Is Mindfulness = Meditation?

Rhucha Kulkarni
May 4
5 min read

I recently launched my Mindfulness Workshop for Kids, and many parents have been asking, "How do you teach meditation to kids", "My kid will not sit still", "Howcome you will teach meditation online?". This got me thinking, in popular parlance, we often equate mindfulness with meditation.

Indeed, Mindfulness 😑 has become a fashionable buzzword, we here everyone talking about leading a more mindful way of life, and the benefits of it. But have we really paused and thought about, what this mindfulness really means, what does mindful practice truly encompass?

While meditation 🧘 is a great way of practicing mindfulness, and serves many right, it is certainly not the only means to mindful living !

We did explore what is mindfulness to a certain extent here and way to cultivate mindfulness here, but with this recent slew of conversations, today I thought to do a deep dive into the distinction between meditation and mindfulness.

A Deep Dive into Mindfulness and Meditation

The Oxford dictionary defines mindfulness as…

“the practice of being aware of your body, mind, and feelings in the present moment, thought to create a feeling of calm”

The same dictionary defines “meditation” as…

“the act of giving your attention to only one thing,

either as a religious activity or as a way of becoming calm and relaxed”

What Makes Non-Meditation Mindfulness Techniques Important?

I often hear the struggles of getting the mind into “nothingness” aka meditation. In fact, I have personally faced difficulties in steering the mind from a tangible space to an intangible space. Being the highly action-oriented and “mind racing with creative thoughts” types, initially I used to find it impossible to sit with myself for even 2 minutes! Being an avid overthinker, just sitting focusing on the “mind within” used to lead to even more flurry of thoughts, making me question the whole concept of meditation, and give up even before trying! I did my research, and that’s when I realized, a more tangible way of focusing may work initially for me.

I dug up more information and learnt that not being able to sit with oneself may not always be a matter of will, but a matter of skill - people who are prone to chronic conditions such as anxiety, depression, or posttraumatic stress disorder - meditation may worsen symptoms.

In fact…

Sitting silently and relaxing your mind, is very challenging when your inner world is in chaos.

So what is the solution to begin on a journey of Mindful Living?

I find it easier and more beneficial to focus on more tangibles - breathwork and pranayama gave me an “actual, real thing” to focus my energies on, allowing me to build a sustainable practice, which is aligned with my core nature of being.

1. Mindfulness by Thinking 💭 :

Thinking positive thoughts can help cultivate positive energy and positive focus. We have the power of Choice - to Choose what thoughts we allow inside us, and which thoughts we disallow. This is being mindful from within.

How to do: Thinking Positive Affirmations can help boost self-esteem and build positive self-worth. Saying Gratitude in the mind is another way to build hope and positivity. Compassion-Meditation is consciously sending kind energies and blessings to self and others, and revolves around targeted thinking.

2. Mindfulness by Feeling 🤫:

Actual “feeling” something tangible and focusing your attention and energies on is a great idea. For me, feeling the goodness of life in each breath through Mindful Breathing not only helped me focus, but also brought a sense of vitality and positive calm to my being.

How to do: Mindful Touch, for example closing one’s eyes and feeling different textures of different objects, for example clothes, things, etc. can help draw oneself to the present. Mindful Walking i.e. walking barefoot on green grass or natural materials like stone or gravel pathways helps ground oneself in tune with nature and in tune with the Self.

3. Mindfulness by Doing 🚶‍♀️:

Kinaesthetic people i.e. people who learn through action and doing, can greatly benefit through mindfulness activities. For me, because of high action-orientation, I enjoy being in a state of "doing for the sake of doing", and the "immersive joy" helps me get into hyper-focus.

How to do: Mindful Eating i.e. eating your food with complete presence not only builds focus but also honours the food we get to nourish our body and souls with. In fact, any activity that we do, can be done as a Mindful Action, provided we avoid distractions and multitasking, develop a deep focus, and bring ourselves to a “state of flow”. I recently picked up a new hobby - Mindful Colouring, and I must say, the experience of colouring between the lines is one of the most “present and aware” activities I have done in a long time! (more on that later, though :P )

4. Mindfulness by Undoing 🧘‍♀️:

Once we get attuned to tuning in with ourselves and the present moment, one may want to make a transition to “nothingness”.

How to do: Start Small – even 2 minutes of “Sitting with oneself”, can feel overwhelming at first, but practice may get you there! And again, a gentle reminder - Meditation may not be your way of Mindfulness, and that is OK! Because your way may be something more unique, more YOU !

The key is not to fight against your core nature, but to design a mindfulness practice which is more in natural flow with YOU.

In a Nutshell ...

Sometimes, it is important to be mindful about how we are approaching mindfulness, about how we are inculcating it into our lives. Simply jumping into big-ticket items for the sake of “accomplishing” may not be the best way ! (me been there, done that J ). It is first important to understand and assess who we are, how we are (our personalities) and what may work best for us as a sustainable mindfulness practice.

Especially for kids, pureplay meditation may not work (after all, who has seen a toddler sit still for more than 2 minutes! 🤣 ) That does not mean they miss out on the benefits of mindfulness, the experience just needs to be more customized and curated to “Who they innately are”, more aligned to their “How”.

This customization is crucial, because only when we cultivate a sustained mindful life, can we ingrain it as a useful habit, and reap the benefits life-long -be it a sense of calm, better awareness, greater presence, or a lasting inner peace!