GUIDED CONTEMPLATION - Awareness - by Ajahn Nyanamoli Thero, Hillsidehermitage.org 

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🙏☸️🙏 thank you Bhante, this Dharma talk was so helpful

Here's a full transcript of this talk for anyone who might find it useful. Link: drive.google.com/open?id=1SuDDnWd9PeywZazFUVVdXcGYKtIw8y8z.

Bhante, I have 2 questions: 1) If one thinks about the mind, that image that one forms of the mind is not the mind per se, but the fact that one can think about it informs that the mind is in the background. That it is the conceiver of such image. So one can never observe the background, because if one tries, that is an image, a thought, instead of objectively what the background is. So, understanding the order of things, could I say that that is what mindfulness really is? 2) Say one is afflicted by a particular thought, the ordinary person's response would be to carelessly get absorbed and engage with its content, perceive the image of said thought to be objective and true by accepting it or trying to deny it. Would it be right, for one practicing mindfulness, instead of attending to its content, discern the fact that because one can think, which means thoughts comes from somewhere, and that somewhere is the background that can't be attended to. If one attends to it, that becomes another thought, so the background can only be in reference to something, but never be assumed as a thought. With discernment, one sees that the whole process of conception of thoughts is not his own, instead, thoughts were thrown at him and he gratuitously assumed it to be his, so, knowing that, and with time, he would develop dispassion towards it. Is that correct?

By seeing a phenomena arises and persists on its own, and without “me”, one sees that phenomena is not me/mine. Squeezing out the “I”. Do I understand correctly?