Definition of Mindfulness

Mindfulness (Pali: Sati; Sanskrit:smṛti स्मृति ) is a technique in which a person becomes intentionally aware of his or her thoughts and actions in the Present Moment, non-judgmentally. It plays a central role in Buddhism, with Right Mindfulness (Pali:sammā-sati; Sanskritsamyak-smṛti) being the seventh element of the Noble Eightfold Path, the practice of which is considered a prerequisite for developing insight and wisdom. Mindfulness may be paralogous in Christianity through the Eastern Orthodox hesychastic concept of nepsis which has been defined by Abbot Georgios of the monastery of St. Gregorios on Mount Athos as "vigilance of the nous and watchfulness at the gates of the heart, so that every thought that moves in it can be controlled." Nepis is practiced in Orthodox monasteries with the aid of Philokalia which contains the writings of great past neptics such as Gregory Palamas and Isaiah the Solitary. Unlike Buddhism, in such a context nepsis is a tool in the ultimate goal of greater union with Christ and is not practiced by the same methods. In a secular context, mindfulness is attracting increasing interest among western psychiatrists as a non-pharmacological means of dealing with anxiety and depressive mood states.