by Mark Coleman
Cohn, Howard, 212
Collier, Nadine, 227
comparisons, 91–96, 97, 222
compassion, 7, 95, 96, 225–31, 251. See also self-compassion
computers, 161
conditioning: bias and, 267–70; identity and, 150, 153; inner critic and, 198–99; internalization of, 159–60; mindfulness of, 270–71, 272; negative effects of, 114; positive use of, 161–62; reality vs., 85
confusion, 190
“conscious distraction,” 36
consciousness, 149, 165–66, 167
consumer culture, 50, 131–32, 167, 260, 261
contemplative traditions, 85
control, 69–70, 71, 78–79, 145, 147, 179, 212
“could have,” 101
Covey, Stephen, 183
criticism, 140–41
Cultivating a Steady Heart (practice), 216–18
Cultivating Generosity (practice), 266
curiosity, 23–24, 273
dance, 18
“dark nights of the soul,” 189–90, 191–92
Darwin, Charles, 246
death, 30; body at time of, 73, 148; consciousness at time of, 165–66; contemplation of, 58–62; dissatisfaction and, 120; letting go during, 126–27; of loved ones, 57–58; mindfulness and, 58–59; mindfulness practices, 61–62; modern culture view of, 58; in nature, 275, 277–78
Death Contemplation (practice), 61–62
deep listening, 245
defensiveness, 184, 185, 200–201
deforestation, 256
dementia, 145
denial, 126, 204
Denmark, 261
depression, 198, 260
despair, 190
Developing Compassion for Others (practice), 229–31
Developing Interconnectedness (practice), 257–58
Developing Self-Compassion (practice), 194–95
diet, 29–30, 53, 159
digital devices, 245
discernment, 98–99
discrimination, 251, 270–71
dissatisfaction: Hindu/Buddhist concept of, 117–18; mindfulness of, 118, 120–22; mindfulness practices, 122; with pleasurable experiences, 117–19, 260
distractions, 19, 36
Dogen (Zen master), 262
dopamine, 263
dukkha (dissatisfaction), 117–18
Earth Day, 284
Eckhart, Meister, 189
ecology, 254, 255, 256–57
economic instability, 176, 212
ego, 92–94, 253
egoism, 221
“eight worldly winds,” 213
Einstein, Albert, 253
Ellison, Ralph, 145
embodied presence: author’s sense of, 19–20; emotions and, 18–19; mindfulness practice and, 69; signs of, 17–18
Embracing Aging with Kind Awareness (practice), 54–55
Emmanuel AME Church shooting (Charleston, SC; 2015), 227
emotional triggers: mindfulness of, 181–82, 183, 185–88; other people as, 223; in relationships, 236; response to, 182; space between response and, 183–84, 185; as survival mechanism, 182–83; working with (practice), 186–88
emotions: awareness of, 171; conditioning of, 158; ecological crisis and, 283–84; letting go of, 126; as physiological phenomena, 18–19, 22; reactive, 158
empathy, 7, 251
Endangered Species Act (USA; 1973), 281
engagement, life of, 260, 279–80
entropy, 118
environmental movement, 257
envy, 220–21, 222
Epstein, Mark, 149
equality, feelings of, 92, 94, 95
equanimity: defined, 212, 215; mindfulness and development of, 7, 11, 66, 212–13, 214; mindfulness practices, 216–18; mistaken notions of, 211–12; polarity managed through, 213–15
evolution, 65, 252
Examining Self-Centeredness, 248–49
Examining the Nature of Self (practice), 154–56
exercise, physical, 29, 53
expectations, 42
Exploring the Changing Nature of Self (practice), 142–43
Exploring the Selfless Nature of the Body (practice), 73–74
Exploring the Waves of Joy and Pain (practice), 67–68
eyewitness statements, 106
Facebook, 284
factory farms, 281
failure, 213
fairness, 215–16, 217
family, 161, 235–36
famine, 231
farm animals, 231, 281, 282
fear: anticipatory, 35, 103–4; bias and, 268; of compassion, 228; jealousy and, 220; of loss, 206–8; pain and, 36, 37; perception distorted by, 87, 88; prevention of, 184; views/beliefs and, 114
Fénelon, François, 237
fight-or-flight response, 103, 182–83, 185
Flight of the Garuda, The (Shabkar Tsogdruk Rangdrol), 167–68
focus, 6–7
forgiveness, 95, 227
Francis of Assisi, Saint, 227
