Mind, in the sense that it is used here, means the totality of our experience of awareness and includes both the intellect (thinking) and the heart (feeling). Becoming familiar with the various aspects of the mind is an important part of developing the Exquisite Mind. This section is organized in six sections (principles, mental factors, mechanics, layers, skillful, and unskillful) each with a number of their own pages provide an overview of the different aspects of experience that come into play with mindfulness practice. Most of what we know as mind is storytelling, and this important facet is discussed in the layers section.

There was a funny Matt Groenig cartoon that I saw in graduate school. Bart Simpson asks Homer, “Hey, Dad, what is mind?” Homer replies, “no matter.” Bart queries again, “What is matter?” Homer waxes philosophic, “never mind.”

Mind is our psychology including the brain and its function. But is the mind just the brain? Some believe that the mind does transcend the body; others feel the mind dies with the brain. Whatever your philosophical or theological position, the mind can serve as or ally or our adversary. The mind is matchless tool, capable of beautiful creation, and also capable of darkness and violence. Most of the time it is simply a pain-in-the-ass! Mindfulness helps us to have a more positive relationship with the mind and to have it serve us, instead of us serving it. And who, by the way is us, if we are talking about the mind? Good question. Us is the the observing self, the self that appears to exercise choice, and the one who gets to direct attention. Much of the mind is automatic and conditioned like a reflex response whenever something happens out there in the world, or from within. The pages in the following sections will help in the pursuit of making the mind into a better friend. 

(This page was published on the original version of the Exquisite Mind Website in 2002. “From the Archive” will feature these classic pages).