It is quite possible that many of our readers are not even familiar with the title of this article; I myself did not know exactly what it was until a short time ago. However, I believe it represents a somewhat sinister and potentially dangerous attack of Satan, not only on unsuspecting adults, but also on our children in public schools.
According to the University of California, Berkeley, “mindfulness” means “maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment. Mindfulness also involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them—without believing, for instance, that there’s a “right” or “wrong” way to think or feel in a given moment. When we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we’re sensing in the present moment rather than rehashing the past or imagining the future.”
Its Origin
It is not something new, for it originated in Buddhism and has been practiced by adherents of that religion for 2500 years. It is related to transcendental meditation, which was popular back in the 1970s and has its roots in Hinduism. Although the two are somewhat linked, having similar goals, they are not the same, for while the goal of mindfulness meditation is to have one’s thoughts be on the present moment, the process of transcendental meditation involves transcending thought itself and experiencing a state of “pure awareness.” But both have been introduced into Western society, supposedly in a secular way, with the aim of reducing stress and anxiety and promoting calm and concentration. Both can also have demonic connotations.
The undisputed champion of mindfulness is a man named Jon Kabat-Zinn, a professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. His research has focused on mind/body interactions for healing, and in 1979, he recruited chronically ill patients not responding well to traditional treatments to participate in his newly formed eight-week stress-reduction program, now called Mind Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). Of interest is the fact that he also serves on the board of the Mind and Life Institute, a group that organizes dialogues between the Dalai Lama and Western scientists and scholars to promote a deeper understanding of the mind and emotions.
Since the 1980s, and as a result of the work of Kabat-Zinn and others, the concept of mindfulness as an integrative part of medicine has burgeoned, and there is now a regular publication entitled Mindful. For some years Kabat-Zinn has been instrumental in spearheading the introduction of mindfulness classes into public schools, and this has “caught on” in North America, the U.K., and other parts of Europe. An article in a recent issue of TIME featured photographs of children going through rituals of breathing and other exercises in public school classrooms in a large U.S. city. In 2014 mindfulness classes were introduced into at least one school area in Toronto, Canada, and since then similar classes have been started in other Canadian schools. Schools in the U.K. and other parts of Europe are also beginning to embrace such training.
Medical Benefits
It has been well recognized for many years that physical exercise and controlled breathing are beneficial in reducing stress. It is also well-known that we in Western society often need to “stop and smell the roses,” instead of continuously pursuing a frenetic and often stressful lifestyle. However, there are dangers in such entities as mindfulness, of which we need to be aware. In particular, parents should know what their children are being subjected to in schools.
First of all, the use of all this is really an attempt by man to “pull himself up by his own bootstraps.” The real problem in this world is sin. But the word “sin” is foreign to mindfulness teaching, for it teaches us that we are not to judge our thoughts as being right or wrong, but rather to let them flow in whatever way they wish. Self is at the bottom of it, for as one educational leader said, “If children don’t learn how to take care of themselves, it’s going to have enormous impact on our health care costs.”
The Religious Connections
But the most serious aspect of things like mindfulness and transcendental meditation is their strong connection to Eastern religions. Most of the exercises used are taken from yoga, and while there are many forms of yoga, it clearly has its origins in Hinduism. This is brought out by a comment by an agnostic columnist in a prominent American magazine: “I ended up in a corner of upstate New York with lots of superserious yoga classes, the kind with a little statue of a Hindu god in the front of the room.” It is well-known that the fourth stage of yoga has definite connections to the occult. Western people have tried to abstract yoga exercises from their Hindu origins, but the two are not easy to separate. As we have already noted, mindfulness originated in the Buddhist religion, and while its exercises may seem to be innocuous, the whole process opens the door to acceptance of false and Satan-based religious thought. While its followers may claim that it is totally secular, and perhaps really believe this too, yet there are enough well documented stories to show that unsuspecting individuals have been seduced into New Age thinking, psychic phenomena, and ultimately Eastern religious thought. Despite the disclaimer of their followers, yoga and mindfulness are inherently religious.
On Guard
Perhaps strong Christian adults could do such exercises and avoid the wrong connections, but what about our children? As we all know, they are very impressionable in their formative years, and this is where Satan is clever, by introducing things like mindfulness into public schools. In some school districts there is talk of making it compulsory. Those of us who are parents need to be on guard.
Purists in mindfulness are under no illusions about its religious connections, and they are disturbed that things like yoga and mindfulness are being touted as purely secular. An American Zen teacher, David Loy, commented recently, “If mindfulness is to make true cultural change, it must look beyond personal needs for serenity, good health or success. ... As people do mindfulness, they will become involved in something deeper, or look for more, or even turn to Buddhism.” Stephen Batchelor, a former Buddhist monk and a promoter of a secular approach to Buddhism, has famously compared the mainstreaming of mindfulness to the Trojan Horse, in the sense that “people don’t know what they are getting, not unlike taking yoga for toned arms and also discovering spiritual enlightenment.” There is a special danger that our children could be deceived by this new kind of Trojan horse. (If any of you are unfamiliar with the expression “Trojan horse,” a simple computer search will tell you the story behind it.)
No “Nones”
The real reason behind all this is that in much of Western society, man has given up God, and this has left a vacuum in his life. Man was created with a God-conscious part to his being, and he craves that which will satisfy this longing. This is why people today who classify themselves as “nones”—those who are not affiliated with any definite religion or belief—label themselves as “spiritual but not religious.” When life has no meaning, man looks for something spiritual to fill the void, and this accounts for the widespread and overwhelming response to the introduction of such entities as mindfulness. But this is not the real answer to the stress often resulting from modern life. It may give some temporary relief, and this is always Satan’s way, for truly he is a liar from the beginning.
The Lord’s Yoke
Life is stressful, and the burdens of the pathway in this world can be very heavy. This is especially true for children in today’s world, for in the last 25-30 years many forces have combined to take away the innocent and carefree outlook that they once had in most Western countries. But the Word of God does not recommend the “Lotus position” (a cross-legged sitting position with the feet placed on opposing thighs). We are told, “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee” (Psa. 55:2222Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. (Psalm 55:22)). Better than the “Lotus position” is to be on our knees, for God will surely give the grace for whatever circumstances He allows in our lives. He says, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matt. 11:28-2928Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (Matthew 11:28‑29)).
W. J. Prost