Frankl, Viktor, 124
freedom, inner, 78, 142, 170
Friedan, Betty, 50
“full catastrophe,” 64
future: anticipating needs in, 104–5; mindfulness of (practice), 108–9; thoughts of pain in, 35; worrying about, 103–4
gain-loss polarity, 213
Galeano, Eduardo, 69
Galileo, 113
Gandhi, Mahatma, 77, 253–54
gender, 268, 270
gender identification, 270
generalized statements, 101
generosity, 247–48, 263–64, 266
Germer, Christopher, 193
Gilbert, Jack, 63, 64
Gleaning Wisdom from Nature (practice), 277–78
Glide Memorial Church (San Francisco, CA), 261
Goldstein, Joseph, 98
grasping: attachment and, 132; awareness of, 129–30; during childhood, 123–24; nongrasping, 129–30 (see also letting go); after pleasure, 66–67; suffering caused by, 123
Great Way, 133–34
Green River (UT), 276
grief: aging and, 203; anticipatory, 206–8; author’s experience, 190; coping with, 57–58; heartfulness and, 203–4; letting go and, 126–27; mindfulness and opening into, 205–6; mindfulness practices, 208–9; process of, 126; self-judgment and, 204–5
guilt, 204, 258
guns, 182
habitat destruction, 281
habits, 161
habituation, 118–19, 260
Hafiz (Persian poet), 103, 265
happiness, 77, 261, 263. See also joy
Harari, Yuval Noah, 254
Harding, Douglas, 146
Harrison, Vicki, 203
Harvard University, 7
Hawken, Paul, 265
“Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, Knees and Toes” (body scan practice), 31–32
healing energy, 33–34, 70–71
health, 212, 214, 225
heart: awareness of, 136–37; emotional trigger signals in, 184; growing of, 239; mindfulness and, 12; nature and, 282–83; open, and nature, 283; opening of, and compassion, 227, 228; relationships and, 235; shutting down of, 229; steady, 212, 216–18 (see also equanimity); vulnerability of, 176–77, 179. See also compassion; emotional triggers; emotions; joy; kindness; loss; self-compassion
Heraclitus, 41, 42
hindsight, 101
Hollywood, 236
homelessness, 228–29, 231, 261
homophobia, 114, 176
hormones, 159
humanity, shared, 191, 192, 251–52, 285
humor, 101–2
hunger, 176
Iceland, 261
ideas, 171
identity: body and, 146–48, 155; building sense of, 145–46; compassionate attention to, 153–54; as fixed, 140, 153; labeling and, 151–52; mindfulness and, 151; mindfulness practices, 154–56; mind/thoughts and, 148–51, 155–56; personality and, 152–54. See also self, sense of
illusion, 85
immigration, 252, 256
impermanence: aging and, 52–53; death contemplation and, 60–62; dynamic nature of, 277–78; equanimity and, 217–18; of joy, 9; life in alignment with, 42; mindfulness practices, 45–47; in nature, 274–75; of pain, 36; perceptual distortions about, 86, 89; of pleasure, 118–19; of sense of self, 140–43, 145, 154, 277; views/beliefs about, 115; as wake-up call, 44–45
“impostor syndrome,” 198
incest, 176
India, 64, 66, 253–54
individualism, 115
inferiority, feelings of, 92, 93–94, 95
injuries, 159
inner critic: author’s experience, 1, 97; conditioning and belief in, 160, 198–99; grief and, 204–5; judging mind and, 98; meditation and, 199–200; mindfulness of, 100, 101–2; mindfulness practices, 201–2; negative effects of, 197–98; self-compassion as antidote to, 200–202; views/beliefs based in, 114; vulnerability and, 102
instinct, 150
insults, 183
intention, 266, 285
interconnection: developing (practice), 257–58; global need for, 254–55, 256–57, 285; mindfulness and, 255–56, 279, 285; in nature, 275, 278; sense of self and, 156; separateness vs., 251–55; service and, 261; social movements based on, 253–54; views/beliefs about, 115
intuition, 22
Iraq War, 252, 256
“I” thoughts, 150–51, 154–55
Jagger, Mick, 117
jealousy, 220–21
Jesus of Nazareth, 134
John Paul II, Pope, 279
journaling, 116
joy: body and, 19; as impermanent, 9; mindfulness practices, 222–23; sympathetic, 219–23
Joyce, James, 19
