Mental silence vs. mindfulness meditation

While Mindfulness may be defined as a state in which one passively observes the ebb and flow of thoughts while not getting involved with them, the ancient Eastern meditator seeks to unite their awareness with the “space between the thoughts” in order to achieve mental silence, such as in the practice of Sahaja Yoga meditation. Thus, while mental silence is a specific experience that can be preceded if not facilitated by present-moment observation and other Mindfulness methods, it is distinguished from Mindfulness by its sine qua non, the elimination of thought activity, elimination of the effort of thought in addition to the disengagement of attentional processes from thinking. All of this course occurring without the meditator losing any sense of self control.

Dr Ramesh Manocha