Read more about '''[[Self Observation Compilation|Self Observation]]''' from the works of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo.
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=What is Self-Observation?=
Self observation is to know what stands behind one’s surface nature and personality. To observe oneself is to become conscious of oneself, of the different parts of one’s being and their respective activities. It is to know one’s inner mental, vital, physical and psychic being and its powers and movements... In its advanced stages where one takes an impersonal poise, Self-observation also consists of knowing the universal laws and processes of the occult Mind and Life which stand behind the material-front of the universe. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/21/memory-ego-and-self-experience#p5</ref>
<ref> http://incarnateword.in/cwm/09/18-june-1958#p3</ref>
[[File:SelfObservationSlide1.png|center|1000px]]=Why is Self-Observation Important?=
==To Overcome Ignorance==
In our everyday life, we always look outwards into the appearance of things and get trapped into the surface ignorance and rarely turn inwards. Amongst other things, this comes with ignorance, unconsciousness, egoism. If we wish to overcome these limitations and discover & utilise our potentialities beyond the surface appearances, we need to observe ourselves. <ref> http://incarnateword.in/cwm/09/18-june-1958#p3</ref>
[[File:SOSlide2.PNG|center|1000px]]==Self-awareness==
Through self-observation, one learns to distinguish different parts one from another, so that one may become clearly aware of the origin of the movements that occur in oneself, the many impulses, reactions and conflicting wills that drive one to action. <ref>h http://incarnateword.in/cwm/12/the-science-of-living#p5</ref>
==To Utilise One’s Full Potential==
[[FileMan must know himself and discover and utilise all his potentialities:SOSlide3but to know himself and the world completely he must go behind his own and its exterior, he must dive deep below his own mental surface and the physical surface of Nature.PNG|center|1000px]]This he can only do by observing oneself. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/09/18-june-1958#p3</ref>
=How to Observe Oneself?=
==By Cultivating the Inner Attitude of Witness==
[[File:SOSlide4To observe oneself, first & foremost is cultivating an inner attitude of witnessing.PNG|center|1000px]] [[File:SOSlide5Witness attitude is not the same as introspection.png|center|1000px]] [[File:SOSlide6In introspection, one looks with one part of the surface mind at what happens in another part of the same surface mind.png|center|1000px]] [[File:SOSlide7Whereas when we have the witness attitude, our consciousness frees itself from habitual entanglements in thoughts, feelings and sense-perceptions and becomes peaceful, silent, and capable of watching whatever happens in nature as a pure witness, sakshi, without bias, reaction or involvement.PNG|center|1000px]] [[File:SOSlide8.PNG|center|1000px]]
[[File:SOSlide9However, in the beginning, it helps to use the introspective mind, especially if a human has a well-development introspective mind. It helps in not getting carried away by thoughts and feelings. A man with a very developed with very identifies with this part of his mind and observes his own thoughts and studies their nature. That is a beginning which makes it easy for the full detachment to come.PNG|center|1000px]]
Further, to develop the witness attitude it helps to
Project oneself on a screen and then observe and see all that is moving there and how it moves and what happens.
<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/06/13-october-1954#p2</ref>
Look at oneself objectively as a third person engaging in the surface level activities. One need not like or dislike the activity but sincerely observe the movements of nature.
[[File:SOSlide10.PNG|center|1000px]]__NOTOC__==By Developing the Contact with the Psychic Being==
The mental being within watches, observes and passes judgment on all that happens in you. The psychic does not watch and observe in this way like a witness, but it feels and knows spontaneously in a much more direct and luminous way by the very purity of its own nature and the divine instinct within it, and so, whenever it comes to the front it reveals at once what are the right and what the wrong movements in one’s nature. <h1ref>Self Observation Summaryh http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/29/work-and-yoga#p45</h1ref>
{|class="wikitable" style= "background-color: #efefff; width: 100%;"|By Being Vigilant==
=What Secondly, vigilance helps in self-observation. If one remains vigilant, not fearful, then with the increase of the Force upholding oneself, a power of seeing and self-observation comes. The power of seeing is Selfaccompanied by the power of self-Observation?=control and the power to reject the wrong turn or the wrong reaction when it comes. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/31/fear#p12</ref>
Man must know himself and discover and utilise all his potentialities: but to know himself and the world completely he must go behind his own and its exterior, he must dive deep below his own mental surface and the physical surface of Nature. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/09/18-june-1958#p3</ref> ==By Developing a Quiet Mind==
As one goes beyond the ordinary surface body consciousnessThirdly, we discover an inner level quietude and detachment of mental, vital, physical being along with a inner subtle the mind helps in self- physical beingobservation. By identifying ourselves with our inner beingIf the whole mind remains quiet and detached, we are able then to observe our thoughts and feelings and can trace the source and motives of our actions vital movement without giving assent and operative energies that build up our surface personality. This helps us in improving our self-visionrejecting it becomes more easy. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/2131/knowledgethe-by-identityvital-and-separativeother-knowledge#p12</ref>It is only through self-observation one gets an intuitive perception of the Nature forces - sattva, rajas, tamas. By Observing one’s dreams, one can come to understand them and their significance to our inner life.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/30/three-experienceslevels-of-the-inner-being#p6p45</ref>
