Experiences of self-awareness. Experiences of self-awareness Nutrition awareness is possible without the overall development of this personal quality

People tend to constantly worry, worry about something, make plans for the future and watch how they collapse. The vast majority are used to being afraid, offended, looking for ways to cope with stress, getting angry. Humanity lives in depressions, neuroses, in a constant pursuit of material goods and advantages that this or that status gives. And the negativity that surrounds people, many simply seize. This does not mean that everyone develops bulimia. But how often, sitting at a computer or watching a movie, a person does not notice how he ate something?

Why is this happening? All the fault of the uncontrolled activity of the psyche. Lack of ability to understand what, how and why is done in each of the time periods. In other words, the brain does not fix the act itself or does not correlate it with the true motives of a person. For example, if a person watches a movie, then the fact that he is eating at the same time is not put off in his mind. And it is the lack of awareness that is often the main reason why it is not possible to get rid of excess weight. For example, why diets fail? Because the person “does not know” that he has already eaten.

How to solve this problem? How to eat consciously? To understand this, you need to understand what this quality of personality is, why it is useful and necessary, in what way it can help a person.

What it is?

The lack of awareness of one's actions, emotions, actions and feelings leads to a feeling of meaninglessness of what is happening around. Almost all people suffering from depression live unconsciously.

What is it? Self control? Constant monitoring of your thoughts, emotions and actions? Not at all. Awareness is a special quality of a person, in which there is no randomness in the mind of a person.

The mind of most people is like an attic filled with many things, the owners of which simply have no idea what exactly is in it and where. A conscious person is deprived of this. His consciousness resembles the pantry of a zealous housewife, in which there are neat rows of racks, and all supplies and things are in their places and at the right time are always at hand.

What is the difference between mindfulness and self-control?

Conscious behavior is often confused with the ability to control one's own emotions, actions, and desires. Indeed, the external manifestations of both qualities are unusually similar. However, their essence, implementation mechanisms and nature are fundamentally different.

Control does not imply internal organization and order in the mind. In the mind of a person who keeps his feelings in check, the same chaos reigns as in the head of someone who immediately splashes out overwhelming emotions or instantly realizes simple desires. Control over emotions simply suppresses their manifestation, it does not lead a person to an understanding of the essence of experiences.

Awareness also does not prevent the appearance of a particular thought, emotion. But people with this quality do not suppress the manifestations of their psyche, but understand their true nature. This awareness of the essence of the experiences experienced, the actions taken leads to the fact that the negative completely disappears from life, and with it fears, obsessive thoughts, incomprehensible sensations, anxieties leave the mind. The habit of forgetting that some actions have already been committed also disappears. For example, a person ceases to uncontrollably eat, smoke, drink tea or do something else without making any specific efforts.

How to understand that you need to learn mindfulness?

Conscious living has many benefits. But how, by what criteria or signs can one understand that it is time to learn this quality? How to figure out whether it needs to be developed or not?

You need to engage in self-awareness if the following is present in life:

• pile of erroneous decisions;
• frequent failures and disappointments;
• there is a certain “ceiling” that cannot be overcome or pushed back in any way;
• problems resemble an endless vicious circle;
• events repeat at regular intervals;
• habits are completely out of control;
• lack of confidence;
• images of the past or ideas about the future swarm in the mind, but there is no present in it;
• everything around is a source of negativity and an irritant;
• suspiciousness becomes the main character trait.

This list can be continued, however, these factors are quite enough to understand in which cases it is necessary to develop awareness.

What is mindful eating?

Often people who are concerned about the question of how to consciously eat do not pay attention to the general information that characterizes this personal quality. They are trying to "get straight to the point" and are looking for a list of actions that need to be performed in order to stop eating uncontrollably.

However, mindful eating is not a diet or a set of specific techniques. This is not counting calories or kilograms, not giving up anything. In simple terms, mindful eating is the use of food, which is carried out not in order to "fill the stomach" or get psychological relief, but in order to benefit your body.

