Who Is Listening?

Meditation,

Who is listening,

Begin by finding a comfortable posture and allowing the eyes to close.

Bring your awareness to the breath,

But instead of focusing on the physical feeling of breathing,

Listen to the sound of the body breathing.

Inhaling and exhaling through the nostrils,

Listen closely to any noises coming from the breath.

Open up your awareness to the other sounds present.

You may notice sounds of cars passing,

Noises within your home,

Or sounds from nature.

Whatever is present,

Tune into it.

The mind is habitually recognizes what it hears.

When a car goes by,

You immediately know it is a car.

Instead of identifying and defining what each sound is,

Try to focus on the actual experience of hearing.

Imagine your ears as microphones,

Just picking up sound.

Recognize the rising and passing of the noise,

How far away it appears,

And from what direction it is coming.

As one sound grabs your awareness,

Tune into it for a few moments.

Experience the sound fully,

Then open the mind and listen for other noises.

Hearing mindfully,

Continue listening,

Investigating,

And opening up.

Return to the breath for a minute.

Without forcing or straining,

Encourage the mind to collect itself fully onto the sound of the breath in the body.

Begin to open your eyes and move back into your life,

Maintaining some awareness of the sounds in your life.

Notice the act of hearing during your day,

And let it draw you back into present-time awareness.