What is Beginners Mind?

Beginners Mind is one of seven principles within Mindfulness meditation practice and the most important according to prominent Zen authors. The other six principles are Letting Go, Acceptance, Non-Judgement, Non-Striving, and Trust. I will interchange the terms “principles” and “practice” throughout the blog because principles are practiced and practice involves principles. 

Mindfulness meditation is a Zen practice that calms the mind by gently bringing it back into the present during sitting meditation (attending to breathing, sounds, or thoughts), moving meditation (attending to movements and body energy as in walking, Tai Chi, Yoga, and Qigong.), and equally important diaphragmatic breathing involving pulling air into the lungs via the diaphragm (belly-out and belly-in), which stimulates the Vagus nerve and sends a signal to the brain indicating that the perceived threat is gone—calming the mind.          

Both depressed mood and anxiety are typically responses to a perceived threat: Depressed mood has the hopelessness component and anxiety has the vulnerability component.

It is important to note the difference between “thinking” about the past and the future and “living” in those domains. Thinking about these domains is non-emotion because we learn from the past and we plan for the future. It is an essential part of life. However, living in these domains is emotion-based to where we attach emotions to reliving our past (as in regrets, resentments, etc) or we emotionally predict the future and live within those predictions as if it were actually occurring.   

At first glance, the term Beginners Mind may elicit a relatively negative response. After all, we are culturally conditioned to advance beyond being a “beginner” in our intellectual development, knowledge, career, physical abilities, relationships, etc. Who wants to go back to being a beginner? 

So, we will start with what Beginners Mind is not: It is not “emptying the mind.” It actually involves expanding the mind. That “emptying” misconception tends to be a stereotypically Western perspective of meditation often based upon misconceptions regarding Zen Buddhism. It is also not working toward something, as in climbing up the steps of a ladder to obtain something or searching the mind to find oneself. Thich Nhat Hanh said in his book The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching, “If we are seeking enlightenment [Beginners Mind], we will never find it.” 

Now what Beginners Mind is: It is a Mindfulness practice that uncovers what is already in the person. In other words, developing a Mindfulness practice that involves Beginners Mind does not involve seeking anything because what one would be “seeking” is already there: The ability to suspend the borders of the box—the conditioning, the mind-chatter, and the mental hamster wheel. 

What this means is that from a toddler on-up we have been conditioned (via modeling from others, experience, etc) to think about ourselves in certain ways and to respond to circumstances in certain ways. This conditioning “papers-over” the Beginners Mind that is already in the person. From this perspective, it does not matter how thick the paper. This core part of human nature is still there. 

Now, it is important to note that conditioning serves an obviously useful and practical purpose. For example, the red light means “stop” for a reason, lines on the road provide an orderly flow of traffic, and the child who is taught to look both ways when crossing the street avoids a horrible tragedy. 

However, detrimental conditioning can also develop unhealthy beliefs which can produce ongoing anxiety, depressed mood, unhealthy behaviors, negative self-concept, perceived threat, etc. 

So, the practical application of applying Beginners Mind within a Mindfulness practice comes down to grounding and turning off “the chatter” and the conditioning—removing the papering and uncovering what is already in the individual within a formal meditation practice. As you sit quietly with your breathing and when your mind drags you away coaxing you to re-live the past (which we cannot change) or coaxing you to live in the future (which we cannot predict), gently bring the mind back to the present and your breathing. Do not judge yourself. Simply do it. This is what my Tai Chi instructor used to tell us. “Just do it.” Then, observe what happens afterwards. 

Then, Beginners Mind uncovers. It is watching the borders of the box disappear. In Zen Buddhism it is called “non-duality”—the interconnectedness of all things. It is the difference between looking out one’s house window as compared to sitting outside and simply looking around…feeling the wind and sun…smelling the air…hearing the birds and listening to the wind shuffling the leaves. 

When I was a teenager I had the opportunity to travel to the West and saw the Grand Canyon. I am 62 and the experience still blows my mind. Looking across this vast canyon and looking down on the Colorado River literally a mile below. I saw plenty of pictures of it but being there was absolutely amazing—not looking at it from “the window.” Experiencing it. 

That is the key: Experiencing Beginners Mind. That which is already in you. Something waiting to be uncovered. When it is, it will transform your life.  If you’d like to explore this further, I would be happy to work with you incorporating Mindfulness to improve your mental wellness.

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