The importance of experience

While it is valuable to read about mindfulness meditation for both information and inspiration, nothing can take the place of actual experience. Jeffrey Brantley speaks to this in his book, Calming Your Anxious Mind:

Mindfulness is a word in the English language. In any word, or concept which the word represents, there is limited understanding. If you read different books about mindfulness, or hear different people talk about it, you will likely hear different definitions. There are different cultural uses of the concept, as well as different word and symbols used to represent it. So from the beginning, you must recognize that simply to talk about mindfulness, to think about it, or to read about it is not adequate to understand mindfulness.

The words we use to convey ideas about mindfulness are only symbols, only a kind of map. The actual experience of mindfulness lies beyond words and ideas. You can only get this experience through your direct practice. In the truth of your own direct practice experience is the real understanding of mindfulness.

Here's where I remind you of the Nike slogan: Just do it.