Mindfulness: A Philosophical Assessment

Abstract

The idea of mindfulness has achieved a surprisingly extensive following, but what is mindfulness? In the Buddhist texts the word is used in a range of ways. At one end of the spectrum, mindfulness can be synonymous with awareness. “Whether he inhale a long breath, let him be conscious thereof; or whether he exhale a long breath, let him be conscious thereof. Whether he inhale a short breath, or exhale a short breath, let him be conscious thereof” (Rhys Davids 1966: 328). Here mindfulness implies conscious and deliberate investigation of what one is doing, or, perhaps we should say, of what is going on in one. This is the meaning of mindfulness for the beginner. At the other end of the spectrum, for the more advanced practitioner, mindfulness refers either to deep understanding, especially of the key doctrines of Buddhism, or to recollection of wholesome objects. These latter two do, of course, to an extent, coincide as the key doctrines are themselves wholesome objects and, conversely, wholesome objects are always amenable to ever deeper understanding.