Introduction to Mindfulness - Dean Amory

dramatic. While this has long been evident to meditators, it is
beginning to be documented through scientific research (Lazar et al,
2005).
Meditation Practice:
When someone says, “I do mindfulness meditation,” what is he or
she actually doing? There are three key meditation skills often
subsumed under the heading of “mindfulness meditation:”
Concentration Meditation: This technique has a focal object, such
as the breath or a mantra. The instruction is, “When you notice that
your mind has wandered, gently bring it back to [the object].”
Concentration meditation produces a feeling of calmness. The Pali
word most associated with concentration practice is samatha, while
the traditional word for meditation is bhavana, which means
“developing.” “Concentration meditation” is a translation of samatha
bhavana, the cultivation of concentration. The “relaxation response”
(Benson & Klipper, 2000) is well-known example of this meditation
approach.
Mindfulness Meditation: The instruction for mindfulness
meditation is, “Notice whatever predominates in awareness, moment
to moment.” Here the intention is not to choose a single object of
focus, but rather to explore changing experience. The skill of
mindfulness cultivates insight into the nature of one’s personal
conditioning (e.g., “fear of disapproval,” “anger at authority”) and the
nature of mental reality (“it’s changing,” “it’s often unsatisfactory,”
“the ‘self’ is fluid”).
This is primarily what distinguishes “mindfulness meditation” from
other forms of meditation, such as concentration meditation and
various forms of visualization meditation, and it is a unique
contribution of Buddhist psychology. The Pali words for mindfulness
meditation are vipassana bhavana, which translates well as the
cultivation of insight or “insight meditation.” Western researchers
and clinicians usually use the expression “mindfulness meditation” to
refer to this practice.
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