--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: With mindfulness, we are learning to…" description: "\"With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way, with balance and a powerful disidentification.\" — Jack Kornfield" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png" --- # With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way… ![“With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way, with balance and a powerful disidentification.” quote by Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png) > “With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way, with balance and a powerful disidentification.” [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mindfulness teaches us to observe experiences with balance, creating a sense of detachment from habitual identification. **In simple terms:** Mindfulness helps us see thoughts without clinging. Key Takeaway Practice balanced observation. Themes mindfulness self-awareness detachment Mood calm insightful Type spiritual psychological When to use this quote - stress reduction - emotional regulation - meditation - cognitive therapy Key Concepts psychology spiritual practice Questions to Reflect On - How does detachment affect your sense of self? - What practices support balanced observation? A Different Perspective Detachment can feel disorienting for beginners. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Meditation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meditation/) [Mental health](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mental-health/) [Mindfulness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mindfulness/) ## Related quotes > [“I would like to ofer some exercises that can help us use the Five Precepts to cultivate and strengthen mindfulness. It is best to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/i-would-like-to-ofer-some-exercises-that-can-help-us-use-the-five/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [As we encounter new experiences with a mindful and wise attention, we discover that one of three things will happen to our new experience:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/as-we-encounter-new-experiences-with-a-mindful-and-wise-attention-we/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [“I observe but do not second-guess others’ thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-lourdes/i-observe-but-do-not-second-guess-others-thoughts/) [Leo Lourdes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-lourdes/) > [Mindfulness means moment-to-moment, non-judgmental awareness. It is cultivated by refining our capacity to pay attention, intentionally, in the present moment, and then sustaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-kabat-zinn/mindfulness-means-moment-to-moment-non-judgmental-awareness-it-is/) [Jon Kabat-Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-kabat-zinn/) > [“Mindfulness (present-moment awareness) is deliberately focusing our attention on our thoughts, emotions, feelings, sensations and mental activity without losing awareness of what is happening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/mindfulness-present-moment-awareness-is-deliberately-focusing-our/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [“set up an appointment with yourself in the morning, during a busy work schedule, or at night to find a quiet space and practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-owens/set-up-an-appointment-with-yourself-in-the-morning-during-a-busy-work/) Sarah Owens > [Mindfulness is being aware of yourself, others, and your surroundings in the moment. When consciously and kindly focusing awareness on life as it unfolds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-thoele/mindfulness-is-being-aware-of-yourself-others-and-your-surroundings/) [Sue Thoele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-thoele/) > [Mindfulness develops attention, concentration and the ability to simply be present with little or no future orientation, past orientation or goal orientation—choosing to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-gawler/mindfulness-develops-attention-concentration-and-the-ability-to/) Ian Gawler > [Mindfulness is life. Whenever we don’t have mindfulness, when we are heedless, it’s as if we are dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ajahn-chah/mindfulness-is-life-whenever-we-don-t-have-mindfulness-when-we-are/) [Ajahn Chah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ajahn-chah/) > [“Like gratitude, authentic appreciation in the workplace is a realisation that can be nurtured and accessed with daily mindful practice. By and large, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/like-gratitude-authentic-appreciation-in-the-workplace-is-a/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [“Our enemy within are our Core Negative Beliefs. Negative beliefs hide from the Consciousness and they get exposed by the Magic of Mindfulness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasa-pantovic-nuit/our-enemy-within-are-our-core-negative-beliefs-negative-beliefs-hide/) [Natasa Pantovic Nuit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasa-pantovic-nuit/) > [“For example, the sound of the telephone can make us irritated and anxious. That is the sound of the telephone which comes as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/th-ch-nh-t-h-nh/for-example-the-sound-of-the-telephone-can-make-us-irritated-and/) [Thích Nhất Hạnh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/th-ch-nh-t-h-nh/) > [Life is a collection of moments. Mindfulness is beautification of the moments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-ray/life-is-a-collection-of-moments-mindfulness-is-beautification-of-the/) [Amit Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-ray/) > [“Mindfulness is an invitation to change that pattern and to become aware of where we are and how we got here. Mindfulness gives us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maia-duerr/mindfulness-is-an-invitation-to-change-that-pattern-and-to-become/) [Maia Duerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maia-duerr/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Jack Kornfield > [“When we let go of our battles and open our heart to things as they are, then we come to rest in