MIDL Skill: Focusing Your Awareness

In this MIDL Meditation Skill, you develop the meditation skill of changing the focus of your awareness by the precise movement of your attention through your body. The three points that you cycle awareness through to train its focus are 1. The touch of your fingers; 2. The experience of your body sitting, and 3. The experience of your five senses. All this is done while observing any habitual shifts of your attention towards distraction.
Insight Timer Group: MIDL: Mindfulness Meditation

Transcript

During this mindfulness training we will develop the skill of focusing our awareness.

If you just start out by taking your meditation posture.

Now closing your eyes over lightly.

I'd like you to start to be aware of what it feels like just to be here.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Just becoming aware of any sounds around you.

And allowing the change within the sound to hold your attention.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now slowly bring your awareness into your body.

Becoming aware of what it feels like just to sit here.

And bringing your hands together,

The tips of your fingers touching each other.

Your hands can rest lightly in your lap.

Be aware of the sensations of that point of touch.

Not focusing too closely with too much effort but instead relax.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now slowly bring your awareness into your body.

As your attention wanted.

Now widen your awareness to your whole body just sitting here.

The warmth,

The coolness.

Noticing that the touch of your fingers becomes more distant.

As you experience the whole of your body.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now slowly bring your awareness into your body.

As your attention wanted.

Now open your awareness to beyond your body.

Listening to sounds far away.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Experience the touch of the air on your skin.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Holding your awareness very wide,

Experience all five of your senses.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Notice that the touch of your fingers is very far away now,

Very distant.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Being aware of distant sounds,

The touch of the air on your skin,

Grounded.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now bring your awareness back to the touch of your fingers.

Noticing the sensations you can experience in that touch.

Notice that when you focus on the touch of your two fingers,

That the experience of your five senses becomes distant,

But all your awareness is brought to this one point.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now bringing your awareness out to your body.

The warmth,

The coolness,

The pressure,

Keeping your whole body in mind.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now opening your awareness to the whole room,

To the experience of your five senses.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

The distant sounds,

The feeling of the air as it touches your skin.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Opening your awareness fully.

Being aware of everything.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now bringing your awareness to the touch of your fingers.

To your middle fingers touching each other.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Being aware of that sensation of touch.

Gently focusing on just this one thing.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Now bringing your awareness to your whole body just sitting here.

The experience of warmth,

Of coolness,

Of touch.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

Start to be aware of any sounds around you.

Now close your eyes over lightly.

And when you are ready you can gently open your eyes.

Thank you for spending this time meditating with me.

Take care of yourself and have a wonderful day.

And goodbye.

Reviews

Perfect. Thank you.

Wonderful tempo. Lots of silence. Thank you. Feel refreshed.

Finding this one quite challenging! Will have to keep practiticing until I can settle into it properly

Lovely guided spacious awareness practice. Thank you.

So beautiful, peaceful and safe. I love your voice so gentle and calm. Thank you 🙏

I often use this meditation as it brings peace and great awarness. Thank you so much for your guidance 🙏🏼

Always excellent. If you're a beginner, definitely try this series. If you've been meditating a while, still great refresher lessons and practices. Many thanks Stephen. ☮️💖🙏

Excellent!! So grateful for your teachings. Thank you🙏🙂

Stephen makes easy staying aware going and coming to senses, to fingers, to the all body quietly once an again

Great meditation practice. I'm looking forward to completing the series.

I find this meditation, like all of Stephen's to be of great help in building the skills essential to an effective meditation practice.

Specifically this one helps develop different ranges of awareness, from specfic to wide. It helps me become more mindful and calm.

Thank you, Stephen. I am revisiting your wonderful course from the beginning and I was surprised to find that I lost focus often this time - even worrying about what were my five senses ...I must need to stay with this practice!

the sensitivity dial, within the prints of my paws, while typing this, feels amplified. the touch work this week 'feels' as though physical dexterity has heightened. Tomorrow myself & friend Matthew start week 3. Very much looking forward.

Cheers,
_ty

Thank you! Am really enjoying this training so far!

Hi Stephen. Thanks you for another great practice. I particularly liked this one because of how attention is held and focused, and then consciously shifted. Many blessings.

Wonderful and interesting to shift awareness around and notice the changes. Thank you🙏🏻

Having completed this wonderful year long course, I’m doing it again from the beginning, and discovering areas that I need to put more practise into. These updated recordings are great: Stephen’s voice is clear and calm as he steadily guides you through shifting awareness. Thank you.

It was great to revisit this well balanced meditation. Thank you Stephen.

i found this to be very relaxing