Page 79 - Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring

fr om caratIve fact or 1 to C a r i t as Pr oC e s s 1
and all of life. These exercises can be a starting point for the more for-
mal practice of Mindfulness–Insight Meditation: Loving-Kindness and
Equanimity.

toward a Formal PraCtiCe oF mindFulness–insight
meditation: loving-Kindness and equanimity*

You can search the whole universe and not find a single being more
worthy of love than yourself.
the Buddha (quoted In KornfIeld 2002:101)

If one wanted to explore formal meditation as a lifelong preparatory
practice for sustaining and expanding one’s Caritas Consciousness for
self and other, one formal practice with which I am acquainted is
Vipassana: Mindfulness and Insight Meditation.
Without getting technical, this form of meditation is known as
Vipassana Meditation, which is derived from one of the schools of
Buddhism; however, it is not tied to a religion per se. It has follow-
ers from around the world, from all walks of life, from all religions
and even those with no religion. It is increasingly being discovered for
personal, professional, and clinical applications of self-awareness, evo-
lution of consciousness, and mindfulness in action, as well as for spe-
cific clinical conditions—for example, chronic and acute pain manage-
ment, addiction, compulsions, depression, and related areas.
This form of meditation is recommended not only because I have
experienced it and continue to practice it but because it is directly rel-
evant to professionals preparing themselves to be present and mind-
ful in caring-healing work. It is closely related to learning to live the
Theory to Be/Become the Caritas Consciousness we wish to be.
Therefore, it is important to find ways to cultivate a consciousness
of Caritas: loving-kindness and equanimity if one is to authentically
practice within this paradigm. That is not to say that this is the only
form of preparation. There are unlimited approaches to prepare self,
but mindfulness meditation is one timeless approach that has lasting

* This section was influenced by personal experiences, tapes, books, and the
Web site of Shinzen Young, my formal teacher, at http://Shinzen.org.

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