Politicians and business people who say they practise mindfulness are totally ignoring an important facet of Buddhism, writes Pam Stainer

The continuing enthusiasm for mindfulness in government and business should be welcomed. As someone who has practised a form of Buddhist meditation for nearly 30 years, I know how hard it is to still the mind and to begin to see things as they really are.

It is a paradox of meditation practice that it is training the mind not to think about things that leads to understanding and clarity of mind, and not, as the Conservative MP Tim Loughton seems to believe, wallowing in the bath thinking (Report, 19 October).

But for the sports minister, Tracey Crouch, to say that mindfulness is crucial to her department is to totally ignore the other important facet of Buddhism – sila, or morality. Buddhism values the qualities of generosity, kindness, compassion, unconditional goodwill to all beings. I see no evidence at all that the current Tory leadership of this country practises any of these.

It’s distasteful to me that business people or politicians are taking on such a superficial understanding of mindfulness that they will spend half an hour in their lunch break doing a mindfulness practice and then go back to their work of shafting the poor and vulnerable in our society in the afternoon.

Pam Stanier

Malvern Wells, Worcestershire

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