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you've got to be willing to do the mental investigation work of tracing back to the fearful thought. |
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The Next Step: The Ability to Witness |
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The next step in the process, after we have learned to keep the body still and are able to bring the attention back to the breath without getting lost for too long in thoughts, is the ability to witness our thoughts as they come up without having to get caught in them. |
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Instead of each thought dragging us into its whirlpool and then being sucked into all its associated thought swirls, the observing ego is able to witness our thoughts coming and going and still maintain the focus of attention on the breath. |
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It is this observing ego, or witness, that makes it possible at a concentrated level of attention to sit back and actually watch the origin of an association. We see how it develops into a full-blown thought, how it reaches its height and may have an associated feeling that goes with it, and then how it begins to diminish in intensity, slowly breaking up and then passing into oblivion. This takes a good deal of concentration and clarity to observe. |
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The witness is that part of us that is nonjudgmental, just watching whatever comes up in the form of mental and emotional contents. It doesn't care what voice may be strongest and has no interest in fighting or winning any battles. The witness is a natural part of our awareness. It is a stable, consistent part of our essence that helps provide a sense of continuity in our lives from day to day. |
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Witnessing is a state, and consciousness is the means toward witnessing. When we practice witnessing we are really talking about working with our own attention. In working with our own attention, increased ability at witnessing is a by-product. |
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We may nurture the witness by learning to disidentify with all of those identifications which help fortify our normal, everyday sense of who we are. It is as if we let go of what we identify with and begin to identify with the identifier. One way to strengthen the observing witness is to repeat the following statements to yourself slowly and with total concentration, letting what they really mean seep into your awareness just long enough to get a taste of the observing witness. |
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Say the following out loud and listen to yourself as you do: |
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