Hi Ken,

Through practice we can become more aware in these sorts of activities. But there are some important things to watch out for.

Some things on TV (movies too) and some books that we read can be very bad for the awareness: "psychological thrillers" and genres with a lot of lust or violence are mostly designed to feed our various subconscious drives like anger, fear and excitement. So watching such programs or reading such books make the awareness far more difficult if not impossible.

In general terms when watching a TV program or reading a book, I think the key is to watch that we don't get "identified". In these activities we need to keep detached so we can break free immediately if we lose the state of awareness.

When reading or watching, if we find we've lost our awareness of ourselves and are caught up in imagery or fantasy, or if we are sucked up into the screen then we need to detach ourselves.

Also we need to watch for emotions (and other sensations). We may become enthralled in a story. Or we can become very attached to what we are viewing/reading so that if someone came to disturb us, we might even feel irritated. This then shows attachment and a lack of awareness.

What I find helps is to read for shorter intervals and take breaks - same thing with TV or movies. On a break, get up, walk around and just try to be aware and clear. Then return in this clearer state.

It's a tricky thing. We've become very used to getting immersed in the story or the material (in the case of academic work). But in all that if we can keep aware then not only can reading and watching something be enjoyable but we can also make a lot of spiritual progress.

I hope that helps.

Best wishes,

Mike

Hi Ken,

That's a good question. If we decide to strive for awareness, it is important to look at the activities we are doing and whether they make it easier or more difficult to be aware. Making a gradual shift away from activities that make it unnecessarily difficult seems like a wise thing to do.

Personally, I find that a lot of fictional tv and books can really take me away from the moment. This is bad, for me, because it makes me feel a bit lethargic, less energetic afterward. A lot of it can really stir up my emotions too. I'd much prefer to stay in the moment, in a peaceful and calm state.

When I do have to read for work or something, I try to be aware of where I am and how I feel as I do so. I take a moment here and there to look at whether my face is tense or if I feel rushed for some reason and then address any thing like that. This helps me to become less identified with what I am doing.

Best,

Gabrielle

That is true, it helps us to become less identified with what we are doing but also it makes us extremely inefficient at work. Serious job requires serious concentration and focus. Taking yourself away from the job every 30 minutes or so for the sake of awareness its really a blow to your efficiency and deadline. I have tried and tested such methods of staying aware on the computer and at work and what I have found was that I was behind with my work.

Also, whenever I try to read a book, I took a break a few times to detach myself from the book, and practice the awareness, and when I return back to read the book, I found that I have lost track of the story and its message in the book because I was too preoccupied with myself and where I am, how I feel, what emotions I had or observe things around me. It also makes the reading books and watching movies less enjoyable.

Didn't the course and especially all of you said that when we practice visualization on a candle, we should focus deeply and even try to become that flame and feel what is like to be that flame?
Now you say we should detach ourselves from the books and movies? Shouldn't we immerse ourselves in the story, so that we can feel the story, to understand it? How would walking away from the story (for the sake of awareness) would help you undertand the book?

Now let me ask you this, have you TRIED seriously the awareness practice while at work and see how far you got with either work or awareness? Be honest. And have you tried to read a full book and at same time practice awareness and yet you still manage to understand the book and enjoyed the story?

"how do you become aware when watching tv or reading a book ?..."

As simple as I can articulate it, I try to just be aware of what I'm doing. Be aware I'm watching a movie, or that I'm paying particular attention to editor's work, or director's artform, rather than worrying about identifying with the fictitional characters or fantastic situations that excite the mind.

Like everyone else has posted, the opportunity to become identified with certain things and emotions sells books and movies. So if there's a particular character that the targeted audience can be made to identify with, then they completely forget they are watching a movie or reading a book.

It's dangerous because it feeds those selves that project into fantastic scenarios in the immagination and grow in the internal worlds.

There are other things though, that are for informative purposes, for documentation, historical lessons, etc.... thoses are important to take in but at the same time remain aware of what exactly it is that you're taking in.

Since explaining my experience any more is basically repeating what anyone else would say, I'll stop there.

