Over the past two to three years as mindfulness becomes more commercialized I’ve been noticing more and more claims for short cuts to the present moment. Just this week I came across an app that connects you to music “scientifically proven” to hasten our arrival into the present moment along with all the goodies that come along with being present. I listened to the music and it was pleasant enough…. almost sounding like Buddhist Monks chanting but without the Monks. We can add this to the growing list of claims to hasten mindfulness.
The first question to ask is “what’s the rush” and the second one is “where are we going”? Usually if we are learning mindfulness we feel a need to make an improvement in our lives. Sometimes there is an element of desperation due to an uncomfortable situation so there is a legitimate rush in many cases. This creates the market for short cuts. One of the first things we learn about mindfulness is that the harder we try to “get there” the harder it is to “get there”. So, being in a rush is counter productive and the sooner we can let go of striving the sooner we will experience results from our practice. The second question of “where are we going” is important because we are already there and cleaning the windshield of awareness is all it takes to realize that. So…we can say that we are in a rush to get to where we already are…obviously a ridiculous statement to make and one that speaks to the nonsense of short cuts in mindfulness.
There are situations where short cuts/abbreviated practice could be useful although we would have to modify the expectations up front so as to be completely truthful to those who are treading that path. Depending on where we are starting, it is possible that a little bit of practice could create some noticeable positive change in a relatively short period of time. Some of us are in such great need that a small shift is a major accomplishment and something to be very grateful for. There are many reasons why some of us simply can’t make much of a commitment and the argument that something is better than nothing becomes an accurate statement. Hopefully a little taste of results from a short cut will serve to open the door to a more sustained practice. Unfortunately, the results from short cuts also tend to end up being short lived. However, if the short cut created enough impetus to take the next step to sustained practice then perhaps in those cases the short cut was worthwhile.