=Why - Self-Observation?=In our everyday life, we always look outwards into By Exercising the appearance of things and get trapped into the surface ignorance and rarely turn inwards Will to seek self and discover and utilize our potentials. ...if each element which comes with its ignorance, its unconsciousness, its egoism, is put before the will to change and one remains awake, compares, observes, studies and slowly acts, that becomes infinitely interesting, one makes marvellous and quite unexpected discoveries.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/04/19-april-1951#p14</ref>Change==
To work for your perfection, By putting each element that enters our consciousness before the first step is will to become conscious of yourselfchange while remaining awake, of the different parts of your being and their respective activities. You must learn to distinguish these different parts one from anothercomparing, so that you may become clearly aware of the origin of the movements that occur in youobserving, the many impulsesstudying and slowly acting, reactions we are able to hone our ability at self-observation and conflicting wills that drive you to action.<ref>http://incarnatewordmake interesting discoveries within oneself.in/cwm/12/the-science-of-living#p5</ref>
=How to Observe Oneself?=By projecting oneself on a screen and then observe and see all that is moving there and how it moves and what happens.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/05/29-july-1953#p47</ref>Educating the Senses==
'''By Vigilance''the education of the senses the growth of one's general education is aided. The senses can, in particular, be used as instruments of observation, control and knowledge. For instance, the way one keeps one’s room is often a reflection of where one is in one’s consciousness. Taking this feedback, and consciously trying to use the sense of colour and form, order and organisation helps develop the ability to use one’s senses a logical, rational, useful way. Going further, it also helps discover who one is in the conscious way of designing one’s room.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwm/06/31-march-1954#p13</ref>
Not fear, but vigilance. If you remain vigilant, then with the increase of the Force upholding you, a power of self=Difficulties in Self-control will come, a power to see and reject the wrong turn or the wrong reaction when it comes. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/31/fear#p12</ref>Observation=
'''By Developing a Quiet Mind'''==Escape Attitude==
If the whole mind remains quiet Man always rushes into external action and detached observing the vital movement, but looks for reasons to not giving its assenthave time to observe himself and turn inward, then thus it is important to reject it becomes more easy. This established quietude and detachment be wary of the mind marks always a great step forward made in the sadhana. <ref>http://incarnateword“escape attitude” within oneself.in/cwsa/31/the-vital-and-other-levels-of-being#p45</ref>
'''By Developing the Witness Attitude'''==Ego==
In order to become conscious, one needs to develop within a part with a witness attitude that observes and The second is not carried away by thoughts the “danger of ego” in observing the movements and feelings. People with very developed introspective mind identifies with this part and it becomes easy for them attaching the sense of ‘I’’ to begin the process of self-observationobserving and not going behind the surface level I.
The process of self-observation should be objective and one should look at oneself as a third person engaging in ==Focussing on the surface level activities. One need not like or dislike the activity but sincerely observe the movements of nature.By EducationNegative==
Consequently, all life is an education pursued more or less consciously, more or less willingly. In certain cases this education will encourage the To be always observing faults and wrong movements that express brings depression and discourages the light, faith. <ref> http://incarnateword.in others/cwsa/31/steps-towards-overcoming-difficulties#p28</ref> One has to observe them, on the contraryof course, those that express the shadowbut not stress them. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwmcwsa/1231/vitaldealing-with-depression-and-educationdespondency#p6p22</ref>
==Difficulties during Self-Observation== Be aware of the “escape attitude’’ as man always rushes into external action and looks for reasons to not have time to observe himself and turn inward. There Instead it is “danger of ego” in observing the movements and attaching the sense of ‘I’’to the process of self-observing and not going behind the surface level I. Focussing on the negative- To be always observing faults and wrong movements brings depression and discourages the faith. <ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/31/steps-towards-overcoming-difficulties#p28</ref> You have important to observe them, of course, but not stress them.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/31/dealing-with-depression-and-despondency#p22</ref> Surface -level observation It is evident that our state focus on the surface is indeed a state of knowledge, so far as it goes, but a limited knowledge enveloped and invaded by ignorance and, to a very large extent, by reason of its limitation, itself a kind of ignorance, at best a mixed knowledge-ignorance.<ref>http://incarnateword.in/cwsa/21/knowledge-by-identity-and-separative-knowledge#p7</ref> = Things to Remember = '''Continuous Process of Self-observation''' If one begins to find out, to understand what a feeling is and what a thought is, good part and how give it worksstrength, then one can already go quite far on the path. One must at whilst not denying the same time observe how his feelings limitations and thoughts have an action on the body, what the reciprocity iswrong movements. And then, there is another exercise which consists in looking into oneself for what is persistent, what is lasting, something which makes one say "I", and which is not the body. '''Divine as Observer''' A hidden Power is the true Lord and overruling Observer of our acts and only he knows through all the ignorance and perversion and deformation brought in by the ego their entire sense and ultimate purpose.
'''Content curated by Aditi Kaul'''
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Read more about '''[[Self Observation Compilation|Self Observation]]''' from the works of the Mother and Sri Aurobindo.
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==References==