judgments, 97–102, 258. See also inner critic; self-judgment
Kabir (Indian poet), 273
Karoli Baba, Neem, 261
Keolker, James, 51–52
kindness: awareness and, 175, 177; equanimity and, 218; loss and, 203, 206, 208; mindfulness and, 177; vulnerability met with, 177–80
“Kindness” (poem; Nye), 203–4
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 227–28, 251, 252, 254
Kornfield, Jack, 123, 220
labeling, 151–52, 155
Lance, Ethel, 227
Lao-tzu, 131, 135
Last Lecture, The (Pausch), 120
Lawrence, D. H., 148
leadership, 261–62
Letters to a Young Poet (Rilke), 70
letting be, 123
letting go: of attachments, 134–35; in bad conditions, 124–25; benefits of, 128; during childhood, 123–24; as letting be, 123, 126–28; mindfulness practices, 128–30; New Age view of, 125–26; of sense of self, 156
limbic system, 182–83
listening, 245
London (England), 1–2, 17–18, 268
Lorde, Audre, 267
loss: aging and, 203; anticipation of, 206–8; coping with, 57–58; heartfulness and, 203–4; mindfulness and opening into, 205–6; polarity and, 213; self-judgment and, 204–5; vulnerability to, 179–80
love, 19, 177, 227, 239, 265, 281–82
loving-kindness, 202
Lutz, A., 52
Ma, Dipa, 245
Macy, Joanna, 257, 284
Mahabharata, 57
Make Peace with Your Mind (Coleman), 97, 191
Mandela, Nelson, 262
mantras, 45
Maranasati (death contemplation), 58–59
Marcus Aurelius, 124
marital conflict, 199
materialism, 260
meat diet, 282–83
media, 64
medicine, 159
Meditating on Impermanence (practice), 45–47
meditation: aging and, 53; author as teacher of, xx, 91, 120; author’s experience, 77, 189–90, 279; benefits of, 43–44, 52; equanimity and, 212; on impermanence, 45–47; inner critic and, 199–200; misconceptions about, 243–44, 279; negativity during, 157–58; online courses in, xx; as practice, 37; reasons for, 80; as self-centered, 243–44, 262; sympathetic joy meditation, 219–20; thoughts and, 81; “unmindfulness,” 166–67; walking, 6, 23–25; wandering attention during, 248
meditation retreats, 157–58, 255–56, 276–77, 281–82
memory, 105–6, 108, 109, 145
mental disorders, 176
microorganisms, 147
mind: awareness of processes of, 77–81, 136–37; body and, 159; comparing, 91–96; control of, 71, 145, 179; creative/harmful potentials of, 77–78; emotional trigger signals in, 184; grasping nature of, 66–67; happiness and, 77; identification with, 148–51, 155–56; judging, 97–102, 197–202; mindfulness and, 12, 80–81; mindfulness practices, 82–83, 89–90, 94–96, 100–102; mistaken identity conceptualized by, 151; perceptual distortion and, 85–89; pleasure/pain waves in, 65; reactivity and, 68; scientific research on, 77, 148–49, 165; sense of self and, 145; time as construct of, 103, 105; vulnerability of, 179. See also attachment; causality; dissatisfaction; identity; letting go; self, sense of; thoughts; time; views/beliefs
mindfulness: aging and, 54; author as teacher of, xix–xxi, 41, 235; author’s interest in, xix, 1–3, 17–18, 113; benefits of, xvii–xviii, 3, 5–12, 43–44, 79, 98–100, 262–63, 279–80, 285; of bias, 270–72; body and, 20–22, 28–29, 35–36, 72, 120–21, 146–47; of conditioning, 270–71, 272; death and, 58–59; deep listening as facet of, 245; defined, xxi, 3–6, 64, 167; of dissatisfaction, 118, 120–22; of emotional triggers, 181–82, 183; equanimity developed through, 66, 212–13, 214; grounding quality of, 80; inner critic and, 200; interconnection and, 255–56, 285; kindness and, 177; loss and, 203; love infused with, 227; modern popularity of, xvii–xviii, 5, 7; origins of, xvii, xviii–xix; of pain, 34, 35–36; paradox of, 262; point of, 69; questions/concerns about, xviii; of reactivity, 127–28, 238–39, 262–63, 279; scientific research on, 20, 214; self-centeredness and, 244–45; self-compassion and, 190–91; of sense of self, 142, 153; thoughts and, 80–81, 106–7; unmindfulness, 166–67, 169–70; of views/beliefs, 113–16. See also awareness; mindfulness practices; under specific topic
