Mindfulness is bringing deliberate attention to the present moment without judgment. The objective of being mindful is to connect the mind with the body.

As human beings, we are not always conscious of our bodies. Most of time, we are just busy with the business of life. Is being mindful hard to practice? Yes and no.

Yes, because we forget things. We live purposefully and without purpose. We are used to being judgmental in literally every area of our lives. And we must. Without judgment, we can be vulnerable.

No, because we can be mindful by simply paying attention to what we think and do. Being mindful does not mean we should be vigilant at all times. Indeed, quite the opposite is true. We can be simply aware of what we think and do.

The ultimate experience of being mindful occurs when we forget about everything, even the mindful self and doing. In that mode we are full of energy, utterly self-generated. Hence mindfulness is the first pillar of energy transformation.

However, a paradox is that to be mindful, one must not try to be mindful, and to not be mindful, one must be mindful.

Can we cut it short? The answer is yes. We can skip the mindful part. How? By just doing what we like to do when we feel like doing it, in the way we feel the best. No thought, no mind. It’s a vacation of the mind, so to speak. You kick the mindful thing out of the equation from the start.

Total physical immersion with mental emptiness. Just doing.

For most of us, this is quite a challenge. As in rock climbing, where we use a niche to securely place a foot or fingers, we need somewhere tangible to place our mind. Having something to think about or focus on keeps us oriented. It anchors the mind to a specific moment in time, preventing it from fleeting. It keeps our awareness contained within our body so that the body does not do things randomly.

Once the mind is contained, the body can fly. When the body is in motion, the action generates an even greater amount of energy. Thus movement is the second pillar of energy transformation (discussed in Chapter 2: Mindful Movement).

Excerpt from the book Mindful Movement: Mastering Your Hidden Energy