Witnessing the Observer.
When your mind and heart are truly open abundance will flow to you effortlessly and easily.
Question:
Dear Deepak, when I started meditation 8 years ago, I learned to abide in – to pay attention – to experiencer/consciousness. Theoretically, I knew there is experience, experiencer and witness. so, before meditation, the attention was on experience and through meditation, I learned to have attention on experiencer (who am I – hard problem of consciousness. I am this experiencer – consciousness). It was only recently that, silence grew sufficiently for me to experience witness. There are times when I can ‘observe’ witness watching both experience and experiencer. What does that mean? Well, there are times when I am not present to the presence of witness so to speak – it is experience and experiencer. So, at that time, I am identifying with consciousness (even though I know theoretically that I am beyond consciousness – I am witness). In this state, when witness is not present, I am still in the domain of experience. There is pleasure and experiencer of that pleasure or pain and experiencer of that pain. and when that pleasure and pain are not intense enough to make mind too turbulent, then there is some bliss/joy in the background also. However, when I am present to witness, then I can abide in witness – I feel as if I am witness and this experience and experiencer are at some distance. Bliss, impersonal love and peace/silence are natural aspect of this witness, I feel. It feels that there is silence in witness and some noise in experience/experiencer at distance. and I know that I am not consciousness. I am beyond consciousness. I am this witness. (that ‘this witness is reflection of absolute in consciousness’ becomes clear) I am requesting you to please give some input about these experiences I am having and the sense that I am making out of them as also my theoretical understanding of ‘truth’/ultimate reality which I am trying to test/realize through direct experience.
Response:
Self-awareness is actually a simple experience of pure consciousness knowing itself. This simplicity can get complicated when we try to use words to describe this pre-verbal, transcendental experience. Suffice it to say that consciousness in the act of cognition can be understood as a three part process of knower, known, and process of knowing. Pure consciousness as the silent witness can know itself as this process of cognition as a whole or as any part. That seems to be what you experienced, but you seemed to be confused into understanding that the self–awareness of the silent witness necessarily brings your consciousness into the relative domains of knower and known.
Love,
Deepak
