Awareness in Buddhist Meditation
A detailed description of awareness in Buddhist Meditation.
A detailed description of awareness in Buddhist Meditation.
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When there is no <strong>Awareness</strong><br />
We are not aware cont<strong>in</strong>uously. There are long periods dur<strong>in</strong>g which<br />
we are <strong>in</strong>attentive. When we are aware, there is no desire, no choice,<br />
no division, because there is no th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about it, but just be<strong>in</strong>g<br />
aware. But, when we are <strong>in</strong>attentive, we say th<strong>in</strong>gs which are not<br />
true, we are nervous <strong>in</strong> our reactions, we feel <strong>in</strong>secure, we lose our<br />
temper, we are <strong>in</strong> conflict and feel all the th<strong>in</strong>gs which divide. We<br />
do not want those th<strong>in</strong>gs to happen, and therefore we are try<strong>in</strong>g to<br />
be aware to become aware all the time. But try<strong>in</strong>g to achieve total<br />
awareness <strong>in</strong> resistance to <strong>in</strong>attention is not awareness at all.<br />
A th<strong>in</strong>ker, who believes himself to be aware of his thought, is only<br />
aware of his reactions which have adopted thoughts as his thoughts,<br />
an identification, which <strong>in</strong>volves memory, a registration which aims<br />
at projection <strong>in</strong>to a future, without awareness of the present. To<br />
be aware of the fact of <strong>in</strong>attention is awareness. And <strong>in</strong> that, all<br />
striv<strong>in</strong>g ceases, all nervous reactions stop, the quest for security has<br />
come to an end. For, the moment one becomes aware of <strong>in</strong>attention,<br />
it is over. And thus there is no need to strive and struggle to become<br />
aware all the time.<br />
When one is aware of one’s <strong>in</strong>attention, the conflict is f<strong>in</strong>ished.<br />
In the awareness of <strong>in</strong>attention the whole movement of th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g<br />
changes. In non-awareness, thought br<strong>in</strong>gs up the memory of and<br />
thereby establishes a th<strong>in</strong>ker caus<strong>in</strong>g division and conflict. But the<br />
moment there is awareness of this <strong>in</strong>attention to what is, the whole<br />
manufactur<strong>in</strong>g process of self-consciousness comes to a stop, without<br />
division, without th<strong>in</strong>ker, without conflict. For the truth which sees<br />
and understands the false as false is a direct awareness without goal<br />
or prejudice. And <strong>in</strong> that truth there is freedom, emancipation,<br />
deliverance, because it holds no conflict and no thought of ‘self’.<br />
When the m<strong>in</strong>d is silent and not disturbed by th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g about<br />
a technique of search<strong>in</strong>g for an object one does not know, <strong>in</strong> that<br />
silent awareness there is a direct understand<strong>in</strong>g of what is, of the