If we generally characterize the practice of self-observation, then we should probably consider it as a technique of transferring attention from oneself as a “participant” in events, to oneself as an “observer” of oneself as a “participant”. This transfer of attention and identification of oneself with the “observer” helps to study the “participant”, see him as he really is, realize a lot about himself and try to consciously change something in himself.
The mind is constantly looking for something to do. So why shouldn’t it become a person’s assistant on the path of self-understanding? Why shouldn’t the mind begin to study internal sensations, which will be in abundance during internal observation of one’s own consciousness?
In order to start the practice of introspection, nothing special is required - only the ability to concentrate internally, and probably the internal attitude - not to be afraid to see the truth about your present self.
The first thing to do is Find your inner observer. There is an “observer” inside every person. This is the part of consciousness that always observes what is happening, is present and witnesses everything that happens to the “participant”. She doesn’t interfere in anything, doesn’t react in any way, doesn’t evaluate in any way, just watches dispassionately.
We always seem to flow behind the events of external life, behind our emotions, feelings, experiences - we are participants. And in order to become a researcher of oneself, one must disidentify with the “participant” and become an “observer”. And then, from a new position, observe yourself as a “participant”, without changing anything about it yet. (Collect information, so to speak). While you are a “participant” and not an “observer”, it is very difficult to realize something in yourself, and even more difficult to consciously change. You must first learn to become an “observer” and do it consciously.
Finding the observing part inside your own consciousness is the first step that must be taken in order to move on. Every person has an internal observer. Entering and leaving it is very often carried out unconsciously and is not registered by consciousness. But if you become more attentive to yourself, you will notice that even in the midst of very strong emotions and mental experiences, at the moment of active engagement in any activity, at the moment of reflection or pleasure, there is always something in the consciousness, as if removed from this inner and external activities. It silently observes, without making judgments, without expressing emotions, it simply contemplates everything that a person does.
The “observer” is easier to detect during quiet activity, alone with oneself, while thinking or reading. You just need to feel his presence once and remember this inner feeling of “observation”. And then try to highlight it in yourself during everyday activities. If possible, you can continue your normal activities from the “observer”. Then you can notice that a certain internal detachment will appear in the consciousness, and external reactions will become more conscious, behavior will be calmer, more reasonable, and less emotional. You can also notice that the sense of “observer” is very easily lost. There's no need to worry about this. The main thing is to find the feeling of an “internal observer” in your consciousness, try to remember it from time to time and sometimes go into it. That's the whole first step.
If you cannot immediately identify the “observer” in your consciousness, you can create an internal intention to detect him, remembering that he exists inside every person, without exception. From time to time you need to focus your attention inward. Or just consciously observe yourself as if from the outside. This exercise can help “awaken” the inner observer, highlight the feeling of “observation” of oneself, and make it conscious. The inner observer will sooner or later be noticed by consciousness, since it has manifested itself unconsciously many times before. But consciousness, now aware of it and armed with the intention to find it, will certainly make it known, and then the mind, too, sooner or later will be able to detect it, and you will be able to realize it.
P.S. I will be grateful to everyone who will share with me their practical methods of internal work, or evaluate my own. I will answer all specific questions if anyone is interested in the practice of self-observation.
Posted on Oct. 27th, 2009 at 04:27 am | | | |
1. What is the Observer state?
“Meet it, it’s you!” - the surgeon says to the patient after successful plastic surgery on the face. The patient looks at himself in the mirror with surprise and pleasure. Observing his new appearance, he evaluates the result of the professionals’ work, comparing it with the goal he set for the surgeons. Looking in the mirror, the patient observes himself in the usual sense of the word “observe.” However, the concept of “Observer state” has a more complex and deeper meaning than visual perception with subsequent evaluation. The Observer state is a mental state, a peculiar adjustment of perception to evaluate a much more complex set of phenomena than just a new shape of the nose or mouth. Observing yourself in the mirror and observing yourself, your personality, make a huge difference. Looking at ourselves in the mirror, we draw conclusions using the visual system and superficial judgments “beautiful-ugly”, “thin-fat”, “light-dark”. But if we want to know what kind of personality is in charge of this body, we resort to a different kind of observation. We learn to be aware of the causes, consequences and characteristics of our mental reactions. These awarenesses help us make a decision: in a given situation, to be an involved participant and performer of one or another of our experiences and conclusions, or to still look at them from the outside and consciously change our point of view and sense of self. This is how we get to know our “real” selves: we recognize our strengths and weaknesses, learn to develop the former and work on the latter with the help of the Observer state.
