The World of Relaxation was conceived as a way to reach out to
patients lying in bed in the hospital and inviting them to experiment
inwardly, with Jon's guidance, in bringing mindful awareness to their
present-moment circumstances, utilizing the occasion of having to lie in
bed for some time - whatever the viewer's medical condition and
prognosis - to do something for him or herself to promote healing of the
mind and body, as a vital complement to whatever the health care system
and one's doctors are doing by way of medical treatments and
rehabilitation. Over 100 hospitals have used this program over the years
on their in-house television channels, and doctors often prescribe it to
their patients, recommending that they practice with it several times a
day. The program is meant to be "done" by the listener, rather than
simply listened to. During most of the time, the listener is encouraged
to have his or her eyes closed.
In the past 30 years, Dr. Kabat-Zinn's eight-week outpatient
mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program has spread from the
University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center to hospitals and
clinics across the United States and around the world and occasioned an
entire field of clinical medicine and basic and clinical research, much
of which has already demonstrated the profoundly positive mental and
physical health consequences of practicing mindfulness meditation both
formally and informally in one's daily life. The practices in The World
of Relaxation are guided meditations similar to the formal practices in
MBSR, particularly mindfulness of breathing, body sensations, thoughts
and emotions, and the body scan.
The original harp music by Georgia Kelly was composed specifically for
this program and is played by the composer. Harp music has been
associated with healing since pre-biblical times. The music enhances the
process of relaxation and establishes a flowing rhythmicity that
entrains the listener's attention and carries it through the various
stages of the program. The notes of the harp have the quality of coming
out of silence and disappearing back into silence, singly and in raining
curtains of sounds, just as do our thoughts and emotions. Mindfulness,
one's capacity to inhabit the present moment with nonjudgmental
awareness, deepens over the course of a single session and even more,
through repeated practicing with this program over days, weeks, months,
and years. The learning occasioned by practicing with this program on a
regular basis can stand one in good stead from moment to moment and from
day to day as one's life continues to unfold.
