Practicing the Witness in Daily Life
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Taken from http://kennethfolkdharma.wetpaint.com/thread/3501413/2nd+Gear%3A+Practicing+in+Busyness+Daily+Life
aaronj1:
Hi -- I'm new to the site and find the discussions here interesting and lively.
Kenneth writes in the "2nd Gear" article: "Tasks that require dualistic thinking (writing this message, for example) can be effectively accomplished from the witness state, and with practice it gets easier and easier..."
With fewer commitments than usual in the week ahead, I am interested in practicing with the witness state while engaged in activities like writing, reading, speaking, listening, doing the dishes, making decisions, etc. The witness state is a familiar one in meditation, on retreat and even in the 'still moments' of daily life. However, the witness state falls rapidly into the background once I engage in activities, especially when there's a sense of time pressure (a time pressure with the identification of me, mine or my ; ) ).
It seems easy enough to say: Stay focused on the sense of 'I' that is witnessing in the midst of doing or keep asking 'Who am I?' However, I find, in the midst of doing, that the attention keeps leaving the sense of 'I' or the continuity of inquiry fades out. So, is the guidance that when there's noticing that the attention has left the witness, the attention is returned to the 'I'/witness -- over and over again? ...just like bringing attention back to the the breath in anapanasati, for instance.
I would like to hear from others about how they work with 2nd Gear off the cushion in as much detail as they're willing to share. Any tools or devices that you find especially useful? More to say about this kind of practicing? Hope this line of questioning makes some sense.
Thanks,
Aaronkennethfolk:
"So, is the guidance that when there's noticing that the attention has left the witness, the attention is returned to the 'I'/witness -- over and over again? ...just like bringing attention back to the the breath in anapanasati, for instance." -aaronj1
Welcome, Aaron. Yes, that is exactly the technique. If you have a less-than-challenging week ahead, you can prioritize the Witness and let everything else go on in the background. Of course you will forget a million times, but as you have pointed out, you can always return. In fact, the attitude you describe is crucial; since, for some period of time, you have chosen to prioritize the Witness, it doesn't really matter whether you accomplish anything else or not. Keep the Witness in the foreground as much as possible, and slow down everthing else until it becomes possible to stay with the Witness even as you do other tasks. I am experimenting with this right now as I write this, and I see that the slower I type, the less I lose focus on the witnessing consciousness. I am in the middle of my work day, so this is challenging, but once the momentum builds it becomes possible to dwell continuously as the Witness for longer and longer periods of time.
The beauty of 2nd Gear practice is that instead of an infinite number of changing objects, you have only one. Everything appears to be contained within pure subjectivity. Because there is no jumping from object to object, it's easier for the mind to stay in one place. This focused awareness leads to development of the kundalini energy within the mind/body and also provides a jumping-off place from which to realize nondual awareness.
Kenneth -
Related:
2nd Gear
Dwell as the "Witness."
2nd Gear in the 3-Speed Transmission is "dwelling as the Witness." The first thing to know about the "Witness" is that it isn't what it appears to be. In other words, although there is, in every moment of conventional experience, a sense that there is an "I" who knows the experience, this "I" is actually a fiction, a fabrication of mind. One way to see through this apparent watcher is to become absorbed into it, understanding that it will eventually collapse of its own accord. Ramana Maharshi referred to the Witness as "the stick that stirs the fire and is eventually consumed by it." When the Witness dissolves, you will find that you have naturally arrived at 3rd Gear, the direct apprehension of buddha nature in your own being.
With this in mind, dwelling as the Witness is seen as a transitional step. It could be said to lie halfway between 1st Gear and 3rd Gear, halfway between the object-oriented practices of concentration/insight and the complete surrender to what is, also known as non-duality. Since it takes a great deal of concentration to become absorbed into the sense of "I," this practice kills two birds with one stone; it serves as a transition to recognizing buddha nature while at the same time strengthening your ability to concentrate. As concentration is essential to progress through the Insight Knowledges (ñanas) and Realms of Absorption (jhanas), this technique of dwelling as the Witness is a very streamlined way to both Realization of what is always already the case (3rd Gear) and developmental enlightenment (1st Gear).
How to dwell as the Witness:
As you go about your daily life and as you sit on the meditation cushion, ask yourself the question, "Who am I?" Don't try to answer it with trivialities like "I am Joe," etc. The question is just a pointer to get you to notice who it is that seems to be having this experience. As you ask this question, "Who am I?" you might get a flash of something like "I" as an answer.
"Who am I?"
"I, that's who! I am I!"
OK, that's what we're looking for. You don't have to go beyond that. That sense of "I" is the very Witness we are seeking. You don't need to debunk the Witness. This is a self-debunking practice; all you have to do is become absorbed into this sensation of "I, I" and enjoy it. You will find that it is very enjoyable indeed, as this apparent "I" has no stake in anything that goes on; it is just an impassive witness. Continue to become ever-more-deeply absorbed into this sense of "I", understanding that someday it will dissolve of its own accord, leaving only pure, non-local awareness. At that point, you will have arrived at 3rd Gear.
One of the things I most want to communicate to people is that when we talk about the witness we aren't being poetic or metaphorical; the "witness" is a clear, discreet, recognizable, and reproducible state that can be mastered with practice. Once mastered, it becomes one of the most empowering tools in a yogi's toolbox. Not only does it pave the way to direct realization of the non-dual, it is valuable in its own right as a way to maintain a connection with awareness while going about daily life activities.
I think of an hourglass, turned on its side. On one side of the hourglass is the non-dual. If all of the sand has gone to that side, there is only the perfection of primordial awareness, which pervades, includes, and gives rise to all things. This is the most precious jewel of all the Buddhas, but does not lend itself to productivity or even functionality in modern daily life; we can only practice the non-dual when we don't have any other cognitively demanding tasks to attend to. On the other end of the hourglass is duality; when all the sand has moved to that side of the glass, the apparent self has completely lost touch with the greater reality and sees itself as cut off and separate from the whole. Although it is possible to be extremely productive in terms of daily life activities while isolated in this way (indeed, most people will spend their entire lives in the thrall of duality), the price to be paid for such a productive life is a horrendous amount of suffering. In the middle, in the narrow part of the hourglass, is the Witness. Experience is somewhat limited here, consistent with the narrowness of the glass; everything is seen as self. There is only pure subjectivity. All of the usual objects of consciousness are present, but they are not seen as Other. As such, the Witness is upstream from suffering. In other words, suffering, which is part and parcel of our ordinary dualistic condition, has not yet arisen during the witness state. And yet, unlike the full experience of non-duality, it's possible to do most daily tasks while dwelling as the Witness. Tasks that require dualistic thinking (writing this message, for example) can be effectively accomplished from the witness state, and with practice it gets easier and easier. The flexibility of the witness state, lying as it does halfway in between the dual and the non-dual, makes it possible to remain functional in daily life while staying poised at the very gates of primordial awareness, ready to tip over at a moments notice into what the Dzogchen masters call The Great Perfection. Because of its ability to serve as a bridge between the unborn and the manifest along with the practical value that goes along with that bridge status, I can scarcely imagine a more useful or empowering tool for those of us who have chosen to pursue awakening while living as householders.
Kenneth Folk
July 2009 -
"we can only practice the non-dual when we don't have any other cognitively demanding tasks to attend to."
-- this part I and Thusness wouldn't agree, though it requires rather deep non-dual insight to be able to experience non-dual effortlessly in daily activities.