Mindfulness in Three Stages

Awareness

Mindfulness in Three Stages

Three Ways of Practicing Mindfulness in Daily Life

Insight into mindfulness

Three Ways of Mindfulness

Mindfulness is often spoken of as a tool for calming the mind or improving focus, but at its core, it is a doorway to something far more profound: the direct recognition of presence, of awareness itself. When we speak about engaging mindfulness in our daily life, we can understand it in three distinct yet interconnected approaches. Each of these approaches opens a different dimension of awareness and reveals a deeper understanding of what it means to be truly present.

1. Activity-Based Mindfulness: The Equal View

The first way of practicing mindfulness is what we may call activity-based mindfulness. This form of practice takes place during our ordinary actions—walking, talking, listening, washing dishes, working, or simply breathing. It is not about controlling our actions or judging them as good or bad. Instead, it is about knowing that we are doing them—being present with what is happening without adding thoughts or labels.

This mode is rooted in what we could call the equal view. In it, we do not divide our experience into “important” and “unimportant,” “sacred” and “mundane.” Everything we encounter is held in equal awareness. Whether we are sitting quietly or stuck in traffic, the practice is simply to know: “I am sitting.” “I am driving.” “I am walking.” This is not a verbal repetition, but a silent recognition that what is happening is known—without preference, without clinging, and without aversion.

By practicing mindfulness this way, we become less entangled in the stream of thoughts that usually pull us away from direct experience. We learn to see everything as it is, without mental decoration. We remain present without needing to fix, avoid, or alter anything.

Mindful exercise:

While walking, talking, or doing any task, gently shift your attention to the fact that the activity is happening. Don’t analyze it—simply notice: “Walking is happening.” “Talking is happening.” Let your awareness be open, spacious, and neutral. Hold all actions in the same light, without preference. If your mind drifts, softly return to the knowing of the activity itself.

2. Resting in Awareness: Returning Home

The second approach arises in those quiet moments when we are not engaged in activity—moments of stillness, when we are not doing anything at all. These pauses in daily life are precious opportunities. Rather than filling them with distractions, we can use them to turn inward and rest in the recognition of awareness itself.

Here, mindfulness is not directed toward an object or activity. Instead, it is the simple recognition that awareness is here—unchanging, open, vivid. We are not focusing on thoughts, sensations, or events. We are simply aware of being aware. In these moments, we let go of doing and allow ourselves to be.

This form of mindfulness is deeply restful. It feels like returning home, like settling into a vast, open space that was always here. There is no need to add anything or remove anything. Awareness does not need to be maintained—it is already present. We only need to recognize it.

The more we allow ourselves to rest in this recognition, the more familiar it becomes. Over time, this background of stillness begins to reveal itself even in the midst of activity.

Mindful exercise:

Take a few minutes to sit or lie down in stillness. Let go of all effort. Don’t try to meditate or focus. Simply recognize that you are aware. Stay with that recognition—”Awareness is here.” Let your breath flow naturally, and do not follow any thoughts. Whenever something arises—sound, thought, sensation—notice it briefly and return to the knowing presence behind it. Rest there, without trying to hold anything.

3. Recognizing Awareness Within Activity

The third and most refined approach is when we begin to recognize the unchanging awareness even while we are active. This is different from simply being aware of what we are doing. Instead of following the activity, we recognize that we are the awareness in which the activity appears.

In this way, we don’t just use mindfulness to notice activity—we use it to notice what is always present. Thoughts, emotions, and movements come and go. But awareness itself does not come and go. It does not begin with an action or end with a thought. It is the unchanging background behind all experience.

Practicing this form of mindfulness means we are no longer merely observing the activity. We are aware from the space that never changes. This space is empty, yet alive. It has no form, yet it is unmistakably here. Though we cannot grasp it or define it, we know it by being it.

This is the most subtle and liberating form of mindfulness. It frees us from identifying with the changing stream of experience. We remain rooted in what is unchanging, even while everything else shifts around us.

Mindful Exercise

As you go about your daily life, pause briefly in the middle of an activity—whether walking, speaking, or working—and ask silently: What is aware of this? Turn your attention away from the activity and toward the background of awareness in which the activity appears. Notice that this awareness does not change, even while everything else moves. Recognize: This awareness is always here. Let yourself feel the stillness behind the doing, and remain lightly anchored there, even as life flows on.

Extended Practice Guide

As you move through daily activities—walking, talking, listening, working—pause inwardly and gently turn your attention toward what is always present. Begin by noticing how everything around you is constantly changing: the movement of your body, the sound of your voice, the shifting thoughts in your mind, the emotions that rise and fall.

Now, ask yourself:

“What is it that knows all of this?”

What is it that is aware of walking, aware of speaking, aware of these thoughts and sensations?

Let your attention settle not on the changing activity, but on the knowing of it—the simple fact that awareness is present throughout.

Recognize that this awareness does not come and go.

It does not move with your body or shift with your thoughts.

It is the silent, open background in which all activity appears and disappears.

It was here before the action began and remains after it ends.

As you walk, speak, or listen, let part of your attention rest in that unchanging presence. Let yourself feel the difference: the body moves, the words change, thoughts flow—but the awareness of all of this is stable, constant, ungraspable, yet unmistakably here.

Remain anchored in that which does not change, even as all else flows. Let activity come and go like waves on the surface, while you stay quietly rooted in the depth.

When and How to Practice

These three approaches are not steps on a ladder but rather different doors into the same room. You may find yourself naturally moving between them depending on your situation.

When you are walking or working, the first mode—activity-based mindfulness—is available. When you have a moment of stillness, such as sitting alone or waiting quietly, the second mode—resting in awareness—can be practiced. And as your familiarity with awareness deepens, the third mode—recognizing awareness within activity—may begin to emerge naturally.

The key is not to force any of these states. Instead, allow them to arise and settle on their own. Trust that awareness is always here, waiting to be recognized.

Conclusion

In our daily life, mindfulness can be a powerful bridge to the ever-present awareness within us. Whether we are moving or still, engaged or resting, we are always held in the vast space of presence. By practicing these three modes—mindfulness of activity, resting in awareness, and recognizing awareness within activity—we deepen our connection to what is real, lasting, and free.

With time, we come to see that mindfulness is not something we do, but something we are. And in that, there is profound peace.

Awareness