Buddhism by the Numbers

Right Mindfulness

• Mindfulness is remembering to come back to the present moment.
• Right mindfulness accepts everything without judging or reacting. It is inclusive and loving.
• The practice is to find a way to sustain appropriate attention throughout the day.

The Seven Miracles of Mindfulness

1. Be present
2. Make the other present also
3. Nourish the object of your attention
4. Relieve the other’s suffering
5. Looking deeply
6. Understanding (the foundation of love).
7. Transformation

The Four Establishments of Mindfulness

1. Mindfulness of the body in the body
2. Mindfulness of the feelings in the feelings
3. Mindfulness of the mind in the mind
4. Mindfulness of phenomena in phenomena (object of our mind)

Six Elements

1. Earth
2. Water
3. Fire
4. Air
5. Space
6. Consciousness

If we observe these six elements inside us and around us, we see that we are not separate from the universe. This insight free us from the idea of birth and death.

• Anxiety comes primarily from our inability to dwell in the present moment.
• Letting go is a practice that can bring us a lot of happiness.
• What is essential is to be alive and present to all the wonders of life that are available.
• Threefold training: precepts, concentration, and insight.
• The practice of the precepts is the practice of Right Mindfulness. If we don’t practice the precepts, we are not practicing mindfulness. The heart of the Buddhist Meditation is the practice of mindfulness and mindfulness is the practice of the precepts.
• Look deeply at your hand and see the Buddha Eye in it. The hand represents action and the eye represents insight and understanding.

Based on the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh

Photo credit: Benn Bell