Many people interested in self-development are familiar with the concept of the Observer state. The Observer state intensively develops in meditative practices. However, it has its own characteristics within the framework of various self-improvement techniques. Methodology practiced at the Centers of Intelligence and Altruism Ayfaar's introspection also relies on cultivating the Observer state in a person. The Observer state is a person’s ability to always look at himself “from the outside,” to observe the world around him and his personal interaction with this world. “Observe” with a capital “O” means to be conscious, that is, to understand your hidden interests through observing external circumstances and determining the relationship of your psychisms with those circumstances. Often, being in the Observer state means “entering into dialogue with yourself and understanding your true needs and desires” (1). But the Observer not only understands - he develops new solutions in spite of fears, resentments, doubts, and the like. In this state, a person can successfully monitor and determine his mental reactions, transforming unpositive and negative character traits into kind, reasonable, intellectually altruistic. This is what work on oneself consists of, which helps a person
- firstly, to strengthen yourself in friendly, constructive and happy relationships with people and... with yourself, first of all!
- secondly, increase your work efficiency by improving your intuition and perception, creativity and research, bringing even more benefit to your life and the lives of other people;
- thirdly, to find inner harmony and stability, develop stress resistance and the ability to quickly overcome internal and external obstacles.
If you are interested in learning how the Observer State achieves these goals, this article is for you. Here we will look at the distinctive features of this condition and try to understand what mental reactions and behavior patterns are worth learning to observe and which of them are important to transform, trying to gradually, step by step, create an intellectually altruistic, positive lifestyle for yourself (and around you J). If you are interested in a deeper study of these issues of working on yourself, detailed discussions are offered in classes on Ayfaar self-analysis held at the Centers for Intelligence and Altruism.
2. Awareness and other psycho-emotional skills characteristic of the Observer state
Any self-improvement system teaches its characteristic Observer state. The starting point in determining how to develop oneself (and which development system to choose) are the goals that a person sets for himself. For example, if a person wants to learn how to meet and flirt with the opposite sex, he needs to start monitoring his shyness and developing self-confidence. Visitors to courses to create strong family relationships develop an Observer of their own shortcomings and strengths that influence the creation of a family. And a certain young man, a future stock exchange “shark,” will not become so actively interested in the issues of starting a family and his abilities for this, as long as his main goal remains career growth. Also, the intuitive desire for self-development is not alien to those people who want peace and love in the whole world. Thus, the specifics of self-analysis and the Observer state are determined by the main life priorities and values of a person.
Ayfaar's self-analysis also leads to a specific goal. It is a way to develop abilities for intellectual and altruistic thinking, to form appropriate relationships with other people, as well as between a person and the world around him. By developing in this way, a person may well achieve a global and long-term goal that previously seemed unattainable - by changing his own qualities and contributing to positive changes in those around him, thus coming to a society full of love and mutual understanding, free, first of all, from selfish tricks, lies and violence.
Such goals stimulate a person to realize that changing the world for the better begins with himself, with the quality of his thinking, feeling and behavior. A person is first prompted to make these changes, sometimes difficult ones, by his spiritual ambition. It encourages you to be better, to be different from “like everyone else.” In the absence of full development of good-heartedness, a person risks moving from ambition into a “game of spirituality,” when a sense of self-importance and difference from ordinary people becomes more important than sincere, labor-intensive self-development. Having slightly satisfied his ambition, from which conscious self-development begins, a person develops in himself conscience, which encourages him to change further, not for show, but to be sure that he is getting closer to his goal. Mindfulness allows you to maintain a confident “voice” conscience. This is how the Ayfaar state of the Observer is formed, which is supported by the accompanying characteristics of forethought, self-esteem, concern and much more that were described earlier.
