Developing Awareness

This chapter examines the technique of developing awareness. Many Buddhist techniques are directed toward a particular object. Different objects can be selected for people at different levels of understanding, with different temperaments, or who face different obstacles. Other times, however, we are not aiming to be aware of anything in particular but simply more aware. We are not focused on any particular thing but instead have a heightened sensitivity to everything that is happening. This technique is similar to some of the earlier ones, but it is less like training the eyes to see particular things better and more like improving the sense of vision itself. It helps to develop a kind of discerning awareness of all of the events around life—their origins, duration, and characteristics.