Mindfulness and meditation are two ways of focusing and relaxing the mind. People often get confused between the two as both of them might sound the same. People might not have a clear idea of what mindfulness and meditation are. That is where it gets confusing.
Mindfulness is all about being attentive and being aware of all the things that are happening and not just things majorly but emotions, the behavior of others, theirs and your feelings, and many more such things. Meditation is a technique or a way that nurtures mindfulness and helps us focus better.
Key Takeaways
- Mindfulness is the practice of being present and fully engaged in the current moment, while meditation focuses on a specific object, thought, or activity.
- Mindfulness can be practiced throughout the day in any situation, while meditation is typically done in a quiet and calm environment.
- Mindfulness can increase awareness and reduce stress in daily life, while meditation can improve focus, reduce anxiety, and promote relaxation.
Mindfulness vs Meditation
The difference between mindfulness and meditation is that mindfulness is being aware of things, while meditation is being aware of all the non-things around us. There can be many different ways and aims of meditation. For instance, some aim to focus on a clear and focused mind. Mindfulness mediation is just a form of clearing the mind and meditating through it.
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Mindfulness is all about being attentive and being aware of all the things that are happening and not just things majorly but emotions, the behavior of others, theirs and your feelings, and many more such things.
It can be practiced or experienced at any time, with anyone and anywhere, just by being there not just physically but mentally too and paying all the attention to it.
Mediation is focusing on all the non-things around us. It basically includes the softness, tenderness, and kindness towards no one but ourselves. Meditation is to restore all the dimensions of our beings. These dimensions that we are restoring through meditation have never been missing.
It is just that we have absorbed somewhere and something else.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Mindfulness | Meditation |
|---|---|---|
| What are they? | Mindfulness is a quality. Mindfulness is all about being attentive and being aware of all the things that are happening. | Meditation is a practice. Mediation is focusing on all the non-things around us. It basically includes the softness, tenderness, and kindness towards no one but ourselves. |
| As a tool | To develop the skill or the ability to be mindful, one needs meditation, as meditation is one of the tools used to develop mindfulness. | Mediation can be divided into many roads, and one of them is mindful living. |
| Treatments | Mindfulness is a quality that comes with many benefits, and one of them is related to mental health benefits. Dialectical behavior therapy is an example that uses the method of mindfulness as a technique. | Mediation is not a quality but a practice that obviously affects the brain and mental health and nurtures mental health and tenderness. |
| Practice | Mindfulness can be practiced in both ways that are formally and informally too. | Mediation requires a formal technique to practice. |
| Aspects | Mindfulness is one of the many aspects of meditation. | Meditation has many different aspects. |
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is all about being attentive and being aware of all the things that are happening and not just things majorly but emotions, the behavior of others, theirs and your feelings, and many more such things.
It can be practiced or experienced at any time, with anyone and anywhere, just by being there not just physically but mentally too and paying all the attention to it.
There is more than one benefit of practicing mindfulness, and they are- it releases happy chemicals in the brain, lowers the level of blood pressure, and improves the process of digestion too. Mindfulness also relaxes the tension that is present in our body due to having pain in some parts.
Mindfulness is very simple and convenient to practice and is very productive in results. It is effective as when we actually pay attention to something in the amount it actually needs, then all the things around us become possible.
What is Meditation?
Mediation is focusing on all the non-things around us. It basically includes the softness, tenderness, and kindness towards no one but ourselves. Meditation is to restore all the dimensions of our beings. These dimensions that we are restoring through meditation have never been missing.
It is just that we have absorbed somewhere and something else.
There can be many different ways and aims of meditations for instance- some are aiming at clear and focused mind, others can be for developing the habit or skill of altruistic state that can be loving, kindness, compassion, forgiveness, lowering the temper, it is basically called as opening heart form of meditation.
Other methods and ways can be used for the body to develop more awareness and attentiveness, like yoga or walking.
Mediation is not a quality but a practice that obviously affects the brain and mental health and is used to nurture mental health and tenderness.
Meditation makes us think differently, although a different way of thinking does not mean a different emphasis on thinking but a more loving and kind form of thinking.
Main Differences Between Mindfulness and Meditation
- The main difference between mindfulness and meditation is that Mindfulness is a quality. Mindfulness is all about being attentive and being aware of all the things that are happening. Meditation is a practice. Mediation is focusing on all the non-things around us. It basically includes the softness, tenderness, and kindness towards no one but ourselves.
- To develop the skill or the ability to be mindful, one needs meditation, as meditation is one of the tools that is used to develop mindfulness while Mediation can be divided into many roads, and one of them is mindful living.
- Mindfulness is a quality that comes with many benefits, and one of them is related to mental health benefits. Dialectical behavior therapy is an example that uses the method of mindfulness as a technique, whereas Mediation is not a quality but a practice that obviously affects the brain and mental health and is used as one of the ways to nurture mental health and tenderness.
- Mindfulness can be practiced in both ways is formally and informally too, but Mediation requires a formal technique to practice.
- Mindfulness is one of the many aspects of meditation, while Meditation has many different aspects.
- https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1999-02703-004
- https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1988-97270-000
- https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/meditation/BCF552D109C0184ADCF979EBAE736915
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
