Noticing Exercise – A More Detailed Explanation

[Xanth]

I've received a few questions lately regarding the "Noticing" exercise.  Certain aspects of the explanation that Frank writes about seems to be confusing people slightly... so I'll try my best to fully explain the process, at least how it relates to me and hopefully you can apply some of this knowledge to your own practices.

First, the entire point of the noticing exercise, as Frank puts it, is to "become fixated within". That's really the end goal, as THAT is where the non-physical lies... within us. It's nothing exterior that you "go to".

So, how do we "become fixated within" by using the Noticing exercise? That's where the actual NOTICING part comes in. You can't just sit/lie there and "look" at the blackness, because that will do absolutely nothing and you'll eventually become frustrated thinking that it's not working for you. You need to actually do something for this to work! Just like a binaural beat won't project you automatically unless you do the actual work yourself... you won't Phase with Noticing unless you actually Notice!

Now, here's the confusing part... "to notice" is something you have to actively do... HOWEVER, you have to remain "passively aware" while actively noticing. I know, that sounds confusing... well, lemme describe how "I" notice and I'll go from there.

When I actually get to the part of my routine when I begin "Noticing", I stare into the blackness... it's the same blackness that you see when you close your eyes. It's just blackness (however nonuniform it may look). My goal is to notice any changes that happen within the blackness that is in my field of view. It can be literally anything, as Frank put it, it could be a flash of something, or perceiving some kind of movement in the blackness... when you begin to see ANYTHING (again, do not outright dismiss anything you see) consciously zero in on it. Your goal is to "Passively Observe"... this means (and this is VERY IMPORTANT) to keep an air of curiosity about what you're seeing. As I see this stuff, I kind of talk to myself while observing it, but I do so without actually talking verbally or thinking it.

To explain that last part... take a piece of paper, this piece of paper is going to represent the "blackness behind your eyes". Draw a single dot in the middle of that page then hold that page up to your face and stare at the dot (it's okay to allow the dot to become unfocused). The dot represents your fixated gaze (depending upon how closely you're holding the paper to your face, you could see two dots) within the blackness (or in this case the whiteness of the paper)... now, consciously take in the rest of what you can see of the paper, but don't actually look around, use your peripheral vision. Try to see any irregularities in the paper... there might be a spec of something somewhere, or a small crease somewhere else that you didn't notice before and you might be noticing that the paper isn't uniformly white and you begin to focus in on these new-found items of interest. Notice these irregularities and retain that air of curiosity regarding them. Become consciously curious about each and every aspect that you notice in the paper... the more you do this, the more you begin to forget about the physical world around you and the more your consciousness shifts within what you're gazing at. This is the act of becoming fixated within.

So now that you've just done that with a piece of paper and with your eyes open... close your eyes, visualize that dot in front of you... and do it again, this time staring at the blackness behind your eyes instead of a white piece of paper. Remember to NEVER verbalize or think about the things you're seeing and noticing... try to keep that "air of curiosity" about it all.

The shift into Focus 12, where you start to really get visuals, for me, takes anywhere between 10 – 20 minutes. If I don't get it after 20 minutes, then I know that my heart just isn't in it for that session and I go do something else. But, give yourself whatever time you feel is necessary. It can take a while. Just remain relaxed and calm.

Once you do attain a solid Focus 12 and can hold it for a good period of time without losing it, the next shift to Focus 21 will more than likely happen naturally from a solid Focus 12. You simply have to drive your consciousness within just a bit more... the big point here though is that it's nothing you can force. You have to ALLOW yourself to do this shift. From Focus 21, you can pretty much go and do whatever you want simply by visualizing the area you want to go to.

I hope that helps fill in some of the blanks as per the Noticing exercise.

Lemme know if anything needs further explanations and I'll see what I can do. 

http://unlimitedboundaries.ca/2011/02/01/phasing-with-noticing-a-more-detailed-explanation/

[Xanth]

I added a comment to the page at the request of Faxman:

Alternatively, you could also do the "piece of paper" thing without the dot in the middle... and just allow your eyes to slowly drift around the page. This also works well as you're not too focused on sticking your eyes to a single place and the slow movement of the eyes still feels natural.

Then translate that over to the "blackness behind your eyes" and just allow your eyes to slowly drift around.

Either should work just fine as long as you're actually passively observing.

[Xanth]

I made another comment that I feel is super important to note in regards to the Noticing Exercise.

One more thing in regards to Noticing. You don't just "notice" something and then move onto the next thing... it's a kind of "build-up" exercise. Each time you notice something, it builds upon the focus that you've already put moving into the blackness. The more you notice, the more you move within... and the more you remove yourself from this physical reality.

[Micael]

I made another comment that I feel is super important to note in regards to the Noticing Exercise.

One more thing in regards to Noticing. You don't just "notice" something and then move onto the next thing... it's a kind of "build-up" exercise. Each time you notice something, it builds upon the focus that you've already put moving into the blackness. The more you notice, the more you move within... and the more you remove yourself from this physical reality.

This is a delicious addiction.. I'm pretty sure there were people like me who thought you're not supposed to notice too much or it will be counter productive, so thanks!   

[Xanth]

This is a delicious addiction.. I'm pretty sure there were people like me who thought you're not supposed to notice too much or it will be counter productive, so thanks!   

I've described it before as "driving your consciousness deep within that which you're noticing"... but then, I figured that sounded too confusing.  LoL

[the-second-man]

I feel myself strongly drawn to giving this exercise a serious try, so I hope it's ok to revive this post after what exactly a decade to the day!
1. Frank also mentions things like directing your attention upwards towards the top of the head, or looking through the third eye. How, if at all, does this relate to this exercise?
2. So, basically it should be possible at any time of the day, to close one's eyes, start noticing, and if left undisturbed, eventually drift into the astral?
3. I tend to experience movement in my eyes as I notice phenomena at various locations in my mind. How to deal with this?
4. Would you say this is an appropriate main exercise for explorers relatively in their early stages?

[Xanth]

I feel myself strongly drawn to giving this exercise a serious try, so I hope it's ok to revive this post after what exactly a decade to the day!

No worries, but wow yeah!  Seriously 10 years ago... funny.

1. Frank also mentions things like directing your attention upwards towards the top of the head, or looking through the third eye. How, if at all, does this relate to this exercise?

All techniques are really just a variation on a theme... that theme is that you pick "something" and focus on that to the exclusion of all else.
That's it really.  ALL techniques break down to that simple concept.

So with Frank, instead of the "blackness" which you would use in the noticing exercise, he's essentially using the "top of his head" area as his focus.  Not much else changes really besides WHERE you place your awareness.

In regards to the "top of the head", as long as you give the awareness a sense of "movement", then I find that the top of the head actually works very well for me.

2. So, basically it should be possible at any time of the day, to close one's eyes, start noticing, and if left undisturbed, eventually drift into the astral?

That's correct.  You probably do this much more often than you even realize, or know!

3. I tend to experience movement in my eyes as I notice phenomena at various locations in my mind. How to deal with this?

Don't fight it... allow your eyes to wander.  Allow them to gently gaze where ever they want to go.
You can also try stretching your eyes a bit before you begin to meditate.  What you would do is roll them around as far in each direction as they'll go and give them a good squeeze tight. 
Get all that tension out of them, then begin meditating. 

4. Would you say this is an appropriate main exercise for explorers relatively in their early stages?

It's one of the first I would suggest, yes.