Eighth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

There has been an exponential increase in contemplative investigation within education, psychology, science/neuroscience, health and medicine, as evidenced by more than 6,000 published studies with the word “mindfulness” in the last 20 years. It is becoming widely acknowledged that the ethical, moral, and spiritual dimensions serve a vital, critical role in mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing. This presentation takes an epistemological and phenomenological approach to investigating how cultural artifacts (language, metaphors, visual images) are used in children stories and the contemplative practice of story-telling in Hawaii to plant concepts such as Lokahi (referring to balance, harmony, and unity for self in relationship to the body, mind and spirit). This will be compared and analyzed with respect to results from 54 undergraduate students who were enrolled in a 16-week mindfulness contemplative course at the University of Hawaii. Both highlight a substance philosophical orientation.