the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/when-we-let-go-of-our-battles-and-open-our-heart-to-things-as-they/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [In opening we can see how many times we have mistaken small identities and fearful beliefs for our true nature and how limiting this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/in-opening-we-can-see-how-many-times-we-have-mistaken-small/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Wherever you are is the perfect place to awaken. This moment is the exact place to practice compassion and loving awareness. You have all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/wherever-you-are-is-the-perfect-place-to-awaken-this-moment-is-the/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Acceptance does not mean inaction. We may need to respond, strongly at times...From a peaceful center we can respond instead of react. Unconscious reactions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/acceptance-does-not-mean-inaction-we-may-need-to-respond-strongly-at/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [To live in this precious animal body on this earth is as great a part of spiritual life as anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/to-live-in-this-precious-animal-body-on-this-earth-is-as-great-a-part/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [We do not have to improve ourselves; we just have to let go of what blocks our heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/we-do-not-have-to-improve-ourselves-we-just-have-to-let-go-of-what/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [To open deeply, as genuine spiritual life requires, we need tremendous courage and strength, a kind of warrior spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/to-open-deeply-as-genuine-spiritual-life-requires-we-need-tremendous/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [As we step out of the way new things are born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/as-we-step-out-of-the-way-new-things-are-born/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [For most of us, generosity is a quality that must be developed. We have to respect that it will grow gradually; otherwise our spirituality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/for-most-of-us-generosity-is-a-quality-that-must-be-developed-we-have/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [What is truly a part of our spiritual path is that which brings us alive. If gardening brings us alive, that is part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/what-is-truly-a-part-of-our-spiritual-path-is-that-which-brings-us/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [“Working with these distractions, steadying the canoe, letting the waves pass by, and coming back again and again in a quiet and collected way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/working-with-these-distractions-steadying-the-canoe-letting-the-waves/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [To understand ourselves and our life is the point of insight meditation: to understand and to be free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/to-understand-ourselves-and-our-life-is-the-point-of-insight/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [To let go in the deepest recesses of the heart, to release all struggle and wanting, leads us to that knowing which is timeless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/to-let-go-in-the-deepest-recesses-of-the-heart-to-release-all/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Wisdom says we are nothing. Love says we are everything. Between these two our life flows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/wisdom-says-we-are-nothing-love-says-we-are-everything-between-these/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [Breathing meditation can quiet the mind, open the body, and develop a great power of concentration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/breathing-meditation-can-quiet-the-mind-open-the-body-and-develop-a/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) [Explore all 324 Jack Kornfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) ## More Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/) [John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I never understood how much running changes your life. I'm now obsessed. When not trying to beat my personal best, I'm talking to other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadiq-khan/i-never-understood-how-much-running-changes-your-life-i-m-now/) [Sadiq Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadiq-khan/) > [Whatever needed to be done, I need to know how to do it just as well as my wife. You know, for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isbell/whatever-needed-to-be-done-i-need-to-know-how-to-do-it-just-as-well/) [Jason Isbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isbell/) > [I don't think my parents would have let me go straight into acting full time when I was 12. I do like to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-don-t-think-my-parents-would-have-let-me-go-straight-into-acting/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [When it comes down to music, I have no balance. I am 100 percent. It is like full throttle. Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way, with balance and a powerful disidentification.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jack Kornfield" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-observe-in-a-new-way-with-balance/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Balance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-observe-in-a-new-way-with-balance/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1a/jack-kornfield-936_balance_with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-obse_1651616.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“With mindfulness, we are learning to observe in a new way, with balance and a powerful disidentification.” — Jack Kornfield", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jack Kornfield", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "With mindfulness, we are learning to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-observe-in-a-new-way-with-balance/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/with-mindfulness-we-are-learning-to-observe-in-a-new-way-with-balance/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```