Mindfulness in the Context of Engaged Buddhism

A Case for Engaged Mindfulness

Bibliographic Data

ID4801888
AuthorsBrian D Somers (0000-0002-8763-6241, Dongguk University, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume13
Issue8
Pages746
Publication date2022-08-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel13080746
OpenAlexW4291915390
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited17

This article investigates mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) in a clinical setting and considers the benefits of socially engaged mindfulness practices. The main aim is to consider the relationship between MBIs, especially as a clinical practice (including disengagement from negative ruminations and difficult emotions) and Buddhist mindfulness as a practice of social engagement for systemic change. While MBIs and engaged Buddhism both aspire to ease suffering for individuals and societies alike, they differ as the former emphasizes psychological treatment of the individual and the latter includes a call to action for more widespread change in the political, economic, and social arenas. At the center of this article is an inquiry into mindfulness practice in relation to engagement, disengagement, and re-engagement with objects of the internal and external world and what that means for the practitioner as well as society at large. It will be concluded that the amendment of mindfulness-based practices with lovingkindness and compassion-based practices shifts the emphasis from the clinical treatment of an individual patient toward a more holistic approach that includes the wellness of all beings. This shift is desirable and necessary as it considers a broader set of causes of psychological suffering and helps to reconcile the divide between disengaged cognitive practice and social engagement

Buddhism · Compassion · Disengagement theory · Mindfulness · Political science · Psychological intervention · Psychotherapist · Child Therapy and Development · Community Health and Development · Medicine · Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions · Psychology · Social Psychology

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Open DOIOpen Access