The development of the Ayfaar state of the Observer is relevant when a person strives with all his might to create a happy life for himself and as many people around as possible, when he is interested in living in conflict-free, respectful relationships and leaving behind goodness, love and benefit every day. We can say that a person approaches this way of life - intellectually altruistic - by developing his Observer using the methods of Ayfaar introspection. However, for this it is very important to imagine as specifically as possible what kind of person you want and should become in order to achieve these goals. What does a person who pursues these goals develop in himself, and what does he try to get rid of? In other words, what is the purpose of tracking and working in the Observer state? This is what the next chapter is about.
4. What allows you to develop the state of the Observer.
Most of the concepts of Ayfaar's self-analysis are based on the theory of issiidiology. It explains in detail why certain criteria (motivations, guidelines) of human development lead to events of various kinds. These criteria represent the mental qualities that a person cultivates in himself and which lead him to a certain way of life. In this chapter we will try to reveal the meaning of those criteria that allow us to approach the creation of intellectual-altruistic relationships and a way of existence.
These main criteria and life guidelines are High Sensitive Intelligence (HSI) And Highly Intellectual Altruism (HIA). In everyday life, these criteria of human (lluuvvumicheskogo) development paths are manifested in the implementation of such human qualities as responsibility, honesty, initiative and openness. Of course, their embodiment is inseparable from the manifestation of many other qualities that go beyond egoism and primitive instincts. Consciously developing in this direction, a person learns to check the processes in his psyche and his behavior for the presence of these two criteria and subsequently adjusts self-development, realizing these criteria and qualities more and more often (4).
Qualities, criteria, psycho-emotional skills that the Observer uses (see Chapter 2) - we list all this in order to imagine and describe the versatility of the amazing state of the Observer. In this state, a person also holds the goals that he intends to achieve through self-analysis practices. We will talk about the goals that can be achieved with the help of Ayfaar introspection a little later, in the 5th chapter. In the meantime, right now, it is important for us, in principle, to take a look at the state of the Observer and see his “overall perspective.” Let us imagine the universal diversity of experiences and intentions that make up this state in five blocks:
Why is it important to keep in mind, comprehend and implement almost so many nuances? Is the Observer’s state really so intense and “cumbersome”? Agree, a person’s conscious approach to his present and future is to understand who he wants to consider himself today, in what state he wants to wake up tomorrow, and how he wants to feel in 5, 10 years. Life will certainly make its own adjustments, no matter how we plan our future. But it is much easier to make good use of life’s surprises and “not sag under the weight of problems” if you more often become your own Observer. This means determining your own position and worldview in each situation, consciously accepting some inconveniences, but thereby not passively waiting until life itself forces you to tense up mentally, and even unexpectedly and to a much greater extent.
The point of developing the Observer state through meditation and various exercises is to make it a natural reaction to any life event. For example. In a stuffy, crowded minibus, while the driver was making a reckless turn, someone stepped on your foot/spilled something tasty and sticky on your trousers (and you are going to an important job interview or an exam!). At the same time, small children began to cry at different ends of the minibus, and their mothers and grandmothers could not calm them down. Will you be angry or understand all these people? Will you do something to make it more comfortable for you and other people or to distract the children and stop making noise? Or will you allow your mood to deteriorate along with your trousers, become indignant and ruin the day for the rest of the passengers? Will you think about what is more important and promising for you in life, will you switch to solving the problem, or will you worry about it? Will you remain a full-fledged unconscious participant in the realization of the worst that is in you, or will you become an Observer in order to calm down/calm others down, treat people kindly and develop a constructive solution to the difficulties that have arisen?
In such ordinary situations, we are either “saved” by our Observer state: thoughtful goals, a built-up image of ourselves, which we want to be and which we want to respect in ourselves, the criteria for thinking, feeling and acting with which we bring closer and increase our happiness. Or we torment ourselves by unconsciously “stepping on the same rake” of gross emotionality and ill-considered actions. It's up to us to decide each time.
