On the Buddhist roots of contemporary non-religious mindfulness practice: Moving beyond sectarian and essentialist approaches
Temenos December 11, 2019 DOI: 10.33356/temenos.55371 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism Meditation |
| Keywords | Mindfulness-based stress reduction World religions paradigm |
| Key points | Argues that Theravāda Buddhism should not be treated as the exclusive or authoritative source of Buddhist mindfulness for contemporary programmes like MBSR, and proposes a lineage-based approach to examine historical continuities. |
Abstract
Mindfulness-based practice methods are entering the Western cultural mainstream as institutionalised approaches in healthcare, education, and other public spheres. The Buddhist roots of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and comparable mindfulness-based programmes are widely acknowledged, together with the view of their religious and ideological neutrality. However, the cultural and historical roots of these contemporary approaches have received relatively little attention in the study of religion, and the discussion has been centred on Theravāda Buddhist viewpoints or essentialist presentations of ‘classical Buddhism’. In the light of historical and textual analysis it seems unfounded to hold Theravāda tradition as the original context or as some authoritative expression of Buddhist mindfulness, and there are no grounds for holding it as the exclusive Buddhist source of the MBSR programme either. Rather, one-sided Theravāda-based presentations give a limited and oversimplified picture of Buddhist doctrine and practice, and also distort comparisons with contemporary non-religious forms of mindfulness practice. To move beyond the sectarian and essentialist approaches closely related to the ‘world religions paradigm’ in the study of religion, the discussion would benefit from a lineage-based approach, where possible historical continuities and phenomenological similarities between Buddhist mindfulness and contemporary non-religious approaches are examined at the level of particular relevant Buddhist teachers and their lineages of doctrine and practice.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 13
- THE ‘UNIVERSAL DHARMA FOUNDATION’ OF MINDFULNESS-BASED STRESS REDUCTION: NON-DUALITY AND MAHĀYĀNA BUDDHIST INFLUENCES IN THE WORK OF JON KABAT-ZINN Contemporary Buddhism July 3, 2018
- Contemporary Mindfulness and Transreligious Learning Paths of Mental Health Professionals Religions June 19, 2023
- Mindfulness-based interventions: what more can the West learn from Buddhism? A fieldwork study. Frontiers in Psychology 2025
- Mindfulness and Buddhist principles in oncology: Risks, misconceptions and recommendations for ethical integration. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology 2026
- Religion, spirituality, or stress management? Mindfulness and meditation in Swedish textbooks for Religious Education and Physical Education and Health British Journal of Religious Education January 27, 2026
and 8 more in the library
Cites 9
- On some definitions of mindfulness Contemporary Buddhism May 1, 2011
- Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience Numen 1995
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Massachusetts Correctional Facilities The Prison Journal June 1, 2007
- Classical mindfulness: an introduction to its theory and practice for clinical application. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences August 1, 2009
- Theravada Meditation: The Buddhist Transformation of Yoga Philosophy East and West October 1, 1982
and 4 more in the library