Shinzen Young has written numerous articles describing all aspects of the mindfulness practice including how to do it, its benefits and challenges and how it can be applied to specific life issues.

 

Science and Spirituality

Algorithm and Emptiness: Some Historical Musings

Applications of Mindfulness Meditation in the Study of Human Consciousness

An abstract of Shinzen's presentation at the Toward a Science of Consciousness conference in April, 2000.

How can experienced meditators help cognitive neuroscientists to better understand the nature of consciousness? How can developments in cognitive neurosciences and functional neuroanatomy help meditation teachers do their job better?

Meditation Practice

Benefits of Mindfulness Meditation

Why should anyone bother to read about or practice meditation?

What is Equanimity?

Equanimity is the lynchpin of emotional intelligence. It has nothing to do with cooling out strong feelings or avoiding their passionate expression. It is not a kind of indifference nor is it about biting the bullet. What, then, is it?

Experiences Associated With Meditating on the Thought Process

What happens when you try to focus on thought as an object of meditation and what to do about it.

Four Facets of Body Sensation

How to Echo Talk

A useful technique for dealing with one of the biggest challenges facing most people in the early years of their practice—obsessive internal chatter, also known as monkey mind.

The Icky-Sticky Creepy-Crawly It-Doesn't-Really-Hurt-But-I-Can't-Stand-It Feeling

There is a phenomenon commonly experienced but seldom discussed in the literature of spiritual growth. Calming the mind and body may paradoxically result in "yucky" sensations, which get worse the deeper one relaxes. What does this mean, and what should one do about it?

Loving Kindness

Some techniques for greeting negative circumstances with love.

Mantra Practice vs. Mindfulness

How does the popular technique known as "TM" relate to mindfulness practice? A careful examination reveals a deep connection between the two methods which on the surface would seem to represent opposite approaches.

Meditation and Consciousness
(In Spanish) La meditación y la conciencia

Charles Tart interviews Shinzen Young for the Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Meditation and Emptying the Mind

Is the goal of meditation to empty the mind? If not, how should one deal with incessant distracting thoughts?

Meditation and Pleasure

How to gain insight and purification by working with pleasure as an object of focus.

Meditation and the Self

The Buddha said that there is no thing called the self. Then who meditates?

Meditation: Escaping Into Life

Michael Toms of New Dimensions interviews Shinzen Young. How to contact one's spiritual source by experiencing the moment completely.

Meditation on Sound

Is it possible to meditate in a noisy chaotic environment?

Purpose and Method of Vipassana Meditation

An introduction to Vipassana which appeared as an article in The Journal of Humanistic Psychology.

Sources of Body Sensation

Walking Meditation

How to use the activity of walking as an object of meditation.

Working With Mental Images

What role does mental imagery play in spiritual and psychological growth? How can imagery be most effectively approached within the context of mindfulness practice? How does this differ from the visualization techniques of Tibetan Buddhism and the visionary experiences of Christian Saints? These and other topics are dealt with at length in this extensive article.

Applying Meditation in Daily Life

A Synopsis of Shinzen Young's Book Break Through Pain
(In Spanish) Traspasando el dolor

Practical steps for reducing suffering and transforming physical pain into spiritual growth.

Categories of Body Sensation Associated with Behavior Change

Four basic categories of body sensation must be continuously monitored if one wishes to release negative habits and replace them with positive ones. If you find it difficult to make certain changes in your life, it may be because you have not detected all the relevant feelings in your body.

Eating as a Meditation

Increasing fulfillment, reducing compulsiveness and purifying consciousness through having a complete experience of the pleasure of eating.

How Should a Meditator Express Emotion?

"As a person on a spiritual path, I'm not sure whether I should express my feelings about this situation or simply meditate on them." –– This is a question I get asked all the time. The first step toward an answer is to realize that the question itself is based on some fundamental confusions.

A Pain-Processing Algorithm

The Panic Cycle

Panic is a kind of feedback loop that can quickly spiral out of control. The secret to breaking the chain is knowing precisely where to sever the links.

Using Mindfulness Practice to Deal with Negative Urges

Meditation is not just about achieving subjective states while sitting still; it is also about changing objective behavior in daily life. One key is "divide and conquer"...learning to deconstruct ones negative urges into manageable components.

Working With Physical Discomfort During Meditation
(In Spanish) Cómo trabajar con las incomodidades físicas durante la meditación

When one first sits still and attempts to meditate, it's common to experience many physical discomforts. This need not be a problem if one knows a few tips about why this happens and what to do about it.

The Big Picture

What is Mindfulness?

Why Practice Mindfulness?

How Meditation Works
(In Spanish) Cómo funciona la meditación

An introductory overview of techniques for mental development within the Buddhist traditions of Theravada, Tantra and Zen and including reference to Christian contemplative practice.

The Point of Contact

An interview with Polly Young-Eisendrath. This article was published in Tricycle magazine in the fall of 2005.

Just for Fun

Bringing the Monastery Home

Meditation and Diet

What is the relationship between ones diet and ones spiritual state? Can you eat big macs and still get satori?

What Buddhism Can Give to Modern Yoga: An Interview with Shinzen Young

Visualization, Zen and Semantic Theory

Describes the phonological and semantic history of the word Zen, tracking it back 5000 years to a Proto Indo-European root. Concludes with a surprising connection to English.  Along the way, various facets of meditation practice are illuminated.