You can often hear from people: “ To live in peace and love with people, it is enough to be sincere in your best intentions. Why do we need any other criteria, systems, complications? It is important to be smart and kind, and everything will be fine!“And I want to agree, but... if only everything were so simple! It is important to note here that sincerity is often interfered with by veiled selfish intentions and expectations of benefit. And the sincerity of good intentions can be mixed with thoughtless or manipulative tendencies that a person does not notice at all. The righteous anger of someone whose leg was crushed in a minibus and their trousers were poured is a vivid example of a fairly sincere experience, which, however, does not lead to a positive resolution of the conflict and makes the person unhappy. Therefore, Ayfaar’s self-analysis teaches one to take a critical approach even to feelings of one’s own justice and sincerity. In this Observer state, a person switches from assessing his own benefit to assessing experience. He evaluates any situation as a system in which he can always change something for the better, starting with his own sense of self, thus activating his skills: responsibility, honesty, initiative, openness, as well as awareness, forethought, self-esteem and concern. This state of the Observer facilitates access to systemic thinking (“I am the master of my life, and not a victim of circumstances. Even in a stuffy minibus, where, it would seem, there is little reason for joy”).
It turns out that our kind and bright dreams of well-being for all people, of loving and friendly relationships require a methodical approach, which is presented in the diagram. It will not be possible to contribute to world peace until a person Observes and transforms his own conflict. It will not be possible to come to a heart-to-heart agreement with people of different views, ages, and races if you choose to be “right” everywhere and everywhere and ignore a critical assessment of your own rightness and experience. It will not be possible to “infect” others with your dream if a person cannot determine the main and secondary things in self-development on the path to the dream. And if he maneuvers from profit and pleasure to situational and convenient manifestation of virtues, being dishonest with himself, then the question arises: does the person himself understand what his life goal is and what he should spend his energy on?
Therefore, it makes sense to learn to recognize in ourselves the traits and inclinations that make us both truly happy and unhappy, so that the latter influence the scenario of life as little as possible. So, what traits that interfere with the development of HCI, VIA and positive personality traits allow you to track the state of the Observer in yourself? Let's add the last block of our diagram.
5. What does a person track in the Observer state?
What does a person track in the Observer state? Or more precisely, what does a person track using the Ayfaar system of self-analysis? After all, we remember from the third chapter that the states of the Observer are different and aimed at tracking different groups of personal qualities. Let us consider the objects of tracking within the framework of Ayfaar's introspection.
A group of non-positive and negative psycho-emotional manifestations. Tracking them is not such a difficult task if a person is deeply interested in self-development. You can talk more about the specifics of this group of manifestations at the “Workshop for in-depth study of non-positivisms” held at the Centers for Intelligence and Altruism. This group consists of:
- Destructive internal dialogues with angry, judgmental reactions of indignation: “ What are you doing?!», « Why should I?!», « I should teach him a lesson!»
- Internal images or external symbols. A picture of worsening conflict in the mind's eye, sometimes with the use of weapons or traumatic objects. The same objects can turn out to be external symbols when a person receives a bruise, cut, injury due to being in unconscious non-positive states.
- Behavioral. Mental stress and alienation from “irritant” people, or excessive emotionality - as a means of selfish manipulation. " I don't want to say hello to him. I'll pretend I'm busy", deliberate politeness and hypocrisy: “I don’t want to listen to criticism of my work from my boss. I’ll try to offer him tickets to his favorite team’s game and pretend that I’m a fan too.”.
- Psychosomatic. These may include tension in the body, a “lump in the throat,” welling up tears, a broken voice, tinnitus, “stunning,” shortness of breath, a nervous tic, unconscious automatic movements (tapping fingers, waving a leg, etc.). It would seem that it is enough to simply suppress this physiological reaction, but it is not so simple. It is important to pay attention to the psycho-emotional self-awareness that accompanies this reaction and try to deal with it. These signs are especially valuable for identifying those non-positive traits that a person is accustomed to not noticing in himself.
