The Buddha said, “My friends, it is through the establishment of the lovely clarity of mindfulness, that you can let go of grasping after past and future, overcome attachment and grief, abandon all clinging and anxiety, and awaken an unshakable freedom of heart here and now.” At the heart of Insight Meditation is the practice of mindfulness, the cultivation of a clear, stable, nonjudgmental, non-interfering awareness. We’re learning how to overcome the preoccupations of our mind—our stories, our habits, our recirculating thoughts—so we actually can be present.