Awareness: an important intuitive tool

By R. Boucher

If you really want to develop your intuition you have to be aware, aware of your thoughts, your feelings, and your surroundings. Without awareness, you get stuck in clueless-ville, not sure of where you are or what is happening.

So as you go about your day, stop and check in with yourself. What is happening? How does your body feel? What are your emotions? What thoughts are floating through your head? What do you notice as you check in? Pay attention!

In Buddhism, this awareness is called "Beginner's Mind" or "Zen mind." You imagine that you are seeing everything with fresh eyes. One way to do that is to pretend you are a little child who has never seen your surroundings. Another strategy is to imagine you are an alien from another planet, visiting Earth. As you step into Beginner's Mind, notice what shifts in your body. Are you suddenly more present as you wander around this "new" place? Do you notice your breathing and how your body moves? How do you feel? What are you aware of?

With a Beginner's Mind, you are open to possibilities. There is an emptiness inside you that is willing to stay empty and receptive. You are not shutting out options or judging what is going on. You feel a sense of gentle awe as you melt into the Beginner's Mind.

By paying attention, you are able to see what is happening with your body and others around you, and this in turn makes you more aware of your intuition. Through shifting your attention onto the present moment, you heighten all of your senses, including your intuition and bring a new appreciation to the moment you are currently experiencing.

Your intuition is telling you things all of the time, but chances are you are ignoring it, not paying attention. So instead of forcing yourself to develop your intuition, try paying attention and looking at the world with a Beginner's Mind.