Mindfulness Institute, xx
Mindfulness of Awareness Itself (practice), 170–72
Mindfulness of Bias (practice), 271–72
Mindfulness of Breath (practice), 13–14
Mindfulness of Thoughts (practice), 82–83
Mindfulness of Time (practice), 108–9
Mindfulness of Views (practice), 116
mindfulness practices: for aging, 54–55; for awareness, 170–72; for bias, 271–72; for body, 23–25, 31–32, 73–74; for causality, 162–63; for compassion, 229–31; death contemplation, 61–62; for dissatisfaction, 122; for emotional triggers, 186–88; for equanimity, 216–18; how to use, 12; on impermanence, 45–47; for inner critic, 201–2; for interconnection, 257–58; for letting go, 128–30; for loss/grief, 208–9; maturation of, 177; for mind, 82–83, 89–90, 94–96, 100–102; for nature, 277–78; for nonattachment, 135–37; for pain, 38–39; for pleasure/pain waves, 67–68; for self-centeredness, 248–49; for self-compassion, 194–95; for sense of self, 142–43, 154–56; for service, 266; for sympathetic joy, 222–23; for time, 108–9; types of, 6; for views/beliefs, 116; for vulnerability, 178–80
Mindful Self-Compassion, 193
monastic life, 235–36
mood disorders, 176
moods, 171
mortality. See death
multitasking, 161–62, 245
mysticism, 104, 148–49, 165–66, 273
Nasruddin stories, 71
National Science Foundation, 79
nature: author’s experience in, 19–20, 152; death in, 275; disconnection from, 283; embodied presence in, 20; human destruction of, 280–81; impermanence in, 274–75, 277–78; industrial world and, 280; interconnection in, 275, 278; love of, 281–82; mindfulness practices, 277–78, 286; renewal awaiting in, 284–85; self-centeredness and, 276; sense of self and, 276–77, 278; sensory awareness in, 20, 273–74, 277; simplicity/peace t
aught by, 275–76; stewardship of, 282–84; vulnerability of, 283
Neff, Kristin, 191, 193
negativity, 87, 93, 157–58, 197. See also inner critic
negativity bias, 43, 63–64, 97–98
neuroscience, 77, 148–49, 150, 165
“never” statements, 101
New Delhi (India), 64
NGOs, 265
Nhat Hanh, Thich, 253
Nietzsche, Friedrich, 17
Nisker, Wes, 154
nonattachment, 135–37; mindfulness practices, 135–37; Zen view of, 133–34
nongrasping, 129–30. See also letting go Norway, 261
Noticing the Comparing Mind (practice), 94–96
nursing, 246–47
Nye, Naomi Shihab, 203–4
observation, 78
Occupy movement, 254
Oliver, Mary, 59–60
“one less” mantra, 45
On Having No Head (Harding), 146
open awareness practice, 6
opinions. See views/beliefs
“otherness,” 88, 99, 114, 135–37
other people: attunement to, as self-centeredness antidote, 246–48; compassion extended to, 225–31; as emotional triggers, 223; joy of, 219–23
ozone layer, 255
pain, emotional: attachment and, 132; author’s experience, 189–90; equanimity and, 215–16; gifts bestowed by, 191–92; inner critic as cause of, 200; internalization of, 192–93; reactivity as cause of, 190; self-compassion during, 190–91, 193–95; vulnerability to, 179–80
pain, physical: author’s experience, 34; equanimity and, 215–16; healing energy for, 33–34; as human condition, 225; as impermanent, 36; letting go with, 127; mindfulness of, 34, 35–36; mindfulness practices, 38–39; negativity as result of, 158; reactivity to, 36–37; running away from, 34–35, 66, 67. See also pleasure-pain polarity
Painchaud, Michelle, 181
“Painful Case, A” (short story; Joyce), 19
parenting, 161, 236, 247, 264
parents, 199, 236, 238
Paris Agreement (2016), 255
Parks, Rosa, 253
passivity, 128, 215
past, the, 104, 105–7, 108–9, 161
patience, 7, 54, 237
Pausch, Randy, 120
peace, 275–77
“Peace of Wild Things, The” (poem; Berry), 275–76
perceptions, 85–90, 267–68, 270, 272
permanence, 115
personality, 71, 152–54
phenomenology, 104
physical abilities, 270
