The Benefits Of Meditating With Open Eyes |
Some meditators can only concentrate in peaceful surroundings and not in bustling cities, while others only know how to meditate with their eyes closed.
Most spiritual traditions teach meditation techniques where you keep the eyes closed. Fortunately, there are schools of meditation that have long realized the benefits of meditating with open eyes.
It's all comes down to distractions. A versatile meditator is able to accept and let go of any distractions such as seeing or hearing, while the average meditator struggles when he gets bombarded with sense impressions.
In this post we'll take a look at the benefits of meditating with open eyes and how it's done.
Most spiritual traditions teach meditation techniques where you keep the eyes closed. Fortunately, there are schools of meditation that have long realized the benefits of meditating with open eyes.
It's all comes down to distractions. A versatile meditator is able to accept and let go of any distractions such as seeing or hearing, while the average meditator struggles when he gets bombarded with sense impressions.
In this post we'll take a look at the benefits of meditating with open eyes and how it's done.
Meditation With Open Eyes
Walking meditation forms a vital part of meditation practice. The reason being that it generates a lot of mental energy and lets you stretch the legs, which relieves physical discomfort. Personally, I prefer to do about two thirds walking and one third sitting meditation.
Walking meditation is done with open eyes. Most meditators practice indoors or in nature while some experienced practitioners even do it in busy city streets. It goes without saying, walking meditation with closed eyes could be potentially dangerous.
It doesn't make any sense to practice sitting meditation with closed eyes when the walking meditation is done with open eyes. I agree that it's somewhat easier to do sitting meditation with closed eyes, but with regular practice it's not an issue.
It should be pointed out, that the ultimate meditation practice is ongoing mindfulness practice. That means practicing mindfulness from the moment you wake up in the morning until you fall asleep at night.
A mindful person gives relaxed attention to her meditation object while cooking, reading and showering etc.
Another example is that I'm mindful while writing this article, which is a combination of work and meditation practice. Moreover, it's calming and feels good to be mindful.
Could you imagine working on a computer with closed eyes?
Since walking meditation and mindfulness are practiced with open eyes, it makes perfect sense to do sitting meditation with open eyes too. The benefits of meditating with your eyes open are lofty. Once you get used to that, it will support your walking meditation and mindfulness practice.
Walking meditation is done with open eyes. Most meditators practice indoors or in nature while some experienced practitioners even do it in busy city streets. It goes without saying, walking meditation with closed eyes could be potentially dangerous.
It doesn't make any sense to practice sitting meditation with closed eyes when the walking meditation is done with open eyes. I agree that it's somewhat easier to do sitting meditation with closed eyes, but with regular practice it's not an issue.
It should be pointed out, that the ultimate meditation practice is ongoing mindfulness practice. That means practicing mindfulness from the moment you wake up in the morning until you fall asleep at night.
A mindful person gives relaxed attention to her meditation object while cooking, reading and showering etc.
Another example is that I'm mindful while writing this article, which is a combination of work and meditation practice. Moreover, it's calming and feels good to be mindful.
Could you imagine working on a computer with closed eyes?
Since walking meditation and mindfulness are practiced with open eyes, it makes perfect sense to do sitting meditation with open eyes too. The benefits of meditating with your eyes open are lofty. Once you get used to that, it will support your walking meditation and mindfulness practice.
Meditation Tips
In order to become a versatile meditator you have to learn to meditate with open eyes. As I mentioned before, it's a bit harder to do sitting meditation with open eyes since we tend to get distracted by what we see.
So, keep your eyes half opened and look down on the floor as opposed to straight ahead. With practice you won't even focus your eyes. Instead, you'll give more attention to your meditation object.
Step by step you will get used to meditating with open eyes, until it becomes second nature...
Finally, whenever you practice walking meditation or mindfulness – do it slowly. It's much easier to be mindful when you do things slowly.
Best of luck with your practice!
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So, keep your eyes half opened and look down on the floor as opposed to straight ahead. With practice you won't even focus your eyes. Instead, you'll give more attention to your meditation object.
Step by step you will get used to meditating with open eyes, until it becomes second nature...
Finally, whenever you practice walking meditation or mindfulness – do it slowly. It's much easier to be mindful when you do things slowly.
Best of luck with your practice!
Subscribe to axel g Newsletter for more quality articles and free products.
Related: Mindfulness Practice Progress In Meditation Walking Meditation
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Feel free to share your experiences with me: axel (at) axelg.com
All Rights Reserved 2012 axelg.com
FREE Guided Meditations
Feel free to share your experiences with me: axel (at) axelg.com
All Rights Reserved 2012 axelg.com