The Mindfulness Practice, Aesthetic Experience, and Creative Democracy

Abstract:In this paper, we explore the degree to which the Buddhist mindfulness practice and the habits of democratic citizenship can be reconstructed in light of each other. We ask what mindfulness is, seeking to first understand it in its Buddhist context. Then we turn to the work of John Dewey in order to seek possibilities for mutual reconstruction. Finally, we ask how we can reconcile mindful acceptance of the present with the ameliorative habits of the democratic citizen—and what this might mean for a reconstructed progressive education practice.