Awareness

Awareness

By John Austen

Awareness-
her gaze is so constant,
our every move
watched
with such affection,
a ceaseless vigil
without condition
or agenda,
silent,
patient,
unrelenting in her
embrace.
There is endless room in
the heart of this lover,
infinite space for whatever
foolishness we may
toss her way.
But she is also.
crafty, this one-
a thief who will steal away
everything we ever cherished,
all our beliefs,
all our ideas,
all our philosophies,
until nothing is left
but her shimmering
wakefulness,
this simple love
for what is.

Complete awareness is when you are entirely engaged with "what is" so that the me, the them, or the it disappears. Only "what is" is.

The constant, relentless mind chatter goes silent. No notice of body sensations. Although all are still there, you don't hear or feel them. Only "what is" is. That's all there is at that instant.

You are totally in the present moment, with little consciousness of yourself as an individual. Your emotional state is colorless. Your body sensations are no longer present. Past and present do not exist. Only the here and now is here now.

You've overtaken by the present moment with a catch-and-release of your thoughts, emotions, sensations, and circumstances—just clouds moving through the sky. You are in an existential place of observation without judgment. Here. Now. Nothing else.

"What is" is all there is.

The discipline is to focus awareness instead of scattering it. As an elder, you put your awareness on the places it counts, not simultaneously but individually. And that is where an awareness discipline is required.

Self: Self-awareness allows us to witness and comprehend our own thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and personality traits. We can have insights into who we are and how we put our "somebody" package together. We see ourselves from the outside looking in.

Environmental: Sunsets. Waterfalls. Tall buildings in Dubai. Cobblestone streets of Dublin. Snorkeling for turtles in Maui. A consciousness of and thorough attention to the external world – surroundings, people, objects, events, and the overall context. Aware of out there, and at those moments, unaware of in here.

Social: Being aware and sensitive to the emotions, needs, perspectives, and behaviors of other people. Total awareness of them takes awareness away from yourself. Empathy essential. Compassion mandatory. Dropping the ego compulsory. An awareness with a high degree of difficulty, at least for me.

Emotional: Emotional awareness is the ability to recognize and be with your emotions and the emotions of others. It requires being with emotion in a way that lessens its energy and interrupts the internal conversations that come with that emotion. You move emotion from the subjective to the objective when you become aware of the emotion.

Spiritual: Spiritual awareness is a heightened consciousness—an understanding beyond reality's material, physical, and mental aspects. There is a deep connection to your inner self, the life around you, and a higher, universal energy. Faith moves from the head to the heart, from intellectual to experiential. Faith has feeling. This awareness is the most challenging for us in the materialistic scientific Western culture.

OUTCOMES OF BEING AWARE

Elders understand that these various planes of awareness are fundamental to their cognition and consciousness. Elders appreciate the more aware of these planes of consciousness, the more able they are to navigate their lives with grace, ease, patience, and prudence.

Elders cultivate and develop these awarenesses through practices like meditation, introspection, and yoga, all best done within a group setting. So, they put themselves in groups where these practices are honored and shared.

What Do We Know

By Mary Oliver

The sky cleared
I was standing
under a tree.

and there were stars in the sky
that were also themselves
at the moment

at which moment
my right hand
was holding my left hand
which was holding the tree
which was filled with stars
and the soft rain —
imagine! Imagine!
the long and wondrous journeys.

Awareness has both existential and metaphysical implications. Awareness has you know yourself more intimately, with more forgiveness and compassion.

Awareness widens the road to more fundamental questions about the nature of reality, existence, and the relationship between mind and world.

Awareness reduces the constant background static of daily life so the spiritual channels are open and heard.  

One of the most remarkable gifts you have been given is awareness. And whatever it focuses on expands. Elders focus their awareness on those aspects of their humanity that bring joy, serenity, appreciation, and humor to their lives.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

THE SANGHA EDITORIAL BOARD

An editorial board is a group of editors, writers, poets, and others charged with implementing a publication's approach to editorials, poems, and other opinion pieces. The material published represents the views and goals of the Contemporary Elder Sangha's purpose mission – Older to Elder. Age to Sage. Resignation to Renewal.

Beginning in September, an editorial board member will publish one piece each month. The editorial board also invites other members of the Sangha, Sangha guests, and others to submit their work, but it must meet the conditions and criteria set by the board, which will be published next week.

The next Sangha Members only call is September 13th. You will receive an invitation with the zoom link. 

The next Open Sangha call is on September 27^th. Registration on the Website www.requestingwisdom.com/the-sangha
There is no cost; we only ask you to be on time.