhism...
Disclaimer: Amazon links are affiliate links where I will earn a very small commission on purchases you make, at no additional cost to you. This goes a tiny way towards defraying the costs of making these videos. Thank you!

[@naftalibendavid]

Only discovered this recently but I return to it often. Thanks so much for the clarity and optimism. You have helped me.

[@DougsDharma]

You are very welcome! I will be redoing the video soon ... !

[@ikkong8436]

Although this video is 5y old, the contents are invaluable to our practice. Thanks Doug for this excellent video. Sadhu sadhu sadhu 🙏🙏🙏

[@DougsDharma]

🙏😊

[@joelfry4982]

Thank you for this lesson. It has already proved to be useful.

[@DougsDharma]

You’re very welcome Joel, thanks for watching! 🙏

[@ricardofranciszayas]

Hi Doug, you mentioned something to the effect that Mindfulness of the Four Noble truths is a pretty advanced practice. I think that it is gradual development of mindfulness which happens after having a few years under ones belt and practicing for a little bit of time. I'm speaking strictly as an old man. I'm 65. My body tells me every day that the four Noble truths are indeed truth. For me, just the simple experience of being a living being who is aging is pretty good evidence of that fact and and it helps the practice of being mindful of the four Noble truths. Getting old is an excellent reminder. Keep up the good work, Doug. I really enjoy your teaching.

[@DougsDharma]

Yes, good point Ricardo. Understanding the Four Noble Truths involves a maturing of wisdom. I think for those of us who have spent time with the teachings it is clear as day.

[@SS-wz8po]

Good educational video. Hits home for everyone when it comes to the subject of inevitable death. Thanks, Mr. Smith. You have covered mostly everything on the topic. However, I just want to add that the Buddhist monks must spend their first 5 years practicing the Buddhist moralities before jumping into the 4 precepts and the eightfold paths. The main keys of the Buddhist moralities are the threefold training which I refer it to as a "Tripod of moralities", when one violated one of the tripod's leg, the entire tripod is useless. The tripod of moralities include: Wisdom (Prajna), Sila (Morality or the brakes if it's a car) and Samathi ( Concentration/ Balance). I hope I don't make you feel like I'm being intrusive. Thank you, Mr. Smith. Keep up the good work. I love it.

[@DougsDharma]

Yes indeed SK SIP, the threefold training is the heart of Buddhist dharma. 🙏

[@dfdgfdgf0000]

Thank you 🙏 Be sure I appreciate greatly this synthesis of so many texts summarized for people like me.

[@DougsDharma]

You're very welcome, Avida! 🙏

[@taojones4941]

Amazing video. Beautiful souls below are gathering in the comments below to help each other.

[@DougsDharma]

Absolutely!

[@ramjaladi9451]

Good summary. Thanks Doug

[@DougsDharma]

Glad it was helpful!

[@patrickacolifloresvillasen1731]

Thank you, Doug!

[@DougsDharma]

My pleasure!

[@jino139]

Thank you for your guidance.

[@DougsDharma]

You're most welcome, Jack.

[@TomasAlejandroBaldassarre]

Thank you so much for your videos, they help a lot.

[@DougsDharma]

You're very welcome!

[@sompong2482]

Awesome well pleased without delight !

[@DougsDharma]

😄 Thanks Alfred, glad you were pleased.

[@ricardofranciszayas]

Great teaching, Doug.

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks Ricardo!

[@sompong2482]

keep up the good work

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks Alfred, I'll do my best. 🙂

[@jacksonbarua7574]

I think right mindfulness isn’t a unique path of noble eightfold path,it is alertness of other seven paths,even ordinary people must use it for happy living.

[@mertefe4345]

Hi Doug. I don't know if it is right place to write but I just recognized something very weird and I thought you might have some ideas about this. I was practicing Metta for a whole year, and I started to get these head tensions for this whole year but I thought it was some purification or something else. And I wasn't trying too hard with Metta by the way. I also practiced during the day because everyone was preaching Metta and I thought I need something like that and I loved the idea of Metta. Anyway, I never felt that good and joy while doing so, I always felt weird, dissociated, like unable to think clearly, cognitevely declined after it. It is weird I know but it was the case really, after reciting each phrase my mind would clench like a fist in the head. My native language is Turkish, and that experiences all happened when I tried Metta in English. So I switch to Turkish, and in 5 minutes I experience joy and happiness I never had before and my cognitive abilities are smoother than ever before. But with English Metta I was like unable to think anything because I was so foggy. And it was for a whole year. Do you have any idea what is going on? Or was there a rule to practice one's own native in first place? Thanks. !

