The MBSR, founded by Jon Kabat-Zinn 1979, is now popular all over the world and used at all levels of society for its good results.Kabat-Zinn admitsthat MBSR is influenced by Theravada Buddhism, Zen and certain yoga genre, and its practical aspects are very similar to Mahāsi Vipassanā mediation, such as focusing on the moment, not critical awareness, walk meditation, breathing to pay attention to the feeling of the abdomen. In addition, Kabat-zinn denies that MBSR is not only a cognitive behavioral skill, which requires the inner transformation to truly healing, as well as the influence of Mahāsi Vipassanāmediation.Kabat-Zinn even advocated that people who want to teach MBSR should attend several classes for the traditional meditation. Therefore, the practice of MBSR obviously inherited from the traditional practice of Buddhist vipassanāmeditation. However, there are also significant differences between Kabat-Zinn's mindfulness system and Mahāsi Vipassanāmeditation. For example, the main purpose of Mahāsi Vipassanā meditation is to personally experience the "dukkha," "anicca," and "anatta." and finally Nirvana as the ultimate goal. However, MBSR is secularized, and consider that "mindfulness" is the universal law, not only exclusively Buddhist, striving to eliminate the relationship with religion. Kabat-zinn believes that in the moment of practicing mindfulness, it is non-doing and has reached a purpose without any purpose,that is, "there is nowhere to go, nothing is done and nothing is gained." Therefore, the MBSR system established by Kabat-zinn is different from the fundamentals and the connotation of the Mahāsi Vipassanā mediation system. This paper intends to clarify the relationship and difference between these two systems, which helps to restore the real meaning of MBSR in contemporary society.
