Meditation Goes Digital

A smartphone app to help with meditation has become a hit in Korea.

Over 100,000 Koreans have already used it to find peace of mind.

The app, named Elephant, was made in cooperation with Haemin Sunim, a Korean monk.

Haemin is famous for lecturing on mindfulness and its benefits.

The 47-year-old monk, who graduated from Harvard and Princeton, has also written many best-selling books on the subject.

Mindfulness is a state of totally accepting the present moment.

It involves paying careful attention to our thoughts and feelings.

However, it also requires us not to judge these thoughts as being "right" or "wrong."

Scientists have found many benefits to mindfulness, which is achieved though meditation.

This state of non-judgement has helped people reduce their stress and anxiety.

For students, it can help to improve their attention and memory.

In the past, Haemin used many means to teach people the way of mindfulness meditation, including social media.

This time, the monk teamed up with British journalist Daniel Tudor to create the Elephant Meditation Smartphone app.

Launched in August, it quickly became one of the best-selling apps in the country.

The app includes daily updates and lectures on how to meditate.

It also provides audios of natural sounds that can be streamed during meditation.

"People tell me that they have found peace of mind and have slept better because of the app.

"This has led to less stress and better relationships," Haemin said in an interview.

"I am thankful that the app has helped people in these ways."

 

• meditation ˌmedɪˈteɪʃn  명상, 묵상  cooperation koʊ|ɑːpə│reɪʃn 협력, 합동, 협동 mindfulness  마음 챙김   mindful ˈmaɪndfl …을 염두에 두는, …에 유념하는 (=conscious)

• involve ɪnˈvɑːlv  (중요 요소로·필연적으로) 수반[포함]하다 (=entail)  관련[연루]시키다   pay careful attention  신경을 세심하게 쓰다

• team up (with somebody)  (…와) 조를 짜 일하다, 협력하다(with). (=work together, cooperate.)