Becoming the Observer
This is the third principle of the Enhances Awareness Program (EAP). It makes sense that if ignorance, avoidance and attachment are the three blocks to awareness (the ‘three poisons’ as described by Buddha), then the opposite state of awareness must be the remedy. Buddha’s remedy was called the Eight-Fold Path to Enlightenment. This was a journey of enhanced awareness. In his Parable of the Sower, Jesus also taught of the three blocks to awareness and proposed a remedy in the form of his eight Beatitudes. He went onto explain that nobody could serve two masters, especially when it comes to material and spiritual values. He explained that whatever you treasured (valued) is where your heart (what you loved) would be found. This ‘poisoned’ state of the heart was referred to as ‘waxing gross’ (getting bigger and unattractively fat/bloated), which meant that the ability to see and hear clearly was distorted by the love of values (treasures) that were corruptible (unsustainable).
Healing
Both Jesus and Buddha explained what was required to heal (experience abundance) – mindfulness and compassion. Jesus described it as ‘seeing with your eyes and hearing with your ears’ (mindfulness) and ‘understanding with your heart’ (compassion). The healing that he said would naturally emerge from that enhanced state of awareness would bear fruits, more to some and less to others, but that these fruits would be evidence of the healing. Of course, these fruits would be seen in one’s expanded state of consciousness and not in material values. Although it should be pointed out that Jesus also explained that if your aligned your heart with spiritual values (seek the Kingdom of God) then the material needs would be provided (added unto you). Healing in this context represents a state of abundance. This would be evident in the way you express yourself physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Physically you would be conscious of how you feed and exercise the body. You would be aware of feeding the senses with quality ‘sensory-food’ including things like being self-nurturing, maintaining sexual fulfilment and actively participating in creative arts, to name a few. The fruit of that degree of consciousness would be physical health, material sufficiency, radiance and a life filled with sensuality. Mentally you would be striking a balance between developing, broadening, resting and nurturing the mind. It’s fruits would be clarity of thinking, a capacity to manage stress, a consistent state of peace, inspiration and innovation. Emotionally you would be more forgiving of yourself and others, more committed to being compassionate and developing more emotional intelligence. Emotional abundance would see you experience love filled relationships that were accompanied by a strong sense of self-love. Spiritually you would be clear about the things you seek to value and how they differ to what you actually value. You would be aware of the footprint you leave in the hearts and minds of others and on the planet. This state of spiritual awareness would have you engaged in YOUR purpose that would contribute to global peace and healing.
Listening and Awareness
Listening and awareness are both synonymous with being in a state of observation. We each tend to be more aligned with one sense more than the others, meaning some of us a more visual and others are auditory. Some can be intuitive and yet others rely on touch. Whatever our form of observation, the one that we can all learn to use is the most important, understanding – the sense of the heart. Becoming the observer means that we discipline ourselves to be a witness of both our internal and external environments, without judgement. Anytime we determine that what we have witnessed as being good or bad, right or wrong, better or worse, is an indication of the personal filters that distort our awareness. The simple test for whether you are in a state of observation or not is the degree to which you are experiencing the drama, whether it is the comedy or the tragedy. In the place of the observer, you experience stillness. Only in this place of stillness can true understanding emerge. This state of love is often expressed as compassion and benevolence. Over the next four blogs, I will be exploring the four elements that are necessary to engage authentic listening (observation). These four steps are fundamental to the EAP Process, the foundation to the structure of the Enhances Awareness Program.
Take a Moment to Consider
Take a moment to consider your self-talk. The talk you experience in your own mind when you are not talking to another person. I have often considered my thoughts in the past and observed how I wouldn’t let my children be around someone that was so needy, defeatist and fearful. How’s your self-talk? The degree to which our self-talk fills our mind (along with it’s two-faced drama of comedy and tragedy), is the measure of our distance from stillness, as seen in our capacity to stay the observer. For one week, at the end of the day, reflect on how much your mind was filled with drama, and how that served, or didn’t serve you. Although, it might be easier to identify how much of the day you were in stillness, and how that served you.
This Weeks Video
Read More From This Series
Read About The Other EAP Principles
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