There are many ways to transform the above non-positivisms. Ayfaar self-analysis offers methods of an analytical approach to assessing internal self-awareness for the presence of signs of Highly Sensitive Intelligence (HSI), Highly Intellectual Altruism (HIA), as well as positive qualities (openness, honesty, etc.); methods of verbal disidentification with non-positive thinking patterns; the practice of forgiveness; the 2-minute rule for getting out of negative self-feelings; practice of “Sunny Days”.
Another group of psychisms that are tracked in the Observer state are neutral mental manifestations:
- Euphoria.
- Flirting.
- Deliberate self-sacrifice, over-care, excessive care.
- Optimism based on denial/superficial consideration of problems is frivolity.
They represent the border zone between stable positive and non-positive experiences. Tracking their influence on the development of a person and the situations around him is a much more difficult task. From these manifestations, the primitive rudiments of positivism, altruism, and prudence begin to develop - which is why it is so difficult to question them in your thinking. However, in a few moments you can move from them to angry, aggressive and other reckless psychisms. In general, this is what happens when such states are deprived of conscience and another important incentive in the human mind - the principle of “do no harm.” That is, in the Observer state, it makes sense to pay attention to this group of one’s own neutral mental manifestations and ask oneself: “ Will I harm anyone and myself in the future with these current experiences? Will I then have to be ashamed of them and correct the consequences of hastily received satisfaction?»
An important criterion that makes such a positive condition very conditional is an obsession with the pleasure obtained in the above methods. Fanaticism, irresponsibility, addiction, “living for pleasure” - these are other signs of the harmfulness of a long stay in these experiences. It is very important to note that self-analysis does not call for willful and thoughtless suppression of one’s sensuality. All of the above-mentioned neutral manifestations are “harmful” only if they are brought to the point of predominance over humanity and exclude such an attitude towards people and the world as from the position of the “do no harm” principle. After all, there are a lot of situations in life where balanced flirting, lightness of mood, the ability to “let go of the situation” and trust in life improve life and relationships, not to mention care and help at the right time in the right place.
Working with the selfish component of these manifestations should be comprehensive and include different practices. Therefore, in the classes “Intellectual-altruistic lifestyle” and “Ayfaar self-analysis” at the Crimean Center for Intellect and Altruism “Ayfaar” these topics are discussed deeply and comprehensively. And what does a person receive as a result of the work of the Observer within himself?
6. Reward for the work of self-improvement. Conclusion.
Of course, just working and working with yourself is an exhausting task. The result is also important - new positive thinking models, happy experiences, insights and finally resolved conflicts! This, perhaps, is the reward for the work of self-development. Believe me, a whole book would not be enough to describe all the positive experiences, but it is simply necessary to mention them. After all, why cultivate an Observer in yourself and how do you understand that you are approaching your goal? This becomes understandable if a person more often realizes and sincerely experiences, of course, subjectively each in his own way, the following experiences:
- Sincere friendship and love in relationships with more and more people.
- Cooperation free of protracted conflicts.
- Stress resistance, as a result of awareness of the principle “Everything is for the good.”
- Timeliness and accuracy of intuitive premonition.
- Inspiration, both in your favorite creativity and in fulfilling your duties (even if not completely loved ones).
- Understanding cause-and-effect relationships in events that previously seemed chaotic and unpredictable.
- Happiness that is resistant to any surprises and provocations.
- The ability to find joy in any activity and any situation.
- And much more!
Stability in these wonderful states helps to gain motivation, which can be formed on the basis of the ideas of Iissiidiology about the multivariate scenarios of fate, the diversity of our personal interpretations, the unity of everything in the world and much more, which allows you to look at your life more broadly and boldly. In other words, the state of the Observer, supported by motivations based on iissiidiological concepts, allows a person to approach goals that include awareness of himself in harmonious relationships with people, with the surrounding world as a whole and in living conditions conducive to the development of an intellectual-altruistic lifestyle for him and for many other people.
