Observe
- Just notice the experience. Notice without getting caught in the experience. Experience without reacting to your experience.
- Have a "Teflon Mind", letting experiences, feelings, and thoughts come into your mind and slip right out.
- Control your attention, but not what you see. Push away nothing. Cling to nothing.
- Be like a guard at a palace gate, alert to every thought, feeling, and action that comes through the gate of your mind.
- Step inside yourself and observe. Watch your thoughts coming and going, like clouds in the sky. Notice each feeling, rising and falling, like waves in the ocean. Notice exactly what you are doing.
- Notice what comes through your senses - your eyes, ears, nose, skin, tongue. See others' actions and expressions. "Smell the roses".
Watch Your Thoughts
Get in a comfortable position that won't cause you discomfort, with your feet on the floor and your back straight but not tense. Sit very still, breathing normally, in a quiet room. Now just watch your thoughts for a few minutes. Don't try to force thoughts or think specific thoughts. Don't push some thoughts away or hold on tight to others. Just watch what your mind generates. If your mind wanders away from watching your thoughts (eg, you get stuck on one thing, like planning what you're going to do after read this) just notice that it wandered and gently bring it back to watching thoughts. If you start to judge yourself ("I'm terrible at this"), your thoughts ("That's a stupid thing to be thinking"), or the practice ("This is a real waste of time"), just notice your judgments and go back to watching your thoughts. Practice for 2 minutes.
Ideas for Practicing Observing
Observe with your eyes
Walking slowly, stopping somewhere with a view, notice flowers, trees, and nature itself.
Observe sounds
Stop for a moment and just listen. Listen to the texture and shape of the sounds around you. Listen to the silences between the sounds.
Observe smells around you
When eating, notice the aroma of the food; when cooking, notice the aroma of the spices or other ingredients; when bathing, smell the soap or shampoo; when walking outside, notice the aroma of the air; when near flowers, bend down and "smell the roses".
Observe taste and the act of eating
Eat a meal, or even part of a meal, paying attention to the taste of each mouthful.
Observe urges to do something
When you are feeling an urge to do something impulsive, "urge-surf" by imagining that your urges are a surfboard and you are standing on the board riding the waves.
Exercise: Observing
- Sit quietly
- Observe 3 things that you see
- Observe 3 things that you hear
- Observe 3 things that you are experiencing
More Observing Practices
Observe sensations of touch on your skin.
- Stroke your upper lip with your fingernail. Stop stroking, and notice how long it takes before you can't sense your upper lip at all.
- When walking, notice the sensations of walking - your feet hitting the ground and rising up and down. Sometimes walk very slowly and notice. Sometimes walk very fast and notice.
Observe your breath.
Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on the movement of your stomach.
- As you begin to breath in, allow your belly to rise in order to bring air into the lower half of your lungs.
- As the upper halves of your lungs begin to fill with air, your chest begins to rise.
- As you breathe out, notice your belly, then notice your chest. Don't tire yourself.
Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on your breath while listening to music.
- Breathe long, light, and even breaths
- Follow your breath; be master of it, while remaining aware of the movement and sentiments from the music.
- Do not get lost in the music, but continue to be master of your breath and yourself.
Observe thoughts coming in and out of your mind.
Notice thoughts as they come into your mind. Ask, "Where do thoughts come from?" Then watch them to see where they come into your mind.
As you notice thoughts in your mind, notice the pauses between each thought.
Imagine that your mind is a river, and that thoughts and feelings are boats going down the river.
- Imagine sitting on the grass and watching the boats go by.
- Describe or label each boat as it goes by.
- Try not to jump on a boat.
Observe by expanding awareness.
Breathing in, notice your breath. Then, keeping your breath in your awareness, on the next breath notice your hands. Then keeping both in awareness, on the next breath expand your awareness to sounds.
- Continue holding all three in awareness at the same time.
- Practice this awareness of threes at other times, electing other things to be aware of.
Open your mind to your senses.
Practice walking with your senses as wide open as you can make them.
- Notice what you hear, see, and feel.
- Notice what you feel when shifting your weight between each step.
- Notice your body experience as you turn.
For one mouthful in a meal, pause with a spoonful or forkful of food.
- Look at what you are going to eat, smell it, and listen to it. Then when you are ready, put it in your mouth.
- Note the taste, texture, temperature, and even the sound your teeth make in chewing your mouthful slowly.
