The concepts developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn in Wherever You Go, There You Are have their origins in Buddhism, a major world religion that emerged in India 2,500 years ago. Buddhists believe that suffering is an inevitable part of the human experience. To free oneself from the cycle of birth and rebirth (reincarnation), one should aim to achieve enlightenment through meditation, spiritual and physical labor, and morally good behavior (“Buddhism.” National Geographic, 7 Feb. 2023).

The Buddhist tradition points to Siddhartha Gautama as its founder, a Hindu prince who lived in India in the fifth century BCE. Gautama was raised in luxury, but it occurred to Gautama that he was still not exempt from suffering and eventual death. He decided to leave his life of luxury in search of the meaning of suffering. After an encounter with a lute player who described that the strings of the instrument cannot be too tight or too loose, but rather must be moderately tightened to achieve the perfect sound, Gautama understood living by the “middle road,” where one seeks neither excessive luxury nor excessive degradation.

Mindfulness and meditation are central practices in Buddhism.