Now as in, Now as Out, Awareness as Who we Really Are

Week Two, Day Five: ENLIGHTENMENT

This Now is always Now

Awareness doesn’t have an agenda

Waiting as Food

Action as a double chance to Wake Up

Listening from Emptiness

Where are you, right now?

Enjoy this two ways:

Inward: what do you sense in your body that is interesting? (I.e. avoid the usual complaining way of life where people only notice the pains when they notice their body)

Sense something, and actually sense the sensations.

Don’t compare: like “feels better than usual.”

Don’t judge or describe: “painful,” “Injured”

Don’t complain: “this ankle has been bothering me.”

Don’t compare: “my legs used to be thinner.”

Just the actual, right here, right now sensations.

The easiest way to do this is to be aware of how one part of your body is relating to another part: my left leg is over my right thigh. I notice my right foot on the floor. I can feel my fingers interlaced.

Or how one part is interacting with the world: I can sense my pelvis pressing against the chair. I can feel my shirt against my ribs. I notice my fingers typing on the keyboard.

Noticing your shape: the shape of your arms and spine and legs, this is crucial to realizing yourself in reality. Feel the arms and legs and spines as if you were going to draw a picture of yourself, and this would set up the basic structure of the drawing.

And there is always breathing. Your air comes in your nose, down your throat, and your ribs might expand, or your belly, or both. 

These are the going in part of being present.

And then there is the “going out” part.

Your eyes are seeing something right now. What?

Your ears are hearing something now. What? 

(If this is not true for you: what ways are you “taking in” the outer world?)

We can have attention in and attention out at the same time. And there is “someone/ something/ a great mystery” in between.

There is some sort of “Awareness” that can be aware of sensations inside of us.

There is this same mysterious and always present “Awareness” that can be noticing the world outside of us.

That’s the game. Perhaps the most important game in all of life:

Enlightenment Game # 10: Have your attention in three areas

Right here

Right now:

Inner attention on sensations in arms and legs and spine and pelvis and gravity and breathing

Outer attention on the world outside of you

Attention on your awareness as the “you” that has been there all along

Been there all along?

So it seems.

When you were four, and walking down the street with a parent, and you saw the blue sky and the birds on a tree and felt your feet moving on the ground, and perhaps had a hand in one of your parents’ hands: Who was aware of that?

It wasn’t your name.

Wasn’t your age.

Wasn’t your political beliefs (hopefully, you had none).

Wasn’t your skin color.

But is was “you,” some hard to define, maybe impossible to find “you” that has been the “you” of “you” all along.

Don’t worry about or even think about this much.

Just look out the window.

Feel the awareness that is looking out the window.

Now feel/ sense your bottom/ pelvis on the chair.

Notice your awareness noticing them both. Be aware of your awareness.

Who is doing that?

Can you pin that down? Can you locate where this “awareness” is coming from?

Can you feel how core that is to your existence?

That’s the main game of your life, really.

Be aware going in.

Be aware going out.

Feel/ sense/ notice/ delight in the awareness of you, being aware, no matter what you are being aware of.

Now, get up.

Take a walk.

In nature.

In the now.

In the enlightenment game land.

Enlightenment Game #11: Take a walk.

In awareness.

And the delight of awareness.

In nature.

And the delight of nature.

Doesn’t have to be a park. Does have to be outside.

Sense your legs moving and your feet as the touch and lift from the ground.

Notice your arms swinging, usually in a balanced and opposite way to how your legs are moving forward.

Sense your spine holding up your head.

It’s good to be alive. 

Add on, what am I seeing, right now? (And it changes every step, at least slightly)

What am I hearing, right now?

And: is my breath coming in or out.

We always have now. We almost always have nature of the outside version.

We always have nature of the sort:  “this is our body, designed to be on the planet Earth, for millions of years.”

Enjoy

Summary of Week Two, Day Five: ENLIGHTENMENT

Be present.

You always can.

Try for three areas of attention: 

inner, 

outer, 

your “you/ awareness”

Go for a walk.

Enjoy legs, arms, breathing and the outside world.

And the your world of awareness.