The Self Observation Meditation

To maintain the state of the observer is to watch your thoughts and feelings like clouds passing in the sky, without getting involved. It is crucial not to judge them as good or bad, because judgment gives them power and starts an internal fight.

Doing nothing is not passivity; it is simply not acting.

By simply observing, you create a space between you and your thoughts, so you can observe them.

Level 1: Thought Observation

1. Maintain the state of the observer. You are not DOING, you are OBSERVING.
2. Sit comfortably and close your eyes.
3. For five minutes, observe your thoughts as they arise and pass.
4. Do not engage, judge, or follow any thought. Watch them like clouds in the sky.
5. Your only task is to be the silent, impartial observer.

Level 2: Emotional Observation

1. Maintain the state of the observer. You are not DOING, you are OBSERVING.
2. Shift your focus from thoughts to feelings.
3. For five minutes, observe your emotions as they arise and pass.
4. Do not identify with any feeling. Note its presence-anger, joy, anxiety-and let it go without attachment.

Level 3: Desire Observation

1. Maintain the state of the observer. You are not DOING, you are OBSERVING.
2. Shift your focus to your lower abdomen.
3. For five minutes, observe the raw impulses and desires that originate there.
4. Do not act on or condemn any desire. Simply acknowledge any urge that arises, be it about food, or sex, or anything else, watching it rise and fade.

How to know you have mastered this: You are now able to behold all three levels of yourself, without being entangled in them, and without judgement. You observe and you know.