How To "do Nothing" Properly?

[carlo]

hello, sorry for  ask a lot about this, but I'm starting in meditation and  would like to do it properly.

so this is the question: in "do nothing" should I be aware of everything that happens in my experience, or being aware is doing something?

I feel that if I let the desire to do something, I just fall into sleep and never have a moment of true consciousness, so I think I am do it wrong.

Then I try to let whatever happens happen and be aware of it, but then I feel that I'm Doing something, because being aware is not easy, and It requires some effort. for example I'm sitting and A thought appears,then i just notice it and another thought appears  and again I just observe it.

but that process of noticing is doing something right? even if I not try to control my Thoughts, but im trying to control the atention over them, noticing is a choose that i can drop yeah? 

so that means that in order to "do nothing" properly, i have to let go my intention of observing thoughts once they appear, even if I am not controling them and just watch them? or being aware is required by this technique?

I would greatly appreciate your answers thank all, and sorry for my english haha.

[HereNowThisMoment]

"Just sit." This was the advice given to me by a teacher. It's as simple as it sounds. Sit and be fully aware. Don't try to filter thoughts, just observe them. Gradually the frequency of thoughts decreases. 

[carlo]

@HereNowThisMoment hi, thanks for answering. but "just sit" and "be fully aware" would not be do two things instead of do nothing?

[HereNowThisMoment]

I haven't seen Leo's video about "Do Nothing" meditation, but I think it is just referring to shikentaza, in which case it is just sitting as described before. 

[carlo]

@HereNowThisMoment here Shinzen Young video about "do nothing" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZ6cdIaUZCA 

[HereNowThisMoment]

@carlo Thanks for the link. I will quote the description of that video, "Shinzen talks about the technique he calls "do nothing", which is associated with what other traditions call choiceless awareness, just sitting..." 

[Mal]

8 hours ago, carlo said:

@HereNowThisMoment hi, thanks for answering. but "just sit" and "be fully aware" would not be do two things instead of do nothing?

Hi Carlo,

The point is to sit and let the body and mind do as it pleases. 

Despite the initial instruction is to "do nothing" , the technique paradoxically is also an invitation to "do everything". 

Mal

[Khin]

@carlo Heyyyyyy... this is Kiii in actualized.org forum ...  just copying Leo. 

Well! To be honest, I used do nothing technique even before I found Leo videos. Let me share my experience with you. 

It was about six years ago. I was meditating in the temple on mountain. It was our New Year and many people were dancing and doing whatever with REALLY loud music. I was first listening to those music without knowing myself. Then I remembered I was meditating and should not follow after feelings and emotions. But I couldn't control myself at all. So I was really annoyed. After 45 minutes later, I give up and let my mind go. I decided to look at it without controlling. I decided i would only pay attention to my ears. In my mind I was annoyed by my thoughts and wanted to see how far it would go. As I decided to give my thoughts a freedom, my desire to listen to music disappeared. And music turned into really plain voices which disappeared as soon as they hit my ear drums. 

When doing "Do Nothing" technique, one should aware of a sense as it comes up and should also aware of when it disappears. It says Do Nothing because you are not supposed to be identifyed with any experience or awareness. 

[CA19]

With Do Nothing, you just sit there and observe thoughts and sensations.The ego wants to make it more complicated than it is.

Although I wouldn't recommend it at times when you are too tired, or you'll just fall asleep.It's best suited for times when you're already energetic or after a hit of an entheogen.

When tired I recommend a focus-based meditation like mindfullness or SDS to raise yang energy.

[Bombardini]

I like Shinzens instructions on this technique. He says you just stop doing what you can stop doing, for example intentional thinking. Everything else is not intentional so you don't have to worry about it. 

Some people see no difference between ordinary day monkey mind and doing nothing monkey mind. I believe the difference is you don't allow intentional thinking just the kind of thinking that sort of just happens to you (thoughts you have no control over).

Some instructions I've read or heard about this technique make it almost sound like you can just sit and intentionally daydream for 30 minutes and expect to get some peace.