Coming Back to Now: Part 2
In many cases, it's easy to mistake paying attention for judging. Many believe that attention is a function of criticism, but it isn't. Paying attention is not a critical process—that’s what judgment is.
It is a neutral process.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of judging without being aware of the difference between attentiveness and judgment. When we start paying attention to something, we often begin judging it, evaluating it, categorizing it, and generally criticizing it.
And while evaluation, categorization, and criticism are valuable in certain circumstances, they have no place in neutral attentiveness. We judge things to make decisions about or categorize them and, ultimately, to take action at the end.
We pay attention to things to understand them more deeply - without the need to enhance, reject, correct, or finish them. Paying attention to something has nothing to do with wanting to change it. Judgment does. When you pay attention to something, you have no desire to alter it.
Attention is just being present with someone, something, or some situation without any intention of changing it. It is not a quick, once-and-done process but rather a kind, considerate, patient process that doesn't rush and is not a burden. Attention does not involve criticism.
Consider the process of healing an injury.
Healing requires attentiveness. Because if you're not attentive, you may keep damaging the injury you wish to heal. You must “be with” your injury fully to understand it.
You must focus on it repetitively without shoving it away or trying to change it. You have to pay attention to your injury and not judge it. You have to be patient yet adamant when healing.
What we pay attention to, what we focus on repetitively, physiologically transforms the neuronal synapses in our brains on a moment-to-moment basis.
Casting judgment does not rewire the brain.
Paying attention does.
Next time, we will jump into the benefits of paying attention. See you next time!
Peace, Love, Happiness,
Jason and Tim