This type of nutrition arises as soon as a person begins to realize responsibility to his own body for how and with what he feeds him. In other words, choosing products, a person intuitively proceeds from the needs of his body and their understanding.

How to understand that you need to learn to consciously eat?

This question worries many people who, in principle, do not suffer from excess weight, but feel some discomfort related to nutrition.

For example, with a constant feeling of emotional depression, dull skin color, the presence of heaviness in the body as a whole, laziness, fatigue, people think about whether they eat right. Someone who is surprised to find that they have eaten the entire dinner while reading a book or watching a movie also begins to think about mindfulness in eating.

There are a lot of incentives to start consciously eating. The need to develop this quality in oneself arises if:

• a person eats in order to fill the stomach;
• food intake is carried out on the principle of "more and cheaper";
• there is no understanding of the benefits of using a particular product;
• nutrition occurs mechanically, without awareness of the fact of eating food;
• the diet does not take into account the real needs of the body.

For example, if a person does not exercise, then he needs less food than someone who is physically active. Mental work requires some products, while physical work requires others. If there is no understanding of this, it is time to learn to eat consciously.

Is nutrition awareness possible without the overall development of this personality trait?

Asking the question of how to consciously eat, a person often does not understand what this quality is. It is impossible to develop it in only one manifestation. It is impossible "here to be a little aware, and here to leave a bit of chaos." The nature and essence of this personal property is based on harmony, and it cannot be selective.

Moreover, how to be aware, people learn all their lives. This process has no end, because it is self-improvement. In fact, this is not some kind of skill, it is a way of life and thinking of a person.

Accordingly, in order to start consciously eating, it is necessary to develop this quality in general.

What is the difference between a conscious person and an unorganized one?

What is the essence of this personality trait? How to understand whether awareness is present or not at all?

People with this quality always know the answer to four questions about the current moment of life. These questions sound like this:

• What am I doing right now?
• Why am I doing what I'm doing?
• Do I want to achieve the goal of the action?
• Can I do something differently, better?

The questions, at first glance, are simple, and it seems that everyone is able to answer them. But everything is not as easy as it seems.

What is the difference between the answers that indicate awareness? How to develop this quality?

The first question is about the current action of a person. As a rule, everyone can answer it. But what will those answers be? I have lunch, I stand at the bus stop, I read, I work, and so on. All these phrases do not indicate what a person is actually doing.

For example, a person walks into a bar and buys a cup of coffee. What is he doing? Drinks cofee? Not at all. A person plays for time, occupies himself in anticipation of something, tries to cheer up, takes a break in everyday worries.

In other words, conscious actions differ from unorganized ones in that a person does not lie to himself about the current activity. He always knows exactly what he is really doing, regardless of the form in which this activity is presented.

An honest answer to the first question automatically determines the rest. In other words, awareness is manifested in the understanding and designation of the essence, the content of the immediate, concrete life moment.

It is the ability to separate the essence of the process from its outer shell that is the basis of awareness. As soon as a person learns to understand what he is really doing, his life will change.

How to achieve this? Very simple. You need to “stop the world” several times a day. That is, stop the current activity and ask yourself the question of what is really happening at this moment.

What does it look like in practice? For example, a person is busy designing the layout of an advertising banner. He pauses and asks himself what he's doing right now. Answers such as: “I am working, drawing a layout, busy” are a sign of a disorganized psyche. They do not reflect the essence of the current moment. A person should look deeper into his consciousness and be more honest with himself. The answer options that indicate the presence of awareness sound like this: “I’m waiting for the end of the working day, I’m playing for time, I suffer from nonsense, I guess the customer’s desire, I’m thinking about plans for the evening.” Of course, the answers may be different, but they are always specific and describe the true state of affairs at a certain point in time.

This should be done several times a day. In order not to forget about the exercise, you can set a reminder on your phone. As soon as there are no problems with understanding the essence of your studies, you need to move on to answering the following questions. It is important to remember that you should practice all your life and in any situation.

How to develop food awareness?

