Two well-known quotes talk about the attitude of Confucian mindfulness: The first quote is from Book of Poetry: "Be careful and alert, as if

The Confucian practice of mindfulness starts with a verse from Mencius: 孟子曰：仁，人心也；義，人路也。舍其路而弗由，放其心而不知求，哀哉！人有雞犬放，則知求之；有放心，則不知求。學問之道無他，求其放心而已矣