Date: 11/23/2024 11/24/2024
Location: Star River Meditation Center
Teacher: Yunquan Huang
Sitting Meditation
How to Shift from Thinking to Awareness
Thinking is continuous, automatic, and habitual; awareness is clear, present, and non-reactive. The key to meditation is not stopping thoughts but shifting from “being pulled by thoughts” to “seeing thoughts from awareness.” Moving from thinking to awareness is the essential transition from confusion to clarity.
1.The Difference Between Thinking and Awareness
1.Thinking is content; awareness is space
Thoughts are stories and ideas;awareness is the open field in which they appear.
2.Thinking moves; awareness observes
Thoughts fluctuate; awareness remains steady.
3.Thinking interprets; awareness sees things as they are
Thinking judges and analyzes;awareness simply perceives.
4.Thinking amplifies suffering; awareness softens it
In awareness, emotions unwind on their own.
2.Why Is It Hard to Leave Thinking?
1.Strong habits
The mind has practiced thinking for years.
2.Emotions drive the thinking mind
Fear, desire, and anxiety intensify mental activity.
3.Belief in “thinking solves everything”
But most thoughts are repetitive, not productive.
4.Lack of awareness training
Awareness is present but seldom accessed.
3.How to Shift from Thinking to Awareness (Practical Steps)
1.Step One: Notice “I am thinking”
The moment you see thinking,
you step outside of it.
Statements like:
“A thought is arising.”
“I’m worrying now.”
are already awareness.
2.Step Two: Ground awareness in the body
Awareness is experienced through sensation, not concepts.
Bring attention to:
Breath
Body sensations
Feet on the ground
Temperature of the hands
Expansion of the chest
The body is a doorway to awareness.
3.Step Three: Watch thoughts like passing clouds
Do not suppress or follow.
Thought comes → notice.
Thought fades → notice.
You recognize:
You are not the thought—you are the awareness of it.
4.Step Four: Practice “one-second awareness”
Pause anytime during the day:
One breath
One body scan
One moment of presence
One second of awareness reconnects you to now.
5.Step Five: Make awareness the new habit
Training is repetition.
Thinking → awareness
Emotion → awareness
Tension → awareness
Gradually, awareness becomes the natural state.
4.What Changes When You Enter Awareness?
1.Emotions no longer overwhelm you
You see them instead of drowning in them.
2.Thoughts lose their power
A thought becomes just a thought.
3.The mind becomes lighter and calmer
Less entanglement, more clarity.
4.Responses become wiser
Awareness replaces reactivity with understanding.
5.Life becomes free instead of automatic
You choose consciously rather than react reflexively.
Conclusion
Shifting from thinking to awareness is not about forcing the mind to stop;it is about recognizing thinking.Not about escaping thoughts,but resting in the awareness that sees them.When you return to awareness,thoughts loosen,emotions soften,and freedom emerges naturally.Awareness is the doorway to freedom.