Don’t be afraid to look at yourself from the outside and think about the “dark” and “light” moments of your life. Don't be afraid to get to know yourself! Yes, there may be many things that surprise you and upset you, but if you are afraid to see something unpleasant, then you may never see something better and promising in yourself and in life; you may end up “walking in circles” of routine and hopelessness. Imagine that you are a winemaker. Your first grape harvest is finally ready to be consumed as wine. Of course, it's exciting to uncork a bottle of wine from the very first vintage, and you may hesitate before trying it, worried that the result of your labors will be disappointing. But a bottle of wine can never be truly appreciated unless you pour it into a glass and take the risk of appreciating its contents. The taste can be so delicious that you will remember it for a lifetime! And if it turns out to be rancid, then you can learn from experience, improve production technology, or decide that winemaking is not worth your effort, and find another business that suits you.
It is very joyful to see how more and more ways of self-development are appearing in the world to achieve harmony and mutual understanding between people, as well as between people and the nature of our beautiful planet. In support of these trends, all the activities of the Centers of Intelligence and Altruism and the methods of self-development practiced in the Centers are aimed at ensuring that there are more and more people in the world who reveal their potential of love and goodness in collaboration with rationality and constructivism; people who boldly get to know their shortcomings and transform them into love and wisdom, without fear of any difficulties on the path of self-development. It remains to add that people who know how to be critical of themselves, first of all, to be conscious Observers and brave Reformers of their egoism, will certainly be able to create a society where the world will actually be ruled by LOVE.
Centers of Intelligence and Altruism. Today the Centers operate in Russia and Germany. The Centers practice self-improvement techniques, in particular Ayfaar self-analysis, in the development and maintenance of an intellectual-altruistic lifestyle.
Ayfaar self-analysis is a system of self-analysis developed on the basis of the concept of the relationship between man and the world around him called “Iissiidiology”. Allows you to transform non-positive, grossly selfish and unconscious mental manifestations into intellectual-altruistic ones. It is the most important method for a person to form an intellectual and altruistic lifestyle.
Intellectual-altruistic thinking and feeling presupposes the unification and development of positive character traits in a person. They are achieved by consciously balancing “mentality” and rationality with positive “sensibility” and introducing a reasonable, conscious “mentality” into the emotionality of the individual. Mentioned in chapter 4 of the article.
The criteria for the human path of development - Highly Sensitive Intelligence (HSI) and Highly Intellectual Altruism (HIA) - are written in capital letters in Iissiidiology to emphasize their difference from all ideas about intelligence and altruism existing in psychology.
The luuvvumic path of development is the life path of the individual and society, in which the levels of harmonious, balanced sensory-mental creativity, devoid of any aspects of destruction and aggression, and anticipating creative initiatives for the benefit of the human community, become increasingly active. These mental states are actively developed by people who choose this life path.
As we gain experience of being present and observing ourselves, we begin to experience the development of a seemingly new aspect of our awareness - a deep ability to be a more objective “witness” of our life experiences. As we have already noted, this quality of awareness is called the internal observer. The inner observer allows us to observe everything that happens inside and around us.
us at the same time, without judgment or comment.
The inner observer is necessary for our transformation because we have a psychological mechanism that Gurdjieff called “identification” and which is the main way in which our personality forms and maintains its picture of the world. A person can identify with anything - an idea,
our body, an itch, a sunset, a child or a song. This means that at any moment when WE are not completely awake, our self-identity arises from everything to which we have turned our attention.
attention. For example, when we are worried, concentrating our attention on an upcoming meeting, we seem to be present at this meeting (even imaginary), we do this instead of perceiving what is really happening to us at the moment. And when we identify ourselves with an emotional reaction - for example, an attraction to a friend in a person - it looks like we become this attraction. And when do we hear
the persistent voice of criticism in our head, we cannot separate ourselves from this voice.
If we calm our mind even a little, we will feel how our states change from moment to moment. One moment we are thinking about our work, and the next we are watching someone cross the road, and that someone reminds us of a person we met many years ago. A moment later, we remember a song from our school childhood, until we are doused with puddles and a passing car. Instantly we start cursing the fool driving the car and can think of nothing else until we realize that we want a candy that will make us feel better. And so on. The only consistent thing is the tendency of our personality to identify with each successive state.
