Open awareness practice.
To begin,
Find a way to sit that is comfortable and upright,
Alert and relaxed.
You can keep your eyes slightly open with your gaze resting downwards,
Or you may close your eyes if you're comfortable doing so.
And begin by taking a deep breath in and a long breath out.
And letting your attention find the rhythm of the breath.
When thoughts or sensations arise,
Returning your attention to the breath.
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Following the full cycles of breath.
Let's now try the noting practice.
I invite you to ease any sense of effort you might feel and simply continue sitting and breathing.
You may consider allowing the mind to be relaxed,
Yet receptive and alert.
It may sound unusual,
But for this practice,
We're really not trying to make anything happen.
You might think of this as just being or just sitting.
In time,
You will likely notice the appearance of thoughts,
Emotions,
Or sensations like sound and temperature.
See if you can make a mental note every few seconds about your general mental and emotional condition.
Give it a short label to acknowledge and welcome it.
You may see to yourself thinking,
Tingling in hands,
Remembering something,
Thinking,
And so on.
What's your mental and emotional weather system like right now?
Is there a word that could describe it?
Whatever comes up,
Seeing what it's like not to have to fix or change it.
Simply watching it go by,
Like standing on a platform and watching a train pass by.
And if you notice that it's hard to stay present and you're drifting away,
Let your attention rest on the anchor we practiced earlier on during the focus attention practice,
Such as your breath,
A sound,
Or the feeling of your feet on the floor.
Allowing even a little more ease in the mind and body.
You might consider the phrase,
Nowhere to go,
Nothing to do.
If something comes up,
Simply noting,
Ah,
This is here.
Each time something catches your attention,
Naming it before it takes you too far away.
When you catch a thought,
What would it be like to shift from being in the thought to being aware that you are experiencing a thought?
Just being,
Noting anything that catches your attention.
Now,
Let's bring the practice to a close.
I invite you to drop the noting practice and simply rest the mind and be here.
Whatever that means to you.
When you're ready.
Allowing the eyes to fully open and returning attention to the room where you are at the moment.