- Note the changes in it's taste, texture, temperature, and sound as you chew it to completion.
Be here. Be in the present now.
- Take a moment to notice every sense you are aware of.
- To yourself, make a short statement, about each sense: "I feel the chair, the chair feels me."
- When a feeling arises within you, notice it - saying for example, "A feeling of sadness is arising within me".
- When a thought arises within you, notice it - saying for example, "The thought 'it is hot in here' is arising within me".
Describe
- Put words on the experience. When a feeling or thought arises, or you do something, acknowledge it. For example, say in your mind "Sadness has just enveloped me" or "Stomach muscles are tightening" or "a thought 'I can't do this' has come into my mind" or "walking, step, step, step..."
- Put experiences into words. Describe to yourself what is happening. Put a name on your feelings. Call a thought just a thought, a feeling just feeling. Don't get caught in content.
- Describing is using words to represent what you observe. This is necessary for communication and self-control. Describing a thought requires one to see that is a thought instead of a fact (eg. "I'm a jerk" is judgmental; "I interrupted the speaker several times" is factual.)
- Practice observing your thoughts and labeling them as thoughts. This may reduce the tendency to attach to thoughts that cause problems.
Ideas for Practicing Describing
Practice what you see outside of yourself.
- Lie on the ground and watch the clouds in the sky. Find and describe cloud patterns that you see.
- Sit on a bench on a busy street or at a park. Describe one thing about each person who walks by you.
- Find things in nature - a leaf, a drop of water, a pet or another animal. Describe each thing in as much detail as you can.
Practice describing thoughts and feelings.
- Describe your feelings as they arise within you: "A feeling of anger is arising within me."
- Describe your thoughts when you feel a strong emotion: "I feel X, and my thoughts are Y."
- Describe your feelings after someone else does or says something: "When you do X, I feel Y."
Practice describing your breathing.
- Each time you inhale and exhale, as you inhale, be aware that "I am inhaling, 1." When you exhale, be aware that "I am exhaling, 1." Remember to breathe from the stomach. When beginning the second inhalation, be aware that "I am inhaling, 2." And, slowly exhaling, be aware that "I am exhaling, 2." Continue on up through 10. After you have reach 10, return to 1. Whenever you lose count, return to 1.
- Just notice the experience. Notice without getting caught in the experience. Experience without reacting to your experience.
- Have a "Teflon Mind", letting experiences, feelings, and thoughts come into your mind and slip right out.
- Control your attention, but not what you see. Push away nothing. Cling to nothing.
- Be like a guard at a palace gate, alert to every thought, feeling, and action that comes through the gate of your mind.
- Step inside yourself and observe. Watch your thoughts coming and going, like clouds in the sky. Notice each feeling, rising and falling, like waves in the ocean. Notice exactly what you are doing.
- Notice what comes through your senses - your eyes, ears, nose, skin, tongue. See others' actions and expressions. "Smell the roses".
Watch Your Thoughts
Get in a comfortable position that won't cause you discomfort, with your feet on the floor and your back straight but not tense. Sit very still, breathing normally, in a quiet room. Now just watch your thoughts for a few minutes. Don't try to force thoughts or think specific thoughts. Don't push some thoughts away or hold on tight to others. Just watch what your mind generates. If your mind wanders away from watching your thoughts (eg, you get stuck on one thing, like planning what you're going to do after read this) just notice that it wandered and gently bring it back to watching thoughts. If you start to judge yourself ("I'm terrible at this"), your thoughts ("That's a stupid thing to be thinking"), or the practice ("This is a real waste of time"), just notice your judgments and go back to watching your thoughts. Practice for 2 minutes.
Ideas for Practicing Observing
Observe with your eyes
Walking slowly, stopping somewhere with a view, notice flowers, trees, and nature itself.
Observe sounds
Stop for a moment and just listen. Listen to the texture and shape of the sounds around you. Listen to the silences between the sounds.
Observe smells around you
When eating, notice the aroma of the food; when cooking, notice the aroma of the spices or other ingredients; when bathing, smell the soap or shampoo; when walking outside, notice the aroma of the air; when near flowers, bend down and "smell the roses".
Observe taste and the act of eating
Eat a meal, or even part of a meal, paying attention to the taste of each mouthful.
Observe urges to do something
When you are feeling an urge to do something impulsive, "urge-surf" by imagining that your urges are a surfboard and you are standing on the board riding the waves.