Awareness expands and contracts like a balloon, but identification always causes it to contract. We may notice that when we identify with something, we are clearly less aware of everything that surrounds us. We are less aware of other people, our environment and our own internal state. Simply put, the more identified we are, the less aware we are, the more disconnected we are from reality.
Over time, our identification with a certain set of qualities (such as strength, compassion, peacefulness, or spontaneity, for example) becomes stronger, and a sense of self that is characteristic of a particular type emerges. The feelings and states that make up our sense of self are the feelings and states that we believe are necessary to achieve our goal. The more we identify with our sense of self, the more we become hostage to it, the more we forget about other opportunities and behaviors available to us. We begin to believe that we are this example. We focus on only one specific quality from the vast diversity of our human potential, as if to say: “These qualities are “I”, and these are not. I am exactly like this and not like that.” Thus, we form our own image, define ourselves - this is a predictable personality type.
For example, Eights' Core Fear is being hurt by other people or being controlled by others and people or life, and their Core Desire is to protect themselves. The desire to protect ourselves and rely on ourselves is a basic human need, which is why we, even if we are not Eights, feel the need for physical and emotional protection. Young Eights, however, begin to focus on those qualities they have discovered in themselves that will help them protect themselves. They understand that they are strong, persistent, have willpower and can stand up for themselves.
themselves, and begin to use these opportunities to develop and strengthen their ego identification
We always seem to flow with the events of external life, with our emotions, feelings, experiences, i.e. We act as PARTICIPANTS. But in order to know ourselves, understand our true path, learn to perceive life as a game - without emotions, perceiving obstacles in life, our actions and the actions of other people, we also need to become OBSERVERS. While you are a PARTICIPANT and not an OBSERVER, it is very difficult to realize something in yourself, and even more difficult to consciously change. You must first learn to be an OBSERVER and do it consciously.
The position of the observer is a state in which neither the psyche, nor consciousness, nor the will interfere in any way with the ongoing processes.
Practice.
Find the observing part within your own consciousness. Every person has an internal observer. And most often, an ordinary person falls into this state unconsciously. But if you become more attentive to yourself, you will notice that at the moment of any of your actions there is something that silently watches you, without expressing emotions and without giving judgment.
You can discover the OBSERVER when left alone with yourself. Feel his presence and remember this feeling of WATCHING. Try to return to this feeling during everyday activities. As a result, you will notice that you have an inner detachment, you become more aware and emotionally calm.
Don't worry that the sense of OBSERVER is quickly lost at first. Any external event, especially strong emotions, takes us away from the OBSERVER state, and we again become PARTICIPANTS of events. There are two ways to remain an observer.
The first way is to remember the inner OBSERVER. Remember the same feeling that you experienced when tuning into your observing part. And you automatically become an OBSERVER.
At first, you may find it impossible to carry out your daily activities and be in the OBSERVER state at the same time. But the more you practice, the stronger your inner OBSERVER will be, and all your external and internal activities will proceed easily and consciously. However, the method of “remembering” is too external, and it is not able to transfer consciousness into a constant mode of internal OBSERVATION.
The second method – the method of “internal research” from the internal OBSERVER of one’s own consciousness – is more effective. After you discover the feeling of inner observation in yourself, try, as an OBSERVER, to turn your gaze inward - redirect your attention to your own consciousness and begin to explore it from the inside. Observe the internal processes that occur inside your consciousness.
Explore your emotions, feelings, thoughts, see your character traits, etc. The main thing here is to really feel them, separate them from each other and remember the inner sensation from each internal object found, and not just define them.
This is not easy to do at first. But thanks to the fact that attention is redirected inward, the inner OBSERVER becomes more concentrated and persistent each time. And then it is transferred to the external life of consciousness. And then there is no need to constantly remember it, because the inner OBSERVER gradually becomes a natural state.
Practical exercises and meditations for every day!
