Wherever You Go, There You Are Insights

The must-read analysis of the key insights from "Wherever You Go, There You Are" by Jon Kabat-Zinn — presented by Athena.

Mindfulness is a 2,000-year-old Buddhist method of living fully in the present — but it’s also a natural activity that can be done anytime, anywhere, without props or planning.

Internationally recognized scientist, author and meditation teacher Jon Kabat-Zinn is on a mission to bring mindfulness to the medical community and to society at large. On the medical side, he founded the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center.

To spread the word more broadly, Kabat-Zinn speaks and teaches workshops on stress reduction and mindfulness, and has written several books on the subjects. In this one, first published in 1994, he starts with a simple idea: Wherever you go, you’re in that moment. Whatever it is you’re experiencing, it’s an experience that’s already underway.

In other words, each of us is on a journey, and as we allow it to unfold, we can become better attuned to our path, its possibilities and complexities, and meditation is a resource to help us tune in. It can make us fully aware of the path that we are on while also teaching us that any changes in course we hope to make must begin with who we are and what we do in the present moment.