Mindfulness has been widely promoted in modern Western culture as a therapeutic practice for stress reduction, emotional regulation, and mental health support. However, Christians must mark and avoid Mindfulness because its roots are drawn from Buddhism, Hinduism, and yoga.

Many people are confused by the term “Mindfulness”. In this article, I’ll be addressing a particular teaching style of meditation, which is different than the wisdom to “be mindful” (as in being sober-minded and alert, c.f., 1 Peter 5:8) to avoid physically or spiritually stumbling.

The founder of Mindfulness meditation is Jon Kabat-Zinn, who was raised in a Jewish home but immersed himself in Eastern spirituality during the 1960s and 70s counterculture movement. He studied with Buddhist monks and teachers, practiced Zen Buddhism, and was influenced by the Hindu and yoga popularity that the Beatles and the “hippie movement” ushered into the West.

In 1979, Kabat-Zinn founded the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Kabat-Zinn attempted to secularize Buddhist meditation by rebranding it in scientific and therapeutic terms, yet the essence of the practice remained intact.

By removing overt Buddhist symbols and language, Kabat-Zinn introduced Mindfulness to hospitals, universities, and public schools, paving the way for what’s now a multi-billion-dollar industry of apps, books, classes, and corporate programs that claim to train the mind through non-judgmental awareness of the present moment. What’s marketed as a neutral mental health tool is tragically a spiritually dangerous practice that’s contrary to Scripture.

The core practice of Mindfulness is to focus on the present moment through breathing exercises, bodily awareness, or mental observation. The goal is to notice thoughts and feelings without judgment. Yet Scripture repeatedly calls believers to actively discipline their thoughts and submit them to the authority of Christ.

God’s Word commands that “we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). Unlike Mindfulness meditation, which teaches practitioners to let thoughts pass by like clouds drifting through the mind, Christians are to subject their thoughts to the truth of the gospel and to reject and repent for those that are sinful, deceitful, or destructive.

Mindfulness instead teaches detachment from moral discernment, and an attitude of neutrality toward thoughts that Scripture says must be judged according to God’s standard. Jesus’ teaching from Sermon on the Mount went beyond external actions and explained that sinful thoughts are equivalent to sinful deeds. Lustful thoughts are adultery of the heart, and angry thoughts are murder in the heart (Matthew 5:21-30).

Therefore, to practice Mindfulness by noticing your thoughts without judgment is to stand in direct contradiction to Christ’s teaching. Neutrality toward sinful thoughts is never an option for the believer, because what dwells in the heart shapes words, actions, and ultimately one’s character.

The second major problem with Mindfulness is its foundation in Eastern meditation practices that cultivate altered states of consciousness. These states may feel peaceful, expansive, or detached, yet they’re spiritually dangerous because they dull the alertness that God commands of us. Since Mindfulness has Buddhist and Hindu roots, let’s examine why this foundation is another reason for Christians to avoid these practices.

Buddhism and Hinduism both employ meditation techniques to “transcend” the self, dissolve the sense of ego, and connect with a universal consciousness—this is sometimes described as “nirvana” or “union with the divine”. The Hindu practice of yoga, too, has always been historically for its purpose to unite the practitioner with Hindu deities and to prepare the body as a vehicle for altered awareness.

Mindfulness borrows directly from these traditions; though under the guise of secular science, it rarely acknowledges the spiritual realities behind them. For Christians, the call is precisely the opposite. God commands, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

The Christian life requires vigilance, clarity, and readiness for spiritual warfare, not the passive emptying of the mind or drifting into altered states. To cultivate a mental state in which judgment is suspended and consciousness is altered is to lower one’s defenses against the schemes of Satan. The adversary thrives when people abandon discernment, because it is in those moments of vacancy that deception enters most easily.

To understand the incompatibility of Mindfulness with biblical Christianity, one must also consider how its rise in the West parallels a broader acceptance of Eastern spirituality disguised as “wellness” practices. Kabat-Zinn (and others) stripped Mindfulness of overt Buddhist terminology so that it could be introduced into secular institutions. Yet Kabat-Zinn himself acknowledged that the practice is inseparable from its roots in Buddhism, likening Mindfulness training to planting “Dharma seeds” in unsuspecting soil.

In other words, the secular cloak doesn’t erase the spiritual substance. When Mindfulness is taught in schools to children, in therapy to trauma survivors, or in corporations to stressed employees, they’re engaging in a practice meant to cultivate Buddhist awareness of reality. Scripture repeatedly warns against adopting the practices of pagan religions, even if those practices seem helpful, because they carry with them the worldview and spiritual influences of their origin.

Israel was warned not to imitate the nations in divination, sorcery, or spiritual practices, for “whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord” (Deuteronomy 18:12). It’s naïve to assume that by removing Sanskrit terms or Buddhist statues the practice itself becomes acceptable; the root remains the same, and so do the spiritual consequences. Mindfulness meditation isn’t analogous to the redeemed meat in 1 Corinthians 8; it’s analogous to the unredeemable pagan temples and pagan prayers.