The technique for developing awareness is the same for all spheres of life. In other words, before you start eating, you need to ask yourself what is happening at the moment? Does a person start eating because he is hungry? Or is the current meal a form of another action? For example, a person may struggle with anxiety.

In addition to questions and frank answers to them, mindfulness in nutrition is characterized by an understanding of the benefits of what is eaten. How to learn to benefit from food? To begin with, you can smell the dish, turn the pieces on your tongue, and feel their taste in full. Understand whether you like this dish / product or leave you indifferent.

Of course, you do not need to read, watch TV or work while eating. You should not be distracted from food and various thoughts that appear in your head. Thus, the realization will come that a person has received the amount of food he needs. And this will entail less consumption and a more competent choice of products.

There are no special methods, techniques or techniques in this process. All you need is an understanding of your action and a thoughtful attitude towards it, getting positive emotions from the process of eating.

At certain life periods, you begin to understand that you won’t be fed up with personal development alone, and an understanding and awareness of yourself and the world comes, as something more than an ordinary perception of reality.

You live, lead an ordinary life, everything is fine with you: a decent income, a happy family, sports, you read books, you are interested in something informative, but you still feel that something is missing, as if everything is somehow going wrong , it should be.

No, of course, you are satisfied with everything, and it’s a sin to complain, but the feeling persists that you missed something, something very important, as if a piece of yourself, some kind of integrity is missing ...

Self-awareness and such a position prompts you to look for the missing part in the outside world, and you embark on travels, occupy yourself with the study of foreign languages, look for adventures in your soft spot. Being carried away by something new, you periodically forget about the signals from within, identifying with active external activity, but they remind you of themselves with enviable persistence.

Since you are not a stupid person, since you are already successful in all areas of life, you are already starting to dig deeper and in a more correct direction. You seek and find such an answer: only self-awareness, as a spirit, some vague concept of the higher self. What is this and awareness in general?

In working on oneself, there is often such a state as if one has forgotten something, something very important. It's like when you leave the house, and there is a strong feeling that you forgot something, it directly torments you. It turns out that he forgot his car keys or documents. Or turn off the iron.

The signal is perceived from the inside in the same way, but you don’t understand what can be forgotten? The inner voice directly screams that you have forgotten nothing but yourself!

We are so identified with the world around us, we constantly have a bunch of things that require attention, that we forget to be aware of ourselves. All attention is directed outward or inward, to our own thoughts and feelings, that we are not aware of ourselves as the pure consciousness of the observer. There is a body and a mind with all its derivatives, but we are pure consciousness, the higher Self, aren't we? And this is the most important thing that we forget.

Self-awareness is absent, all attention is directed to the activity in which the mind is engaged. And he is busy every second: he keeps thinking and thinking about something, everything is busy with something, just not to look inside.

This is due to an unconscious unwillingness to look and see fears, doubts, dependence and uncertainty inside oneself. And under this layer of unpurified consciousness lies an unknown dimension of our Self. That Self, which does nothing, does not perform any actions and does not show any activity, but only observes and registers external mental and physical activity and employment.

But in order to see this dimension of yourself, you need to stop the mind, you need it to calm down and quiet down. It is like the sea: when it is raging, nothing can be seen, and only when it calms down, it is possible to see every grain of sand on the bottom of the sea.

Thus, it is necessary to calm your mind by performing various. And then it is possible to see what is usually hidden in the everyday state of consciousness.

Awareness of oneself comes not as a body and mind, but as a state of the Self, separate from the body and mind. There is me, which does everything, thinks, feels, feels. And there is the Self, which is characterized by absolute non-action. Man acts on the basis of unconscious impulses. When these motives are known, fully realized, we are freed from them and come to the state of non-action, the state of non-action.

Of course, such a person still performs the necessary actions, leads a normal life, does not become any kind of hermit. It's just that he is already out of this world, out of his usual perception. It's like playing a game on a computer, and your character is running around in the game: it's not you who does all these actions, but he, you just watch. You can play and engage in other activities at the same time, as if there are two dimensions in you: you and the player.

Only in our case, the mind becomes the player, and you simply observe this game with all its manifestation and diversity. You can also see the games other people are playing. Only they fully identify themselves with their players.