[@DougsDharma]

Interesting, Mert! I'm not sure what's going on, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me if using one's native language made phrases easier to practice: that way they speak more directly to the mind and heart, rather than having to be 'translated' each time. So do them in Turkish from now on! 🙂

[@patrickcahill4396]

Hi Doug, at one point in the video you talk about 'awareness of our own ignorance'. Well, I am currently reading 'Zen Keys' by Thich Nhat Hanh and I am acutely aware that I have no clue as to how Koans are meant to bring on 'awareness'. I have read what he says about Kung-ans (Koans) but cannot get my head around it. Perhaps I am not ready to understand at this point. Zen seems to be rather tricky so I should perhaps stick to attempting Mindfulness day to day and in Meditation. Thanks for producing this series of videos. This one, in particular, has demonstrated just little I know. I thought I had a handle on 'Mindfulness'; but it appears it is a much broader subject than I first anticipated. BTW you may want to reference the books you mentioned in the description. Thanks again.

[@DougsDharma]

Yes, a lot of the aim of Zen training is to get us to be aware of our ignorance. I am similarly baffled by koans, and much as I find them often aesthetically beautiful, I prefer a more rational or reasoned approach to the dhamma. That is one reason I prefer the route provided in the early texts to that found in Zen. But to each their own! You're right that mindfulness is a very, very large topic. I've gone ahead and updated the description to include both books mentioned in the video. Thanks for pointing that out, and thanks for your question!

[@th69100]

@@DougsDharma But can awareness of one's own ignorance as a result of practicing koans be considered a rational approach to the dhamma? Awareness of what we don't know can be a good way to think rationally, I think, instead of assuming we know everything.

[@benquinney2]

Situational awareness

[@DougsDharma]

I think that's how Bhikkhu Sujato translates one of these related terms.

[@jacksonbarua7574]

What is the difference between right mindfulness of Noble eightfold path & mindfulness in seven factors of awakening?

[@DougsDharma]

Hard question for me to answer precisely, so far as I know this isn't elaborated upon in the early texts.

[@alexdoerofthings]

What are your thoughts on The Mind Illuminated, by Culadasa? I have found that one to be incredibly approachable as it provides explanations of what's going on through brain science.

[@DougsDharma]

Hi Alejandro and thanks for the question. I haven't read Culadasa's book but it certainly looks interesting!

[@sompong2482]

hes on youtube was very impressed

[@xitsox]

Hi Doug :) Thanx for the wonderful video. Do you practice contemplation of the elements? And if you do what do you think of changing the elements of earth, water, fire, air with the chemical elements? You gave me a great hint with this and i have started this conceptual contemplation of the different chemical elements that consist the body and that are also part of the whole material existence. Looking for the self in the body parts and their constituent elements, thinking if i control them as being mine. Then thinking of these same elements on a universal level, how they merge into a different bonds that sooner or later are broken down to form new bonds, new forms, ect. The the constant flow of the universal rivers with the different types of wave, rising and falling. And from that point continue with the nex observation of the boy in decay and this continues change in the form (body) as mentioned above, from the conceit to the death and after, the different animals and bacteria eating this body, the elements entering in them, the final decomposition of this body into dust full of different chemical elements. I have started practicing the four satipathanas according Analayo writings but the body contemplation of the traditional elements is very difficult for me to grasp, and so decided to try it a more different look. What do you think about changing a bit the objects but keeping the core approach? Greetings and Metta

[@DougsDharma]

Yes thanks El Freegano. I don't practice elements contemplations very often, they are very conceptual and I prefer working on the heart than the mind since I'm usually up in the mind so often. That said, they are great contemplations to do, and probably I should do them more. And yes, the main points of the elements contemplation can be got across whether or not you're using the traditional "four elements" or whether you're thinking in more modern terms of chemical interactions, etc. The point is to break down the idea of a solid "self", of "I", "me", and "mine".