Exercise: Observing
- Sit quietly
- Observe 3 things that you see
- Observe 3 things that you hear
- Observe 3 things that you are experiencing
More Observing Practices
Observe sensations of touch on your skin.
- Stroke your upper lip with your fingernail. Stop stroking, and notice how long it takes before you can't sense your upper lip at all.
- When walking, notice the sensations of walking - your feet hitting the ground and rising up and down. Sometimes walk very slowly and notice. Sometimes walk very fast and notice.
Observe your breath.
Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on the movement of your stomach.
- As you begin to breath in, allow your belly to rise in order to bring air into the lower half of your lungs.
- As the upper halves of your lungs begin to fill with air, your chest begins to rise.
- As you breathe out, notice your belly, then notice your chest. Don't tire yourself.
Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on your breath while listening to music.
- Breathe long, light, and even breaths
- Follow your breath; be master of it, while remaining aware of the movement and sentiments from the music.
- Do not get lost in the music, but continue to be master of your breath and yourself.
Observe thoughts coming in and out of your mind.
Notice thoughts as they come into your mind. Ask, "Where do thoughts come from?" Then watch them to see where they come into your mind.
As you notice thoughts in your mind, notice the pauses between each thought.
Imagine that your mind is a river, and that thoughts and feelings are boats going down the river.
- Imagine sitting on the grass and watching the boats go by.
- Describe or label each boat as it goes by.
- Try not to jump on a boat.
Observe by expanding awareness.
Breathing in, notice your breath. Then, keeping your breath in your awareness, on the next breath notice your hands. Then keeping both in awareness, on the next breath expand your awareness to sounds.
- Continue holding all three in awareness at the same time.
- Practice this awareness of threes at other times, electing other things to be aware of.
Open your mind to your senses.
Practice walking with your senses as wide open as you can make them.
- Notice what you hear, see, and feel.
- Notice what you feel when shifting your weight between each step.
- Notice your body experience as you turn.
For one mouthful in a meal, pause with a spoonful or forkful of food.
- Look at what you are going to eat, smell it, and listen to it. Then when you are ready, put it in your mouth.
- Note the taste, texture, temperature, and even the sound your teeth make in chewing your mouthful slowly.
- Note the changes in it's taste, texture, temperature, and sound as you chew it to completion.
Be here. Be in the present now.
- Take a moment to notice every sense you are aware of.
- To yourself, make a short statement, about each sense: "I feel the chair, the chair feels me."
- When a feeling arises within you, notice it - saying for example, "A feeling of sadness is arising within me".
- When a thought arises within you, notice it - saying for example, "The thought 'it is hot in here' is arising within me".
Describe
- Put words on the experience. When a feeling or thought arises, or you do something, acknowledge it. For example, say in your mind "Sadness has just enveloped me" or "Stomach muscles are tightening" or "a thought 'I can't do this' has come into my mind" or "walking, step, step, step..."
- Put experiences into words. Describe to yourself what is happening. Put a name on your feelings. Call a thought just a thought, a feeling just feeling. Don't get caught in content.
- Describing is using words to represent what you observe. This is necessary for communication and self-control. Describing a thought requires one to see that is a thought instead of a fact (eg. "I'm a jerk" is judgmental; "I interrupted the speaker several times" is factual.)
- Practice observing your thoughts and labeling them as thoughts. This may reduce the tendency to attach to thoughts that cause problems.
Ideas for Practicing Describing
Practice what you see outside of yourself.
- Lie on the ground and watch the clouds in the sky. Find and describe cloud patterns that you see.
- Sit on a bench on a busy street or at a park. Describe one thing about each person who walks by you.
- Find things in nature - a leaf, a drop of water, a pet or another animal. Describe each thing in as much detail as you can.
Practice describing thoughts and feelings.
- Describe your feelings as they arise within you: "A feeling of anger is arising within me."
- Describe your thoughts when you feel a strong emotion: "I feel X, and my thoughts are Y."
- Describe your feelings after someone else does or says something: "When you do X, I feel Y."
Practice describing your breathing.
- Each time you inhale and exhale, as you inhale, be aware that "I am inhaling, 1." When you exhale, be aware that "I am exhaling, 1." Remember to breathe from the stomach. When beginning the second inhalation, be aware that "I am inhaling, 2." And, slowly exhaling, be aware that "I am exhaling, 2." Continue on up through 10. After you have reach 10, return to 1. Whenever you lose count, return to 1.
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