The Dialectical Mandala Model of Mindfulness: A Novel Model Revealing the Alchemical Logic Underlying Mindfulness Practice

Mindfulness is reconceptualized as a multilayered developmental architecture rather than a set of techniques or cognitive skills, integrating Daoist internal alchemy and Buddhist contemplative theory through the Dialectical Mandala Model of Mindfulness (DMMM). The model incorporates the psycho-physical dynamics of qi, shen (spirit), hun (cloud-soul), and po (white-soul), and is grounded in the catuṣkoṭi framework to reconstruct dialectical logic underlying contemplative traditions. It proposes four interrelated cycles, each with four phases, where faith, understanding, practice, and realization serve as recurrent structural principles. The DMMM contributes to theory-building in cross-cultural and indigenous psychology by offering a systematic account of how non-discursive states are structured by deeper dialectical logic.

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Abstract

Contrasting mainstream operational definitions of mindfulness, this article introduces the Dialectical Mandala Model of Mindfulness (DMMM), a dialectically articulated framework integrating Daoist internal alchemy and Buddhist contemplative theory. It reconceptualizes mindfulness as a multilayered developmental architecture rather than a set of techniques or cognitive skills, extending beyond cognitive adjustment to encompass the psycho-physical dynamics of qi, shen (spirit), hun (cloud-soul), and po (white-soul). Grounded in the catuṣkoṭi framework, the DMMM proposes a reconstruction of the dialectical logic underlying certain contemplative traditions through a systematic integration of the subject–object polarity, and aligns with the second stage of Kwang-Kuo Hwang’s three-step epistemological strategy for developing indigenous psychology, contributing to theory-building within cross-cultural and indigenous psychological discourse. The study combines close textual analysis with a reflexive use of autoethnographic vignettes from long-term practice, not as reports of experience themselves but as an epistemically situated resource for model construction. The DMMM formalizes a recursively unfolding developmental trajectory of mindfulness cultivation into a system of four interrelated cycles, each comprising four distinct phases. Across these phases, the developmental qualities of faith, understanding, practice, and realization function as recurrent structural principles rather than merely experiential descriptors. By articulating the internal dynamics and causal coherence of these phases, the model offers a systematic theoretical account of how spontaneous or non-discursive states may be understood as structured by a deeper dialectical logic. These four cycles provide a framework for analyzing transformations in mindfulness across stages and traditions, thereby contributing to religious studies, contemplative studies, and cross-cultural psychological theory-building.