Have you ever had such a thing in your childhood that you are so immersed in any game that you forget about how much time has passed, that you need to eat, that it's time to go home and in general about everything?

In the same way, each person is completely immersed in the game of his mind, which ceases to perceive reality, believing and seeing only the game itself, and not the player at all. And completely forgetting yourself!

Thus, the development of awareness includes awareness of the game, awareness of the player, and awareness of oneself as an uninvolved entity.

Best wishes,

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Self-awareness is characterized by a state of absence of any doing. ©

Warning! Long, boring and too philosophical answer.
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It's funny, but it was this question, perhaps, that interested me most in the world as a child: I constantly asked my parents why I am me, why they are my parents, would I exist if I had not been born or they had not given birth I could be a different person.

In general, this question still worries me, but in my thoughts on this matter then and now there is a colossal difference, which, nevertheless, is very difficult to recognize, differentiate and realize both personally for me and for most people. , I think.

As a child, I perceived myself, my consciousness and my personality as something intangible, always existing and a priori, as a given, as something whole, complete and independent.
And then, of course, I could neither understand nor imagine that my consciousness is just a very, very complex function that is implemented by a group of neurons, the ability of the psyche to reflect its own content.

To be honest, even now it is difficult to imagine how and why I am aware of myself, just me and myself, but it is much easier to come to an understanding that my consciousness and my personality are something, roughly speaking, similar to a program recorded on a certain medium - the brain - the material world, life in the human body, lifetime experience.

Here it is necessary to establish the logic, the appearance of which is simply impossible in the child's mind, which is not able to operate with something other than direct perception: we do not arise from nowhere and do not "come" into this body, this body, having been born and developing according to the natural laws of ontogenesis , gradually gives birth to our "I", this is the external world, acting through the analyzer systems on the brain, which already, thanks to millions of years of evolution of matter, contains the potential for the emergence of consciousness, forms our personality, this is the experience that we receive, drives the development of our individuality.

Of course, the idea of ​​one's personality and consciousness as something separate from the body, independent and self-contained, fits perfectly into the picture of our delusions generated by experience, because everyone experiences himself, his individuality and his consciousness every second of wakefulness, every day, all life. "Because I am me!"

Nevertheless, I believe we can conclude that our consciousness and our personality is a kind of illusion, an illusion not in the sense that it is something non-existent, but something conventional, not a real phenomenon, but rather a subjective sensation. Roughly speaking, we are aware of ourselves insofar as we have a brain adapted for this, but we consider ourselves individual, unique, whole only due to a certain natural delusion. There is no "me" outside my life, my body, my experience, the processes occurring in the brain, and I experience my "soul" only because the human psyche is able to reflect its own content.
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All the same, I still have a feeling of some understatement. I hope you can understand something in my answer lol.

McConaughey wins!

And an article for general development.

Do you know such feelings? You have everything that is “needed for happiness” - a successful job, a prosperous family, prosperity. But at the same time you feeldissatisfaction with one's life and oneself . You do not know where to move on, but at the same time you clearly feel that you have “reached the ceiling” in your development. And you simply do not have the strength to move from this point.

What if you have “everything you need to be happy,” but you still feel dissatisfied.

When you have a leaking faucet in your bathroom, you are looking for a leak to fix it. When your car makes noise while driving, you want to find the source of that noise and fix it. When you are dissatisfied with your life and unhappy, then naturally you want to know why you feel this dissatisfaction.

But not everyone wants to know the reasons. Sometimes negative emotions come to the fore - apathy, depression, anxiety and self-doubt, depression develops. And, plunging into these feelings, you continue to live "on autopilot." It will help to changeawareness and "acquaintance" with one's "true self"with whom you once lost contact.

Getting to know your "true self" will help turn off the autopilot in your life.

The first steps on the path to a conscious life and to yourself

Conscious attention to the 4 components of your consciousness will help you understand who you really are and which direction is “yours”: sensations, thoughts, emotions, and patterned reactions to surrounding events.

