Why Mindfulness Is Not Sati: The Genealogy of the Mindfulness Boom
The practice of sati, mindfulness, is a fundamental exercise of Buddhism, embedded in and explained by Buddhist philosophical reflection. In just a few decades, a largely unknown Buddhist meditation practice has become a method used by psychotherapists, hospitals, and even the U.S. military. Colonia...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2026
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| In: |
Buddhist Christian studies
Year: 2026, Volume: 45, Pages: 293-304 |
| Further subjects: | B
Industrialization
B Stress Reduction B Vipassana B metaphors of mindfulness B modernization of Buddhism B Mindfulness B Experimental Psychology B Self-regulation |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The practice of sati, mindfulness, is a fundamental exercise of Buddhism, embedded in and explained by Buddhist philosophical reflection. In just a few decades, a largely unknown Buddhist meditation practice has become a method used by psychotherapists, hospitals, and even the U.S. military. Colonialism and the modernization of Buddhism led to a modernization of Vipassana practice. In this modernized form, mindfulness practice became medicalized and a useful mental tool in an industrial information society. Today, mindfulness practice is a tool for self-optimization, but also a method of healing and strengthening. Both the practice and the theoretical understanding of the practice have changed: it is not about nirvana, but about self-regulation, self-control, and efficiency. |
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| ISSN: | 1527-9472 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Buddhist Christian studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/bcs.2026.a979840 |