I think that reading and doing anything from awareness has life in it...it has a simple child-like feelings of joy, care, peace.
On a certain level everyone knows already that this is the only state where life can be really experienced.

Without awareness there is fascination, there are egos, and there are swings between pleasure and pain.

Concentration on a movie, concentration on a book, or a work means experiencing its content with all your being but in the same time not letting subconscious elements to take you into fascination.
Concentration is "detached immersing".
This is not easy, especially after much experience with fascination, and a little experience with consciousness in action which most of us have.

This can possibly explain also why a certain genres of movies are not recommended, for example a horror movies; and why some types of jobs are incompatible with spirituality, let's imagine a professional car driver trying to stay in "detached immersing" during a race.
(maybe a few can, and they are best of the best!)

It seems that when we are developing these skills, we have to pass through a difficult time when we can't do the job we used to do as well as we had used to, (enjoy and take as much from a book as before, etc.) and in the same time can't get concentration right either.
This sort of "sitting between two chairs" is very unpleasant and uncomfortable.

Another typical obstacle is a mental effort to resist ego without an effort to be aware, to concentrate. No matter how much we do it, it is never pleasant and crystalizes negative results with time, i think.

All the best!

Hi FIIGO,

I think I can see what you are saying about the breaks, but I still feel they are helpful.

I'd like to offer a tip in this regard - I hope this doesn't come across like I'm being critical of your approach.

I find that when approached correctly, awareness is helpful for pretty much anything. But our natural tendency as humans is to overcomplicate it - we use our mind too much, thinking through every step and breath, analysing every emotion, and overall making it a mechanical and even a painful thing. I've given myself many headaches in the past when trying to be aware, and many times I've analysed it too much with my mind making my mental state even worse, probably.

Awareness, when we actually have it, is something very natural and it shouldn't feel like a chore or another activity that we have to do. When done right it feels pristine and pure, and there is a great sense of inner stillness.

If you see a cup in front of you, do you have to think that you see a cup? No, you just see it there.

If the room is really hot, do you have to think about it or is it just something you perceive?

The idea is that we can just perceive things in a very natural way... just let ourselves be alive in the simplest possible way. And with these perceptions of the five senses, we can through practice very naturally extend to perceiving what's going on within our psyche - if there are daydreams clouding us, a subtle feeling of anxiety, etc.

The reason I mention the above points up is that you mentioned that you got off track because you were too preoccupied with yourself, where you were, your emotions, etc. But being aware should be akin to being alive. Being alive shouldn't take us off track...

It all gets better with practice.

My personal experience is the breaks help. I take a break nearly every 30 minutes at work, and just walk once around the office to come back to the moment, and break free from the sometimes subtle attachment to being on the computer or doing long calculations.

Yes, I have also tried to be aware and read many a book. I really enjoy it because I find with awareness I can pick up, through intuition, on some of the more esoteric things written in books. Some examples would be Dante's Inferno, The Quest of the Holy Grail, the Oddyssey, etc. I tend to read those sorts of books, but definitely enjoy them far more with awareness.

If I get identified I find, not only do I get lost in the book and lose track of time but I feel less balanced afterwards (due to the identification) and I don't gain the same sort of insights from the book. Then afterwards I might make lunch but I can't stop thinking about what I read. Same deal with movies and being identified.

The break in the reading can be nice if I'm reading a lot. A few pages is okay but if I want to go through some 20 pages then the break helps me to refresh myself and also saves my eyes from being strained.

We can still understand a story without being identified with it. Real understanding comes from the consciousness and the consciousness is not active if we are lost in identification.

Regarding the visualization of the candle, that is a particular practice of concentration / visualization. If we do it properly we can gain genuine insights into the candle (or other objects) that are quite profound - becoming the candle, seeing the inside of our heart, etc.

However, even in those practices it's important that we don't let the subconscious interfere (avoid letting our mind wander or getting absorbed emotionally). Like the awareness, when concentration is done right it feels very pure and those profound experiences where we actually become the object only come about when the concentration is done right.

Sorry for such a long post. I hope this answers your questions.

Best wishes,

Mike