“Mindfulness practice was intended to lead to the clear insight that despite appearing separate, all phenomena – including our sense of self – are, in their true nature, relative and interdependent,” he tells me. In many of its new incarnations in the West, however, it is marketed as a tool to boost productivity and performance. “Mindfulness has become a stripped-down, DIY, self-help technique,” says Purser – another tool to get ahead of others. He was not surprised by Poulin’s findings – anecdotally, he had heard of similar effects.