Cultural Differences

"Differences in inclination and disposition" between today's Western meditators and those from the East, where meditation has flourished for over five thousand years, "must be addressed early on in mindfulness teaching and in the instructions themselves.

On the one hand, we (in the West) are an externally oriented society, valuing action rather than contemplation, attached to thinking as our primary way of meaning-making, invested in the enhancement of the self, wanting quick results to be accomplished through striving, with a miasma of unworthiness woven through the psyche.

On the other hand, mindfulness instructions and teaching arose in (an Eastern) culture internally oriented, valuing contemplation over action, viewing mindfulness more central than thinking, less invested in self-development, emphasizing gradual development in meditation, with a psychological underpinning of fundamental worthiness."

DIFFERENCES AT A GLANCE

EAST WEST

Inward Orientation Outward Orientation

Faith in Contemplation Faith in Action

Faith in Mindfulness Faith in Thinking

Transitory Self Glorified Self

Patient Mind Hurried Mind

Balanced Energy Striving Energy

Self-Acceptance Self-Doubt

Bill Morgan. "The Meditator's Dilemma: An Innovative Approach to Overcoming Obstacles and Revitalizing Your Practice." Shambhala, 2016.