[@xitsox]

@@DougsDharma Thanx for the answer, Doug. What do you mean by working on the heart? Doing more Metta? Greetings, Brother!

[@DougsDharma]

Yeah, you got it. 🙂

[@benquinney2]

Closed casket

[@xiaomaozen]

Brilliant video! Thanks a lot! 🙏 But I'd like to disagree with you about "unworldly pleasant feelings". You say that unworldly pleasant feelings are not something - from a Buddhist standpoint - that we really can become attached to. Or that we could, but it's more difficult. Or that it's certainly much, much less of a problem. Well, in my humble opinion unworldly pleasant feelings can become the biggest hindrance at all on the path... There's a relatively new book on mindfulness. An introductory historical approach: "Mindfulness - Where It Comes From and What It Means" by Sarah Shaw. Maybe someone here is interested...

[@DougsDharma]

Thanks for the comment xiao mao. Unworldly pleasant feelings are not presented in the early texts as particularly problematic compared with sense pleasures for example. That isn't to say they can't be problematic, only that attachment to them is relatively subtle. I plan on making a video about some of this with regard to jhāna soon. 🙂

[@xiaomaozen]

@@DougsDharma I see, thanks for the clarification. 🙂

[@ronnyc4380]

Based on the satipatthana instructions, seems to me that "attentiveness" might be a better word than "mindfulness." My sense of "mindfulness" is holding something in mind, applying some idea to one's behavior: e.g. "being mindful of one's responsibilities." And even then it's a pretty obscure word in it's original sense nowadays, which has made it susceptible to being interpreted as something specifically Buddhist. As it is, Doug, you repeatedly talk about "paying attention to..." in the video. Or maybe, now that I think of it, less academically, "noticing." For example, noticing the arising of sensations and their disappearance.

[@DougsDharma]

This is something that's been debated a bit recently, to what extent "mindfulness" means more than just "awareness" or "attentiveness". The general consensus as I understand it is that "mindfulness" has an ethical dimension that goes beyond mere awareness or attentiveness. We can be unmindfully attentive or aware. Though of course mindfulness does include attentiveness.

[@ronnyc4380]

@@DougsDharmaI get what you're saying. Certainly, popular notions of mindfulness do assume an absence of any cognitive/interpretive component that isn't born out by the satipatthana text. Though, not sure about "ethical" ; could you say more? I do think that "attentiveness," as opposed to simply paying attention, can be understood as bringing discernment to the process--maybe by virtue of the use of "being attentive to someone's needs." But I guess that you could use "aware" in this way too. Which speaks to the differences in our understanding of the nouns and the verbs.

[@DougsDharma]

@@ronnyc4380 Well if you look at the progression of forms of awareness in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, they are intended to move one in a particular ethical direction, and with awareness that impinges upon our skillful approach to life. Bare awareness need not have such an aim.

[@localnugget]

Doug, since traditional meditation (following the breath) is mindfulness of the body, would it be accurate to say that all forms of meditation are essentially forms of mindfulness? Also, just to make sure I’m understanding this correctly, is mindfulness of death/decay done conceptually as well as while following the breath? That’s to say, I conceptualize about my decay (such as in the 3rd person view) while also following the breath at the same time ?

[@DougsDharma]

Hi Chris, I wouldn't say that all forms of meditation are mindfulness. There are at least two forms distinguished in the early tradition, as we see in the seventh and eighth parts of the Eightfold Path: these are Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration. That is, there is a distinction between mindfulness meditation and concentration meditation, at least in principle. There are also other forms of early Buddhist meditation that we might distinguish, like the Brahmavihāras. Other meditations on mindfulness of the body, such as mindfulness of death and decay, are separate from mindfulness of the breath. If you want to see more about this check out my playlist on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness: kzbin.info/aero/PL0akoU_OszRjItCXmF-MMPdKwTdtGSxl- 🙂

[@stevenkok1926]

Shadu Shadu Shadu You are a buddha.

[@DougsDharma]

Oh, I'm not a Buddha. Just someone along the path. 🙂