Written by: Jack Blackburn
The following is excerpted from the Practical Presencing classes I have been teaching in Japan. Developing a personal practice of presencing can be compared to training for an extreme sport. The more we practice presencing the more inner and outer changes show up in our lives. This first article describes some of those changes. It is very challenging to remember to be present throughout the day. The signs of presence bring us evidence that the background phenomena we usually overlook: silence, stillness, no thought, no time, and mu, play a central role in shifting human consciousness.
The Signs of Presence
When we practice presence for a while we start to experience the world and other persons differently. We start to become aware of the qualities or signs of presence that add many dimensions to all of our experiences. We do not try to make them happen. They seem to occur in response to our presencing - they are signs or evidence that we are awakening. What are some of these signs? How do they show up? And what are their effects upon us, and the world?
Silence
One of the signs of presence that takes us into new dimensions is silence. When we experience absolute silence for the first time it is as if a comforting blanket, like snow falling on snow, has fallen over all our cares. In this cocoon of silence we feel deeply safe and restful and we start to become aware that there are new kinds of sounds occurring around us - a kind of music that arises from all sounds. The silence gives us this awareness. It doesn't matter if we are on a train or on Mount Fuji.