When we meditate, we try to be one with our awareness and whatever occurs in it. This means losing the so-called ‘ego,’ a mental picture of ourselves as separate individuals, rather than the open awareness we really are.
Yet, most guided meditations speak about “becoming aware of the sensations in your body,” which constrains our feelings to our physical form.
Let me explain.
When you have closed your eyes and I tell you to “focus on the sensations in your feet,” you might catch yourself doing the following. You imagine your feet: they shape, the surface they rest on, and the position they occupy with respect to the rest of your body. Then you experience the sensation inside this mental image you’ve created.
You create a mental construct of yourself—your ego—in which you place the sensation you experience. In a way, this meditation is built on a false foundation, and you’re unable to be with the sensation as is.
We shouldn’t “go through our bodies” when we mediate, we should “go through our awareness” instead. While it may seem like a subtle difference, the lived experience is completely different.
Hopefully I’ll be able to illustrate this notion in a guided meditation I hope to record soon!
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