Hi everyone! Recently I’ve been writing with pencil and paper again and have really enjoyed it. I wrote 4 pages reflecting on the question “What is mindfulness?” and had ChatGPT transcribe it. Here’s what I wrote:

The most basic definition of mindfulness is awareness. Some people may say mindfulness is a non-judgmental awareness of your inner and outer world. Others may say mindfulness is the quality of being deeply immersed in the context of present moment experience. The truth is that mindfulness is merely a word. Mindfulness is a concept. Mindfulness is whatever you make it out to be in this very moment.

Like anything else, mindfulness is fluid. What mindfulness is and how we relate to it is constantly evolving. That being said, my definition of mindfulness in this moment is simply awareness. Mindfulness is awareness.

So, what is awareness? Awareness is the most fundamental part of consciousness as we know it. Awareness is always here, completely stable, and never changing. What we are aware of is constantly changing, however awareness itself does not. The contents of awareness may change, however awareness itself does not. Awareness is the ground which gives rise to everything contained within it. We can be aware of our breathing. We can be aware of the person sitting across the room from us. We can be aware of the music playing in the background. We can be aware of the feeling of our feet on the ground. We can be aware of anything, however the nature of awareness never changes.

We are always aware of something. We are always mindful of something. Awareness is always aware as it is the nature of awareness to be aware and awareness could never stray from its nature. Some people say we ARE awareness while others say we HAVE awareness. I would say it’s up to you to determine what you are, what awareness is, and what your relationship is to it. I would also say it doesn’t really matter as long as we can recognize that awareness is an inevitable, inescapable, constantly present, and foundational component of our experience.

If awareness is always present, where do we direct it? Awareness can be directed towards anything. Buddha may say to direct awareness toward posture or the breath. Jesus may say to direct awareness toward God or Love. I say not to direct awareness toward anything, but rather notice where awareness is currently directing itself right now in this very moment.

The present moment, like awareness, is eternal. Like awareness, the contents of the present moment are in constant flux, however the moment itself never fades. We can always return to where awareness is in this very moment, trusting that both awareness and the present moment are always here. Once we become aware of where awareness is directed, we have one of two options: let awareness direct itself OR intentionally direct awareness to something specific in our experience. Some may say we have no control over the contents of our awareness and where it is directed. Others may say that we are in full control of where awareness is directed and the contents within it. I say come to your own conclusions, explore curiously, and don’t simply rely on blind faith or hold any viewpoint too tightly.

In this moment, awareness, your sense of self, beliefs, perceptions, and everything else are constantly changing, in flux, and impermanent by nature. Creating a permanent view, perspective, or set of beliefs within a radically impermanent experience seems absurd, however, I will not hold that tightly as a permanent perception. The absolute, however, is that awareness itself is not changing. This is simply where awareness is now. This is simply the content of awareness now. Awareness simply is.

Awareness continues to flow as it does, wherever it may, like water in a river. If we stick our hand in the river and clench our fist, the water still passes right through it. It is in the water’s nature to flow, so there is no point in exerting unnecessary effort to stop the flow. Similar to the water, awareness never stops flowing. Trying to escape awareness will never work. We can only sink deeper into the flow, immersing ourselves fully into the eternally existing awareness of the ever present but constantly changing present moment.

While you could say awareness moves and flows like water moving downstream, you could also say awareness is still, vast, expansive, rock solid, never changing, and immovable, just like the sky. The contents of awareness may change, but awareness itself does not. The sky may be cloudy or clear, rainy or sunny, light or dark, but it is always the sky. The nature of the sky does not change even if the weather does. Similarly, the nature of awareness does not change even if its contents do.

The sky is not a “thing,” but rather an empty space that allows things like the clouds to appear within it. Similarly, awareness can be seen not as a “thing” but rather as an infinitely open space that gives permission for all things, including the sky, to exist within it. The thought or concept of awareness itself can be seen as a “thing” within awareness, but it is not awareness itself. The only reason we know the sky exists is because things like clouds and colors exist within it, however the clouds and colors within the sky will never be the sky itself.

So, is awareness flowing like a river or still like the sky? What if it’s both? What if it’s neither? What if it’s both and neither? What if it’s one? What if it’s the other? What if it’s all of the above and none of the above? This is for you to figure out yourself, not for you to blindly believe based on what some random person has to say about it. Tune into where awareness is right now and see for yourself. Awareness doesn’t care what you think about it, just like the river doesn’t care if your hand is open or closed, just like the sky doesn’t care if it’s cloudy or sunny. Awareness, the river, and the sky aren’t bothered by your perception of them. They will simply continue to embody their own nature, gently inviting you to understand them by essence of their being.

Awareness will happily hold space for whatever naturally emerges within it, so let’s continue to fill the infinite space of awareness with more sky analogies.

There is no bad weather in the sky of awareness. Just like the sky has no preference whether it’s raining or shining, awareness has no preference over what arises within it. The nature of the sky is unaffected no matter the weather. If it’s raining, the sky is still there. If it’s shining, the sky is still there. Similarly, awareness doesn’t have opinions on what arises within it. Awareness is happy to hold space for anger or bliss, chaos or peace, stillness or restlessness, or literally anything else. In reality, awareness isn’t “happy” to do anything. Awareness cannot have an emotion like happiness, however it can be the space in which happiness arises.

We have a lot to learn from the radically accepting nature of awareness and the sky. Awareness does not judge its contents just like the sky doesn’t judge its weather. The rain drops don’t care if your clothes get wet. The sun doesn’t care if you feel too hot. The sky does not care about your perception of it’s contents. Rain will fall and the sun will shine whether you like it or not. It is the sky’s nature to hold space for weather to express itself however it pleases. The sky is at peace because it has no preference over whatever arises. Awareness is no different. Awareness doesn’t have a preference over whatever emotional weather arises within it. Awareness is simply the space that holds the emotional rays of happiness and storms of anger within it.

The nature of awareness is not threatened by the contents of awareness. Awareness, just like the sky, is radically accepting of ALL things within it. Awareness and the sky are perfect embodiments of peace because their nature is not threatened by the contents within them. Awareness and the sky invite you to recognize that your nature is no different. Our deepest inner knowing is at peace, because the nature of ourselves, our lives, and our awareness are not threatened by the emotional, mental, or material contents that exist within it.

You are the space that gives permission for your thoughts, world, emotions, and body to exist. Your nature is not threatened by anything that appears in your life because it is the very space that allows anything in your life to exist in the first place. A cloud could never threaten the nature of the sky just like a bad day or bad mood could never threaten your nature. To know your nature is to know peace. Mindfulness is the vehicle we take to know who we truly are.

This is mindfulness.