Hi and welcome to today's meditation.
Today we're going to be doing an insight meditation where we will turn the mind back on itself to become aware of who is the observer and that which we actually are.
What we are rather than who,
For we are not our name,
We are not our body,
We are not even our age.
You remove all these different things and we still have that essence of what we actually are,
What we actually are,
All throughout our life since we were born to now.
There has been something that was aware,
Was there not?
If you ask yourself now,
There has always been some presence,
Some awareness of the witness that's been watching your life unfurl and sometimes we get completely sucked into a situation,
A thought,
A feeling and then at some point we pop back out and we become aware again and that is what we are,
The awareness.
But to really get to know that awareness today,
We're going to turn our attention back on itself to watch the one that is aware using the mind as a tool to observe the awareness so that we can build a closer connected relationship with what we actually are,
The awareness,
Rather than always having our attention fixed on a thought,
An idea or the external world.
And if we can cultivate a stronger connection with our own awareness,
That which we actually are,
Then we can feel much more peace and content,
More equanimity.
Often a common feeling,
Experience of this awareness is something we would have experienced before where there's a no-mindedness,
An empty mind or in the zone,
Maybe with sport,
Like the mind is clear.
So let's begin creating that new relationship with our awareness,
Closing your eyes,
Finding a comfortable position but not too comfortable,
Not lying down,
Not slouched,
Sitting up straight,
Back straight,
As if there's a cord pulling up from the top of your crown,
Top of your head.
Lifting up,
Chin tucked,
Inhale,
Exhale,
In and out through the nose.
Not doing the breathing,
Just allowing the breathing to occur and just watching,
Noticing any sounds,
Any sensations in the body,
Any thoughts that come,
Just noticing them,
Just being the witness and noticing any thoughts,
Any sensations,
No judgement.
And then notice the one that is noticing the sensation.
Can you notice what is aware of thought?
Turn your attention,
Turn the mind back in on itself.
That might sound like a strange thing,
Don't overthink it,
Just allow it to happen,
Just have the intention to try.
Any thoughts that come in,
How do I do that,
How do I turn the mind back in on itself,
How do I put my attention on the one that's watching,
Don't think about it,
Let those thoughts go,
Even notice,
Well,
Who,
What is aware of those thoughts too and then put your attention back on the one that's aware.
And I'm going to keep guiding you through this very simple but powerful process of noticing the thought or the sensation and then being curious,
Hmm,
Who or what is the one that's aware right now and then turn the mind back in on itself.
Notice the awareness,
The presence,
The is-ness.
And what you might notice is in the moments where you're able to bring your attention back on itself,
Thoughts will disappear for a while,
Might just be a second and it will be the way I describe it and experience it,
Everyone's different,
Is empty mind,
A silence,
A peacefulness,
That there is no thinking,
There's no thinking needed,
There might be thinking but you're not aware of it,
So just even if you're noticing my voice,
Well,
Bring your attention in on the one that's aware that I'm speaking,
Send your attention inward on the one that is aware and that it's hearing my voice.
Your breath is there to keep you steady,
Inhale,
Exhale.
And then who's the one that is aware that they're breathing?
Notice the awareness,
The one that's watching,
The witness,
The observer,
That's now aware that you're breathing and then turn your mind in on itself,
Watch,
The watcher,
Observe the observer now and again,
Back your attention inward to the one that's aware,
Who's the one observing?
Any thoughts again,
Because this is a toughie,
It's very abstract,
Don't worry if you're finding it hard,
Thank you for continuing to try and that's all we ask,
So just notice any thoughts that might be like,
Oh,
I don't understand,
Am I doing it right,
Then do the same thing,
Just notice who's now aware that I was thinking that thought,
That I was struggling but I didn't know how to do it or maybe,
Oh,
I'm getting it and bring your attention in on the one that's aware of that and again,
Bring your attention on the one that's watching.
You might even have moments where you feel like,
I'm getting it,
Yeah and it goes quiet and you feel that awareness and that presence but the thought comes up,
The mind comes in again and says,
Oh,
I'm getting it,
Yeah,
Oh,
My mind is so quiet and then just notice again,
Don't get sucked up into that thought,
Either,
Wow,
This is great or,
Oh no,
I just had another thought,
Instead,
Just notice the one that's now aware of that thought and then turn your mind back in again,
In on itself and watch the watcher,
Observe the observer,
Witness the witness,
Any sounds you notice,
Any sensations you have,
Any thoughts you have,
Just asking yourself,
Who is the one that knows I'm having a thought,
Who is the one that knows I'm having a sensation,
Who is the one that is aware,
Turning your mind back inward on itself and in a moment,
We're going to bring the meditation to an end,
Just congratulate yourself on a great job,
This is a very tough one,
It's a challenging one,
It's more advanced,
So if you've done this many times before,
Congratulations on mastering and perfecting this incredibly powerful,
Simple but not easy skill set that you can carry through with you for the rest of the day and if you're new to this,
Then congratulations to you for trying something so challenging and I want to invite you,
All of you,
To take this experience of watching the watcher,
Observing the observer,
Being with your awareness and having an actual referential experience,
Really experiencing what it is to watch awareness,
To be with that which you are,
A peace,
A contentment,
An equanimity,
A silence inside and throughout the rest of the day,
However long you have left,
Just come back to that whenever you can,
You have a challenging thought,
We'll notice the thought and then say who's the one who's aware I'm having this challenging thought and start to cultivate,
Start to create a deeper connection and relationship with that which you are,
Awareness,
Pure awareness,
No judgments,
No expectations,
Just awareness.
So thank you for meditating with me today,
I love you,
I appreciate you,
I had lots of fun,
I hope you did too,
I look forward to seeing you again in this meditation or another one of mine,
Have a beautiful day.
