Mindfulness: The Gateway to a Healthier and More Expansive Brain
Image by David Bruyland 

The “you,” the “self,” the person that we truly are, is not fully known to us, so how can we be fully present in the moment without knowing who we really are in it? Yes, we know ourselves, but that knowing is mostly based on our identity and what we do, or how we feel about ourselves in any given moment. And that changes because we change.

We are constantly changing, but if we know that change is constant, and keep our awareness sharp about the impermanence of this life, then what remains constant is the “knowing,” the “accepting” of change, and not being attached to what we think or believe will keep things permanent, which is nothing more than an illusion.

We like illusions because they can support what we need to believe in the moment to make it more acceptable to us, but it’s still an illusion. We need what’s real to keep us connected to reality as awake and aware as possible.  

Mindfulness Keeps Us Awake and Aware 

Practicing Mindfulness not only keeps us awake but also keeps us aware of the impermanence of life; therefore, we have a greater appreciation of it. We care. Life matters.

Mindfulness, when practiced consistently, can feel like your awareness is so laser sharp that you can see things beyond what’s on the surface. Are you aware like that? Most people aren’t, but they can be if they decide to be more present.


innerself subscribe graphic


The more present you are, the more aware you are; and the more aware you are, the more present you are. It keeps evolving from there. Maybe you’re not as aware as you’d like to be, so let me help you heighten your awareness a little more.

Look at your hands. What do you see? I don’t mean just your hands, I mean everything about your hands. The color of your skin, the texture, the lines, the freckles or age spots, even your nails (they are part of your hands). Can you look at them without judging the way they look?

Can you look at them as if you’re seeing them for the first time? Can you look at them with curiosity and appreciation? Can you look at them with gratitude? Without them you couldn’t eat, or get dressed, or touch yourself or someone else, or put on your make-up, or play sports, or an instrument, or drive a car, or wash your body, or open a window or a door, or walk your dog if you have one, or plant a garden, or cook.

I think you get my point. There’s seeing, and then there’s seeing what you’re seeing with total awareness. Depending on your level of seeing, it makes a big difference in not only what you see, but in how what you’re seeing affects you and makes you feel.

Remember, mindfulness is being in the present moment with “acceptance” and “non-judgment.” Not so easy to do, right?

Mindfulness: Working in Tandem with the Brain

Our brain chemicals are being stimulated by not only external things and events, but by how we perceive them. And if we want to get those neurons fired up in such a way that we get the “rewards” those transmit­ters can give us, we need to be fully present to make that happen. The more present we are, the more we can work with our brain to help it maintain mental wellness and acuity.

We and our brain need to be working in tandem. The more we value this organ that governs our entire nervous system, and is said to have as many neurons as there are stars in the Milky Way, the more our brain can show us what it’s got to offer—and it’s got a whole lot more than we’re tapping into.

Mindfulness is the gateway to a healthier brain for sure, and a more expansive one. As mysterious as the brain is, mindfulness, I believe, can help us know more about it and the brilliance of which it is capable. 

©2021 by Ora Nadrich. All Rights Reserved.
Excerpted from Mindfulness and Mysticism,
published by  IFTT Press. theiftt.org

Article Source:

Mindfulness and Mysticism

Mindfulness and Mysticism: Connecting Present Moment Awareness with Higher States of Consciousness
by Ora Nadrich.

book cover: Mindfulness and Mysticism: Connecting Present Moment Awareness with Higher States of Consciousness by Ora Nadrich.At a time when chaos in our culture is staggeringly upsetting, and millions are sensing there must be something 'more' but have no idea what it is, a book like Mindfulness and Mysticism paves a path beyond confusion. It speaks to the mind as well as to the heart, both explaining the mystical and leading us into it where we can realize a connection to something greater - the divine within us.

Ora Nadrich provides a traveler's companion from the delusional maze of a desacralized world, to the calm and inner peace that Mindfulness can offer.

Click here for more info and/or to order this book. Also available as a Kindle edition and as a hardcover. 

More books by this Author

About the Author

photo of Ora NadrichOra Nadrich is founder and president of the Institute for Transformational Thinking and author of Live True: A Mindfulness Guide to Authenticity, named as one of the 100 Best Mindfulness Books of All Time by BookAuthority. She is also the author of Says Who? How One Simple Question Can Change.

A certified life coach and mindfulness teacher, she specializes in transformational thinking, self-discovery, and mentoring new coaches.

Contact her at OraNadrich.com