1. Feel.Take time to "talk" with your body. Starting at the tips of your toes, "scan" all parts of the body and notice any sensations in them. Pay particular attention to uncomfortable feelings. For example, tension in the face and jaws, tightness in the chest, or a general feeling of fatigue throughout one's body. Ask yourself what will help you relax and remove the "extra" clamps and blocks. And also check what emotions are associated with these sensations.
2. Thoughts.Observe your inner voice and the thoughts that it broadcasts to you. The most important thing is to learn to separate yourself, your personality from these thoughts and judgments. “Turn on” an objective observer and note what you think about most often, how you evaluate yourself and the actions of the people around you. How these thoughts influence and sometimes "control" your behavior. At the same time, do not try to change the content of thoughts or “forbid” yourself to think about something. It is much more important to learn how to interact with your inner voice - to accept something, and immediately “let go” of something.
3. Emotions.Often emotions drive your actions without you even realizing it. So it's time to pay attention to them. Notice what emotions you are experiencing, how intense they are, and how they affect your behavior. Over time, these observations will help you understand how you express your emotions and how you deal with them. For example, a habitual way of expressing anger can hurt you and your loved ones. Understanding this will "open the door" leading to change.
4. template reactions.Having studied the first 3 components, you will already notice the habitual patterns of behavior that are "launched" by your emotions, sensations and thoughts. More conscious observation of your behavior will lead to a deeper understanding of its triggering mechanisms. For example, you may be putting off real action towards your goals out of fear. And it can also block your deeper “immersion” into yourself.

Conscious attention to yourself is the best way to remember your "true self".

By regularly paying attention to these components of your consciousness, you are already a littleget closer to your "true self" understand the mechanisms of your habitual behavior. But in order to profoundly transform your life and answer the question "Who am I?", it is importantact systematically. You have the opportunity to get a system that will put things in order in your head and life. But about her a little later. In the meantime, I want to tell you one story of change.

How Lyudmila found herself and how it affected her life

I really appreciate the feedback of my students, stories about their awareness and changes after the trainings. And it is especially valuable to learn about what is happening in their lives some time after the end of the courses. One of these reviews was sent by Lyudmila Zevakova, who underwent a transformational training"21 steps to yourself". Listen for yourself, in what state she came to the training:

A year has passed since Lyudmila took "21 steps to herself." And her life changed dramatically. Sherealized her true desires , I “got to know” myself again and realized what prevented her from living a bright and happy life .

I am very grateful to Ludmila for sharing her results. And I really liked one of her realizations: “By changing yourself, you thereby trigger changes in everything that surrounds you, and the lives of your loved ones are also changing.”

If you want to make a step-by-step plan to achieve the life of your Dreams and are ready for profound changes, then you have the opportunity to do this. Join our new training group"21 steps to yourself". He starts February 19, and while you can connect to it on the most favorable terms. Are you ready to take action and get on the path to the life of your dreams? Or leave everything as it is, expecting that it “will get better by itself?!

P.S. I propose to discuss in the comments - are you "familiar" with your "true self"? And how often do you communicate with him? 🙂

In the sutras, the Buddha encourages disciples to be constantly aware of their body and its movements. You need to be aware when you walk, stand, sit or lie down.

It is necessary to be aware of the position of the arms and legs, how you move, how you gesture, etc. According to this teaching, having awareness, a person cannot do anything hastily, randomly or disorganized.

A perfect example of this is the Japanese tea ceremony.

At first glance, the Japanese tea ceremony revolves around a quite ordinary action that we perform every day: preparing and drinking tea.

We have all done this hundreds and thousands of times. How is it done in Japan, during the Japanese tea ceremony? They do it differently there, because they do it consciously.

Consciously fill the kettle with water. Deliberately put it on the coals. They consciously sit and wait for the kettle to boil, listening to the noise and gurgling of water in the boiling kettle and looking at the flickering of the flame.

