Practicing open awareness invites us to be fully present in each moment.
It allows us to connect with our senses,
To open our minds,
And allow our experiences to flow in and out of our consciousness without judgment.
So this type of mindfulness exercise helps us develop a peaceful presence.
It helps us build resilience in the face of sensory overload,
And it can help promote a deep sense of calm within us.
I invite you to begin by taking a moment to simply allow your body to settle into a comfortable position.
You may close your eyes or keep them slightly open using a soft downward gaze,
Allowing the spine to gently lengthen and at the same time the shoulders to soften as you settle into your body.
So the practice of open awareness can give us the gift of being aware of things like our thoughts,
Our emotions,
The sensory input that we're receiving,
And even our relationships and how we show up in them.
And at the same time,
We're developing that awareness without getting stuck or hung up on these experiences as we may habitually do.
Open awareness practice helps us to have a gentle matter-of-factness,
Saying to ourselves Oh,
This is here.
Got it.
So we'll begin by taking a full breath in and a long,
Complete breath out,
Noticing the in-breath,
Noticing the out-breath.
Allow the breath to settle now and to find its own natural rhythm,
Letting the breath breathe itself.
Try not to interfere with the process as you notice how the body moves in response to the breath.
The chest perhaps expands and relaxes.
The belly rises and falls.
Now gently expand your awareness to whatever is arising in this moment.
You may notice thoughts,
Physical sensations,
Sounds,
All coming and going,
All arising and passing away.
And try letting go of any ideas about how you think this moment ought to be and simply rest with an awareness of how things actually are for you in each moment.
Notice if you're aware of any changes in the body or the mind,
Perhaps tensing around your experience.
And in this noticing,
You can gently let go again without judgment,
Doing this as often as necessary with a kind and gentle awareness.
And now if it feels safe for you to do so,
Include any pain or discomfort in the body within your awareness.
Often we resist feelings of pain or discomfort.
And we can use the breath to help soften the discomfort.
We can use the pull of gravity to help us settle into our seat,
To relax into our current experience.
And as you soften,
Just see if you notice any changes in the experience of that discomfort that you may be having.
And it could even be not so much a physical discomfort as a restlessness,
Which can also be uncomfortable.
And now invite any pleasurable sensations into your awareness.
It might be subtle,
Such as contact of clothing on the skin,
The felt sensation of the breath,
Or maybe there is a cool breeze on your skin,
Or a warmth in your seat,
Or perhaps your hands.
With each breath,
Return to a simple,
Clear awareness of what's here right now.
Now gently turn the attention back again to focus on the breath.
And also begin to notice any sounds happening around you.
Notice the sounds that are arising in your awareness.
Some sounds are steady.
Others come and go.
We let sound in.
And when it's gone,
We notice that too.
So noticing sound,
And perhaps equally noticing the spaces between.
The moments of quiet.
And as we rest here,
Present with sound,
Any time you notice the mind has wandered off to something other than the sounds you hear,
Or wandered off to a story about the sounds you hear,
Simply let that go and return to your attention of resting peacefully in open awareness in the presence of sound.
And we noticed sound and be present with sound without giving those sounds a label.
So the sound of your breath,
For example,
At what point in your awareness does it shift from simply being a sound to becoming the sound of your breath?
And there's no right or wrong answer.
Just explore.
Noticing the sounds in the room.
And at what point do they shift from being sounds to becoming labeled,
Such as the computer working,
The air conditioning,
Other people.
So simply notice how the sound itself is continuously moving,
Changing,
Coming and going.
Each sound having the potential to be soothing,
Jarring,
Frustrating,
Or gratifying,
Or simply neutral.
Just continue being present with whatever sounds you can hear.
Continuing to stay open to whatever arises.
You continue to return to noticing sounds whenever you are aware that the mind has wandered.
And now letting awareness of the sounds fade into the background.
Finishing up with a full,
Deep breath in.
And a long,
Slow breath out.
And when you're ready,
Opening your eyes if they're closed,
And just begin to look around at the world around you.
Noticing the edges of the room.
Noticing the light and the shadows.
The colors.
The shapes.
Just simply take in the world around you.
And remember that everything that you notice through your sense of sound and sight,
Smell,
Taste,
And sensation,
All of it is filtered in its unique way through your unique mind,
Your unique point of view,
And that noticing this has the potential to change you.
By practicing non-judgmental,
Open awareness,
We not only cultivate a heightened awareness of our senses,
But we also encourage an inner equanimity,
An inner peace,
Along with enhanced focus,
And even an increased capacity for empathy and compassion.
