50+ Quotes on Mindfulness to Help You Be More Present

Published January 17, 2023

In a world where almost everything can be done in an instant, sitting down and doing nothing seems to have become a luxury. We’ve become so focused on surviving in a fast-paced world that we tend to lose our connection to ourselves and the people around us. 

That’s why practicing mindfulness is such a necessity nowadays. In the dictionary, mindfulness is defined as a mental state achieved by focusing our awareness on the present moment while calmly acknowledging and accepting our feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations.

In essence, practicing mindfulness not only calms the mind. It also allows you to communicate with yourself and acknowledge the thoughts and emotions that you’ve been trying to ignore. In the process, you learn to make peace with yourself and be more grateful for everything that you have.

Focusing on the present moment also helps us let go of the niggling worries and anxieties at the back of our minds. That’s why, when used in therapy, mindfulness can help reduce stress and anxiety, ease depression, improve cognitive function, and build better relationships.

So if you’re ready to start your mindfulness journey, these mindfulness quotes may help.

Inspirational Quotes About Mindfulness

1. Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, and concentrate the mind on the present moment. – Buddha
2. The best way to capture moments is to pay attention. This is how we cultivate mindfulness. Mindfulness means being awake. – Jon Kaba Zinn
3. To be old and wise, you must first be young and stupid. – Unknown
4. When we get too caught up in the busyness of the world, we lose connection with one another – and ourselves. – Jack Kornfield
5. Open the window of your mind. Allow the fresh air, new lights and new truths to enter. – Amit Ray
6. Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand, melting like a snowflake. – Francis Bacon Sr.
7. What you are is what you have been. What you’ll be is what you do now. – Buddha
8. Many people are alive but don’t touch the miracle of being alive. – Thích Nhất Hạnh
9. If you’re determined to think of yourself as limited, fearful, vulnerable, or scarred by past experience, know only that you have chosen to do so. The opportunity to experience yourself differently is always available. – Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
10. When you focus on what works for you and what doesn’t, you step out of that comparison cycle and spiral into your real, beautiful life. – Robyn Conley Downs
11. With awareness, we can make conscious choices instead of letting our habitual thoughts and patterns run the show. – Tamara Levitt
12. Be where you are, otherwise, you will miss your life. – Buddha
13. Step outside for a while – calm your mind. It is better to hug a tree than to bang your head against a wall continually. – Rasheed Ogunlaru
14. Mindfulness isn’t difficult, we just need to remember to do it. – Sharon Salzberg
15. The art of peaceful living comes down to living compassionately & wisely. – Allan Lokos
16. If you want to conquer the anxiety of life, live in the moment, live in the breath. – Amit Ray
17. The Way is not in the sky, the Way is in the heart. – Buddha
18. Do every act of your life as though it were the very last act of your life. – Marcus Aurelius
19. In today’s rush, we all think too much–seek too much–want too much–and forget about the joy of just being. – Eckhart Tolle

Quotes About the Beauty of Mindfulness

1. Every time we become aware of a thought, as opposed to being lost in a thought, we experience that opening of the mind. – Joseph Goldstein
2. Mindfulness helps us to live in harmony with our thoughts, words, and actions. – Amit Ray
3. Pause practice creates an open doorway to the sacredness of the place in which you find yourself. – Perma Chodron
4. Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally. – Jon Kabat Zinn
5. Our life is shaped by our mind, for we become what we think. – Buddha
6. Mindfulness clears the windshield of the mind so that we can see things as they really are – Travis Eliot
7. The present moment is the only time over which we have dominion. – Thích Nhất Hạnh
8. The things that matter most in our lives are not fantastic or grand. They are moments when we touch one another. – Jack Kornfield
9. Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better. It’s about befriending who we are already. – Perma Chodron
10. Every time we ponder a thought, act on an impulse, or dwell on a desire, we are setting in motion a cause that will have a future effect. Mindfulness enables us to choose wisely. – Tamara Levitt
11. What would it be like if I could accept life – accept this moment – exactly as it is? – Tara Brach
12. Life is a dance. Mindfulness is witnessing that dance. – Amit Ray
13. Mindfulness is the aware, balanced acceptance of the present experience. It isn’t more complicated than that. It is opening to or receiving the present moment, pleasant or unpleasant, just as it is, without either clinging to it or rejecting it. – Sylvia Boorstein