The Mindfulness of the Jellyfish

When we learn about jellyfish, we might first hear that jellyfish don’t have brains, central nervous systems, eyes, or digestive systems, and that their bodies are more than 95 percent water. We might learn that they’ve been on Earth for over 500 million years, and we can watch videos of the different species that bioluminesce, or swarm, or sting.

And we can read that these ancient animals “are crucial to ocean health.” Via the Ocean Conservancy:

“they keep prey like zooplankton and small fish populations in check by paralyzing them with their tentacles and gobbling them up. Jellyfish also transport carbon to greater ocean depths, enhancing biodiversity and contributing to medical advances.”

This informative Headspace video focuses on something a bit different: The Mindfulness of the Jellyfish, achieved through focusing on their life cycle. From the video:

…seeing the jelly’s life cycle up close is a fascinating and even soothing experience, and one with an important lesson in impermanence: that is that everything is changing in our minds, our bodies, and the world around us.

Headspace is a meditation and mindfulness app that has partnered with Sesame Street and the states of New York and California to connect communities with meditation and other tools for maintaining mental health.

Watch these related videos next:
• Monterey Bay Aquarium’s LIVE Jelly Cams
• Lost in Jellyfish Lake, Eil Malk island, Palau
• A human-sized barrel jellyfish near Cornwall
• Japan’s 72 Micro-Seasons of Impermanence
• Mindfulness animations on change, calm, and connection