Audio Transcript
Start by getting into a comfortable position. Your hands could be in your lap, on your knees, or at your side. As best you can, hold your head and neck straight but not rigid. Allow your eyes to close gently.
Bring your attention to this present moment by noticing your breathing. Take a moment to connect with your breathing as it flows in and out of your body. With your eyes closed, imagine yourself watching the rising and falling of your chest and belly… Notice the physical sensations in your body as you breathe in and breathe out… As best you can, simply let the breath breathe itself.
Now, turn your attention to your body in the chair. Notice the sensations of touch or pressure where your body makes contact with the chair… Notice the different kinds of sensations there. Notice how the rising and falling of your breath affects the sensations in these places. Now turn your attention to your feet… Again, notice the different kinds of sensations there. Notice how the sensations are different in different places – the balls of your feet, your instep, your heels.
And as you’re noticing this, notice who’s noticing. There is a you there behind your eyes, watching all this as you experience it… a you that is different from your experience of these sensations. There is this you, and then there is your experience. We call the parts of you that’s watching the “observing self”. Continue to notice your feet from this observing you perspective for a few moments.
Now turn your attention back to your breath in your body. Notice the rising and falling as you breathe in and out. Again, notice who’s noticing. There is a you there behind your eyes watching your breath flow in and out… a you that is different from your experience. There is you, and then there is this experience of breathing… This is the observing self. Continue to watch your breathing from this perspective for a few moments.
Now think of all the roles you inhabit in your life. Imagine yourself in those roles… parent, child, brother or sister, student, worker, partner, friend, neighbor. Although you are a bit different in each of these roles, it’s still the same you inhabiting all of them… Notice that.
Now think back over your life and consider how much your body has changed. If we were to look at a picture of yourself when you were a child and compare it to you as you are now, we would see many differences… Every cell in your body is different now, yet it is still you. When you said “I” as a child, it was the same “I” you’re talking about when you say “I” now… This is a part of you that hasn’t changes… This is the observing self.
Now think back over your life and imagine the millions of experiences you’ve had… Imagine the millions of thoughts and feelings you’ve encountered inside you, coming and going, ebbing and flowing, throughout the course of your life… Some have been painful. Some have been pleasant. They have always been changing, but you have stayed the same… You’ve been there the whole time, watching… This you is the observing self.
Finally, open your eyes and gaze upon your hands. Feel the weight of your hands. Now take a moment to notice who’s noticing this… There is a you there, behind your eyes, who is watching this experience of noticing your hands... a you that is different from this experience. This is the observing self.
