{"id":7456,"date":"2020-04-17T18:55:03","date_gmt":"2020-04-17T22:55:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.yogavibes.com\/?p=7456"},"modified":"2020-04-24T16:04:25","modified_gmt":"2020-04-24T20:04:25","slug":"what-does-mindfulness-look-like-in-a-quarantine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yogavibes.com\/blog\/meditation-pranayama\/what-does-mindfulness-look-like-in-a-quarantine\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does Mindfulness Look Like in a Quarantine?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Yep, here we are\u2014participants in a worldwide pandemic, with most of us experiencing some level of quarantine. Kind of intense, right? (#understatement)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Good News<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The good news is that we have our yoga practice: asanas to keep our body healthy, and meditation to support deep relaxation (of both body and mind) and connect us to the deepest levels of clarity\u2014and the peace, joy, and safety of our indestructible essence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, let’s take a closer look now at how mindfulness\u2014an important aspect of yoga practice\u2014plays a role in a daily life characterized by the rules and recommendations and necessary awkwardness of quarantine. What does mindfulness look like in the time of a pandemic?    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s Start With What Mindfulness Is<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As the word itself implies, mindfulness, most basically<\/a>, is about keeping something in mind<\/em>. It is a relaxed attentiveness to something that we have deemed to be relevant: our breath, for instance, or the flame of a candle, or the physical sensations in our body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The word mindfulness is derived from Pali word sati\u2014<\/em>whose literal meaning is the ability to remember. Moment by moment, we remember to remain attentive to what we’ve decided to pay attention to, without becoming distracted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I’ve chosen to be mindful of my breathing, then I focus gently upon each inhalation and exhalation, and the spaces between: inhale-gap-exhale-gap-inhale, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If my attention wanders into thinking about what I’m going to have for dinner (leftover pizza or Thai food?) then, upon noticing this distraction, I bring my attention gently back to the breath. That’s all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With body and mind deeply relaxed (but without falling asleep), there’s just a steady attentiveness to the breath. I remain awake and aware of the cycles of my breathing. This is mindfulness of breathing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being Centered in Relationships <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We all know about “social distancing” and related recommendations from our health experts to keep us as safe as possible. Let’s just assume we’re all on board with doing these things. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But maintaining a safe physical<\/em> distance doesn’t mean we have to emotionally<\/em> isolate from one another. Quite the opposite, in fact! It makes it even more important for us to keep our minds open and our hearts filled with kindness\u2014and to actively extend this to friends and strangers alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, another aspect of mindfulness in this COVID-19 environment is to do things like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n