Being awake is awareness.
Awareness is presence.
Presence is listening.
Listening is being fully connected to reality, what is actually happening, now.
Sit in a pleasant, comfortable place.
Listen to the sounds.
Far-off sounds, near sounds.
Important sounds, insignificant sounds.
The sounds change every moment.
Your memory and thoughts are of no help in knowing what sounds there are now.
Only listening, attention can tell you what sounds there are now.
Notice the sounds. You hear them, then they are gone.
Everything is temporary. Everything changes. Everything passes.
All you really have is the experience of this moment.
As you listen, the experience becomes only a memory.
But a new experience appears.
Enjoy the experience.
You are alive.
That is all.
Comment
Meditation is no more than being awake, fully present to what happens.
It is impossible to meditate, although meditation may occur. What we usually call practicing meditation is more the creation of favorable conditions for meditation to occur naturally – quiet, lack of distractions, concentration, awareness. But just as favorable conditions do not guarantee that a flower will grow, so favorable conditions only encourage the meditation that may occur spontaneously.
When you appreciate this, your meditation is calmer, happier and more effective.
So is your life.