Meditating With Your Eyes Open

[ashleigh]

So I had my first attempt at meditating with my eyes open today and wow I felt like a newbie meditator all over again!! It was like a whole new level of monkey mind. I didn't even get through 20 minutes. Can anyone offer me tips on how to start this practice more effectively? Where? Do I look at anything? Can I blink? I mean I can't not blink. I was staring at a tree because I had this crazy realization watching Leos enlightenment experience video when he tried to draw the line from the tree to "himself" and failed. Crazy stuff right? 

[HereNowThisMoment]

There are different schools of thought. Some say that your gaze should be focused on something, others say that the gaze should be unfocused as if you are looking out of your peripherals, some sects of Zen face other practitioners while doing zazen, while others face a blank wall. All this is to say that there isn't one "right" way. Personally, I practice with my gaze unfocused and blink whenever the need naturally arises. In my experience I have found that I become a bit more distracted if I am facing a wall, but that may have also been because I mainly used that method when I first started. 

[Azrael]

8 hours ago, ashleigh said:

Can anyone offer me tips on how to start this practice more effectively?

I personally meditate with eyes open for more then 10 months now - I don't really track - but I can tell it's a good idea. That way you can really practice "just to sit" without trying to do something. Not even closing your eyes, getting lost in it - but just sit and be. And personally from doing this - I experienced the most normal, pissed-off, bored, highly spiritual, fucking transcending to completely loving sits. If you do this for some time all of these situations will present them to you.

And first-off you will try to go for the "spiritual", "loving" nice ones. Because you really think that's the meditation you want. So one does that for a while until you find out .. the hard way .. that there is just nothing you can really do to provoke a good meditation. It just seems that it really doesn't matter how much you want it but that it always decides for itself whether you are in flow or not.

So you begin to lean back, understand that and finally just take what comes. And the storm will just go further: good, bad, random, mediocre. But you will sit there knowing that this is exactly the flow they call .. life, Tao, it, nature. However you call it.

And that's it.

[Primeval]

You can stare at a Mandala, a Candle, the Space between you and the wall or if you are outside at a tree or the space between.

[Atom]

@Arik Very well put sir.. I enjoy your comments

 @Lha Bho i will have to try the candle

I kinda look off into space or past whats in front of me like the way you view a stereogram

 

Edited June 9, 2016 by Atom
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[charlie2dogs]

10 hours ago, ashleigh said:

So I had my first attempt at meditating with my eyes open today and wow I felt like a newbie meditator all over again!! It was like a whole new level of monkey mind. I didn't even get through 20 minutes. Can anyone offer me tips on how to start this practice more effectively? Where? Do I look at anything? Can I blink? I mean I can't not blink. I was staring at a tree because I had this crazy realization watching Leos enlightenment experience video when he tried to draw the line from the tree to "himself" and failed. Crazy stuff right? 

ashleigh, the purpose of meditation was intended to bring one into oneness with the core of their being.  stilling the mind is impossible, there is too much rooted in your consciousness that  will keep coming at you all the time, but when you can focus on something enough those thoughts wont hinder you.  Your core being is the real you, so what better to meditate on than it, to sit quietly and be in the moment, fully present, fully conscious experiencing your core being. it wont be easy at first but it will get easier, and when it becomes your  home you will be where all this talk is about.