Another concern is that Mindfulness fosters a focus on the self rather than on God. The promise is that by observing your own thoughts and sensations, you can find peace, resilience, or healing within yourself. Yet Scripture is clear that the heart is deceitful above all things (Jeremiah 17:9). Peace doesn’t come from gazing inward, but from fixing our eyes on Christ, the Prince of Peace (c.f., Isaiah 26:3; John 14:27).

Mindfulness may train people to tolerate distress by detaching from their thoughts, but it can’t cleanse guilt, transform desires, or provide eternal hope. Only God’s Word can cut to the division of soul and spirit, discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). Only the gospel can forgive sin and bring true peace with God through Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1).

In contrast, Mindfulness offers a counterfeit peace rooted in altered awareness rather than reconciliation with God. It numbs the conscience, instead of purifying it by the blood of Christ. This false peace is spiritually hazardous because it may convince a person that they’ve found contentment, when in reality they’re alienated from God, the only source of true peace.

For people suffering from anxiety, trauma, or depression, Mindfulness may initially bring relief, and this is often used as evidence of its validity. Yet sin seems to promise short-term comfort while leading to long-term destruction. Israel was repeatedly tempted to adopt the practices of surrounding nations because they seemed beneficial, yet those practices led them into idolatry.

The same is true today if a Christian thinks that there’s no harm in practicing breathing exercises or thought observation. What begins as stress management can evolve into dependence upon meditation, fascination with Eastern philosophy, and openness to further New Age practices. The progression is subtle but real, because Mindfulness isn’t spiritually neutral.

To cultivate emptiness of mind without filling it with Scripture is to invite deception. Instead, Christians are exhorted to meditate upon God’s Word day and night (Psalm 1:2), to set their minds on things above (Colossians 3:2), and to let the Word of Christ dwell in them richly (Colossians 3:16). The biblical model of meditation is to saturate the mind with God’s truth and to let it transform the inner life.

The Bible tells us to meditate upon Scripture day and night in Joshua 1:8 and Psalm 1:2. The word “meditate” in biblical Hebrew is “haggah”, which means to “mutter aloud”. So, we are to quietly speak Scripture aloud to ourselves while reading the Bible. In other words, our meditations need to completely focus upon the Bible. That’s the biblical definition of meditation.

Furthermore, Mindfulness distorts the concept of judgment itself. In Scripture, judgment is discernment between good and evil, truth and lies, righteousness and sin. Christians are called to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God” (1 John 4:1) and to “test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). To suspend judgment is to refuse discernment, which leaves the believer defenseless in a spiritual battlefield.

A thought observed without moral evaluation may slowly shape attitudes and desires in ungodly directions. For example, noticing lust without judgment is adultery of the heart. Noticing envy without judgment is to cultivate discontent. Noticing anger without judgment is to harbor resentment.

Sin isn’t defeated through detachment but by confession, repentance, and renewal in Christ. We are to mortify sin by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:13). Mindfulness bypasses this battle entirely, offering a false sense of peace while sin continues to fester.

The broader cultural acceptance of Mindfulness also reveals how dangerously deceptive Mindfulness can be. Because it’s marketed as a medical or psychological intervention, many Christians assume it must be safe, forgetting that not all practices embraced by science or education are aligned with God’s truth.

The biblical alternative to Mindfulness is a Spirit-filled discipline of the mind. God hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). The believer’s mind is renewed by Scripture, transformed to discern the will of God (Romans 12:2). Instead of noticing thoughts without judgment, we are to cast down arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God (2 Corinthians 10:5). Instead of emptying the mind, we are to fill it with whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8). Instead of detaching from our thoughts, we are to align them with Christ, letting His Word and His Spirit govern our inner life.

This requires vigilance, humility, and constant dependence on God’s grace, not self-directed observation. When anxiety threatens, the Christian needs to bring it before God in prayer with thanksgiving, trusting His peace that surpasses understanding to guard the heart and mind (Philippians 4:6-7).

Mindfulness meditation may be marketed as a stress-relieving technique, yet its roots, methods, and outcomes are at odds with biblical faith. Born out of Buddhist and Hindu meditation, rebranded by Jon Kabat-Zinn into a secular format, and spread through modern institutions, Mindfulness carries with it a worldview that denies God’s truth.

By teaching people to notice thoughts without judgment, it contradicts the command to take every thought captive and ignores the reality that sinful thoughts are sinful deeds. By leading people into altered states of consciousness, it undermines the vigilance and sobriety God commands in spiritual warfare. By offering counterfeit peace, it distracts from the only true peace found in Christ.

Christians must therefore reject Mindfulness as incompatible with the gospel and instead embrace biblical meditation, filling the mind with God’s Word, disciplining thoughts under Christ’s lordship, and remaining sober-minded in the fight against sin and deception, resting in the true and lasting peace that comes only through Christ Jesus.

This article appears in the Fall 2025 Issue of Theology for Life Magazine, exploring “The Means of Grace.”