Chapter 2: Four Foundations of Mindfulness

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Mindfulness of Mind in MIDL

MIDL Mindfulness meditation is unique as it is not defined by its meditation object but rather in the Mindfulness of the awareness of an experience and the relationship present.

When practicing MIDL we should be careful not regard the mind as a something that moves around, this is an illusion that arises through observing attention. Rather we should regard the mind as a flow of experiences and qualities arising within the field of awareness.

Mind itself is experienced as two parts, awareness and the experience held within the awareness. During MIDL Mindfulness meditation it is important for the meditator to learn to distinguish between the two.

MIDL Mindfulness training is designed to do just this, by observing attention move and the experiences at the centre of our awareness change, the separation between the experience that is known and the knowing of it becomes clear and obvious.

Awareness of Four Experiential Groups

Awareness moves between the experience that arises within four groups of experience giving rise to the world that we live in. These groups of experience are closely related to the Four Foundations of Mindfulness laid out by the Buddha in the Satipatthana Sutta - the basis for Mindfulness meditation.

Breaking the experienced world up into four groups of experience is an essential part of MIDL Mindfulness meditation. It is only when we learn how to separate experience that we can start to notice how these different groups interact and influence each other as well as how the clarity and arising of awareness is influenced by these changes.

Groups 1, 3 & 4 interact together with group 3 as the point of contact between them. When this contact is made group 2 arises and permeates the experience conditioning us to react / move.

Group 1: The Body Group

The body group consists of the sensations that we experience within our body as a range of:

a) Earth Element: Soft to hard.
b) Fire Element: Cool to hot.
c) Water Element: Dry to wet, sticky.
d) Wind Element: Movement, change.

Group 2: The Feeling Tone Group

The feeling tone group is the ‘flavour’ of pleasant or unpleasant that permeates the other three groups. This is the aspect that compels us to ‘react / move’.

a) Pleasant Feeling tone.
b) Neutral Feeling tone.
c) Unpleasant Feeling tone

Group 3: The Mind Group

The mind group covers all states of mind, mental qualities, judgements and awareness itself.

a) Consciousness / Awareness.
b) Mindfulness.
c) Concentration.
d) Positive Mental Qualities.
e) Negative Mental Qualities.
f) States of Mind.
g) Thinking.
h) Judgements – Likes / Dislikes

Group 4: The 5 Sense Door Group

The five sense door group covers how we listen to the world through our senses.

a) Sight: (eye) the door sensitive to light.
b) Sound: (ear) the door sensitive to sound.
c) Smell: (nose) the door sensitive to smell.
d) Taste: (tongue) the door sensitive to taste.
e) Touch: (body) the door sensitive to touch

During seated Mindfulness meditation these Four Groups of Experience become the foundation within which understanding is cultivated and Wisdom arises. It is within our relationship to the awareness of these Four Groups of Experience that we are either bound and suffer or experience freedom through non-attachment.

Chapter 2 Continued

This article was written by Stephen Procter, Meditation Instructor from Meditation in The Shire, Kirrawee NSW, Australia. If you wish to post this article on another website or in a publication please respect the author and reference / link back to this website, thank you