In short: in Buddhism, mindfulness (sati) means staying present with your body, feelings, mind and experience, clearly and without being pulled by wanting or aversion. The Buddha put it simply: "Mendicants, a mendicant should live mindful and aware. This is my instruction to you. And how is a mendicant mindful? It's when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world." (SN 47.2). It is the seventh factor of the Noble Eightfold Path.
The Buddha's definition
"Mendicants, a mendicant should live mindful and aware. This is my instruction to you. And how is a mendicant mindful? It's when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world."
SN 47.2
Three words do the work: keen (wholehearted effort), aware (clearly knowing what you are doing), and mindful (remembering to stay present). "Rid of covetousness and displeasure" means not grabbing at the pleasant or pushing away the unpleasant while you watch.
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The four kinds of mindfulness
| Observe | For example | Start with |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The body | The breath, posture, movements, sensations | Mindfulness of breathing, body scan |
| 2. Feelings | Pleasant, painful, neutral | The second arrow |
| 3. The mind | Greedy or not, angry or not, scattered or settled | The radiant mind |
| 4. Principles | The hindrances, the awakening factors, the noble truths | Five hindrances, seven awakening factors |
From MN 10, the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.
Mindfulness in daily life
The same discourse says being "aware" means acting with awareness "when walking, standing, sitting, sleeping, waking, speaking, and keeping silent". Mindfulness isn't only for the cushion: it is how you open a door, eat a meal or answer a message. (Try mindful eating or walking meditation.)
Buddhist and secular mindfulness
Modern secular mindfulness, developed from the 1970s for stress reduction, comes from these teachings and is very helpful in its own right. In the Buddha's teaching, mindfulness is one part of a whole path: it works together with kindness and ethics, and it aims beyond calm, at seeing clearly and freedom from suffering. (See the Noble Eightfold Path.)
Try it
Three minutes is enough to begin: open Practice. New to meditation? Start with Buddhist meditation for beginners.
Questions people ask
What is the Buddhist definition of mindfulness?
Mindfulness (sati) means remembering to stay present with what is happening in body, feelings, mind and experience, 'keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world' (SN 47.2).
How is Buddhist mindfulness different from secular mindfulness?
Secular mindfulness, popularized from the 1970s for stress reduction, focuses on present-moment, non-judgmental attention. In the Buddha's teaching, mindfulness is one factor of the Noble Eightfold Path, practised together with ethics and wisdom, and aimed at freedom from suffering.