Why will the world benefit from Mindfulness Day?

Mindfulness is no longer just a Buddhist or spiritual practice—in the news each day, we hear of practitioners in psychotherapy, general medicine, education, and even the military finding benefit in its application. It’s our goal that Mindfulness Day will raise awareness about the value and benefit mindfulness brings for everyone on our planet. 

Through cultivating mindfulness we give ourselves an opportunity to relax and be present. Mindfulness Day will give many people a chance to start fresh and recharge by integrating mindfulness in their own personal way. This day offers individuals and communities a chance to embrace a practice they have heard about, experiment with it, and make it their own if they enjoy it. 

How can people participate, whether they’re near a location that is holding an event, or somewhere where nobody has heard of mindfulness?

Despite the growing awareness of mindfulness, there still remain places or communities where it has not been heard of and this is one reason we’re creating this day.

Mindfulness is the practice of developing presence in all aspects of our lives—whether we are working, driving, gardening, cleaning, or having dinner with our families. A state of constant, peaceful presence is the goal and result of mindfulness.

And that’s the great thing about this day, since people can choose to be mindful at any time, anywhere in their daily lives. Mindfulness is a personal practice that helps generate a peaceful compassionate mindset in the world. So you can be quirky, creative, spontaneous, and authentic in how you want to celebrate.

In the summer of 2011 thousands of people gathered in Times Square to participate in a yoga “Flash Mob”. We’d love to see “Mindfulness Mobs” or “Meditation Mobs” flash up around the world. Join our Facebook group and share ideas, pictures, and videos of how mindfulness has impacted your lives and how you plan on celebrating Mindfulness Day. Get on your neighborhood list serves and invite people to gather at a certain time, or separately, to take time to sit in quiet contemplation, prayer or through any method that connects them to the practice of mindfulness. Spiritual communities can hold special gatherings, families can join together for a special meal and reconnect with relatives, commuters who ride the same bus or train or car pool can find a way to take a quiet mindful moment or two or thirty.

What are your hopes for the future of Mindfulness Day?

Our hope is that Mindfulness Day will continue and grow into an annual event. That is one of the reasons we chose September 12. The first Mindfulness Day coincided with the full moon, which according to the traditional lunar calendar represents a time of increase. By choosing a day at the beginning of the fall season, we hope to offer people an invitation to shed old habits, learn new skills as they head back to school, or back to work, back to more time indoors, and hopefully back to a more mindful frame of mind.