Finally, they consciously pour boiling water into the teapot, consciously pour the tea, consciously serve it, and consciously drink it, all the while maintaining complete silence. The whole thing is an exercise in mindfulness. This is an example of the application of mindfulness in everyday affairs. This attitude needs to be carried over into all our classes. Any business should be based on the same principle as the Japanese tea ceremony: everything must be done carefully and consciously, that is, calmly, leisurely and beautifully, as well as with dignity, harmony and peace.

But if the Japanese tea ceremony demonstrates a certain level of awareness in everyday life, if it represents a certain type of spiritual culture - the culture of Far Eastern Buddhism, especially Zen, then what similar ceremony or tradition that reflects the mentality of the modern West do we have? Do we have anything that expresses the spirit of our commercial culture?

After some thought, I came to the conclusion that such a characteristic of our culture is a business lunch. During a business lunch, you are trying to do two things at the same time: eat food that is tasty for the body, and profitably wrap things up. This behavior of trying to do two mutually exclusive things at the same time is incompatible with genuine and deep awareness. In addition, it is very bad for digestion.

If you constantly train in awareness of the body and its movements, then as a result of movement it will be possible to slow down. The flow of life will become more even and even rhythmic. You will do everything more slowly and deliberately. But this does not mean that we will work less. This is wrong. A person who does everything more slowly, because he does it consciously and deliberately, can do more than the one who looks very busy, because he is constantly rushing about and littered with folders and papers - in fact, he is not busy, but simply fussing. A truly busy person does everything calmly and methodically, and because he does not waste time on trifles and fuss and remains mindful, he will eventually get much more done.

Feeling Awareness

First of all, this means the awareness of whether we are happy, sad, or are in some intermediate state - a dull gray and neutral state. As we become more aware of our emotional life, we notice that the unskillful emotional states associated with lust, hate, or fear begin to recede, while the skilful emotional states associated with love, peace, compassion, and joy become clearer.

If a person is naturally quick-tempered and easily angered, then by developing awareness of feelings, he first of all becomes aware of his anger after anger is angered. Then, with practice, he becomes aware of anger during the attack itself. And after even longer practice, he will become aware of anger at the moment it arises.

Awareness of thoughts

If you suddenly ask a person: “What are you thinking about right now?” - then most often he will be forced to admit that he himself does not know. This happens because often we do not really think, but simply let thoughts flow through our mind. We do not have a clear awareness of our thoughts, we are only vaguely aware of their presence, as if we see in a kind of gray twilight. We don't have directed thinking. It's not that we decide to think about something and then actually start thinking. Thoughts float through the mind in a vague, incoherent, disorderly stream. They flow in and out swirling and sometimes just swirling and swirling in the mind without end.

Therefore, it is necessary to learn from time to time to observe where thoughts come from and where they go. If we do this, we will notice that the flow of thoughts will decrease, and their endless chatter will stop. If we train hard to be aware of our thoughts, then eventually, at certain moments that mark the highest points of meditation, the mind will remain absolutely silent.

All rational thoughts, all concepts and ideas will disappear, and the mind will remain silent and empty and at the same time full. To reach and experience this silence, this emptiness of the mind is much more difficult than just silence. But it is precisely the moment when, as a result of awareness, the mind becomes silent, when all thoughts disappear, leaving only pure and clear consciousness or awareness, marks the beginning of true meditation.

These three kinds of self-realization are said to be: body and its movements, feelings and thoughts- you need to practice constantly, no matter what you do. Throughout the day, and with practice even at night, in the midst of dreams, it is necessary to continuously maintain awareness.

If in this way we keep awareness all the time: to be aware of how our body is located, how we put our foot or raise our hand; be aware of what we say, what feelings we experience, joyful, sad or neutral; to be aware of what we think, whether the flow of our thoughts is directed or not directed - if we maintain such awareness all the time, and if possible all our lives, we will see that gradually and imperceptibly, but nevertheless quite definitely, awareness will change and transform everything our being, our whole character.

As psychologists say awareness is the most powerful means of transformation known to us. If heat is applied to water, the water will turn into steam. In the same way, if awareness is brought to the psychic component, then this component will become more subtle and sublime.