Recently my dear friend Miles (in Mallorca, Spain) suggested that I write a little more about Cultivating the Witness. He read my pocket book, Radiance Rising: Spiritual Practices for Daily Living, and then wrote the following to me: “You covered Witnessing in your book… I understand basically what you say to do but it’s the actual doing of it that I’m unsure of. Maybe you could show that this can be done easily by “newbies” too and not just the “inititated”. Sometimes it can be daunting to come across these methods and feel like one should know what to do. Witnessing 101 as it were?"

So, inspired by Miles, I am writing the first in a series of blog articles for people new to Cultivating the Witness. Today’s focus is on watching yourself. 

For example, you enter a coffee shop feeling just fine. The gal at the counter hands you the bagel and tea without being friendly, and as you turn your back on her, you feel irritated and roll your eyes. Right then, quickly think: ‘Watch myself. Cultivate the Witness. Irritation just arose in my system.’ Watching yourself is the first, most basic step to cultivating the Witness Consciousness. You can take it a step further and ask yourself why the irritation arose and then witness the answer, but just be careful not to get stuck in analyzing-yourself-mode. It is fine to just think, ‘Look at that, some irritation just arose in me’ and move on to watching the next thing! Initially, the important thing is to simply watch yourself, noting each little reaction with your mind. Watch yourself, watch yourself, watch yourself, watch yourself!

So, with each thought, with each emotional reaction, with each bodily sensation, think ‘Watch myself. Cultivate the Witness.’ – and then objectively think whatever it was that just passed through your system. Practice this as often as possible throughout the day, and you will begin to notice the effects. Please share your experiences here (in the comments below this article) for others to learn from.

In the next Cultivating the Witness 101 article, I’ll address how this spiritual practice helps with managing anger.

May all beings experience Radiance rising within their beings.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja watching herself by Teja Shankara.