Alertness!
Live attentiveness to the surroundings which we are in is alertness.Alertness is essential for any discipline ,it is necessary for any mind work and for self-enquiry .
Develop Alertness:
Alertness is a skill ,to enroot alertness is like upholding any other skill ,like swimming .We learn to swim by swimming ,we learn to drive by driving, similary alertness occurs by being alert.
We aquire a skill through learning activity ,example when we learn driving we have a driving instructor sitting behind us and “driver-in-training “,there will be a sign on the car ,so that everyone on the road will keep a certain distance .In this manner we pick up the skill of driving .
Alertness can be easily enrooted in us by being vigilant to everything around us.We can start with behaviour because skill of alertness can be easily fostered .There are certain mechanical aspects to behaviour that we consciously be alive.we can start with simple avoidance of actions which delude mechanicalness like fidgeting.
Fidgeting happens because of something in the mind that expresses mechanically in some external movement of the body .we have all seen people sitting and jiggling their leg while they talk to others ,these are referred to mannerisms,mannerisms are external mechanism which are related to mind .Here there is no thinking involved and there is no conscious expression.
We can restraint our mannerism that is mechanical action by stopping them altogether or being conscious of our action. We can be keen of opening and closing our eyelids ,unless something comes at our eyes unexpectedly .
Controlling one’s blinking is a very difficult thing to do. If this can be done, any other movement can also be controlled.
Mannerism: By being perceptive to our mannerism of our body movement we can be alert and control our mechanism.Certain forms of Meditation are also helpful in establishing alertness.
Witnessing your thoughts can help because, by doing so, you become aware of the ways of thinking. Once you are aware of the ways of thinking, there is no mechanical thinking and any expression will be a
conscious action. To accomplish this,however, we need to have a value for alertness and conscious expression.
Alertness and conscious expression also imply being careful about what we say because the organ of speech is also an organ of action. Therefore, words also can
be mechanical. This means we can choose our words, which does not mean that we should resort to talking very slowly. We can be alert regardless of the talking speed we maintain. This alertness is a discipline. We
say that we want to say, which entails talking whenever necessa ry. Talking may be either an escape route
or a necessity. If we find that we have to talk to someone, it is good to talk, but we should do it consciously. Conscious talking is not a problem. While the value for alertness is general, the areas in which we need to
be more alert is an individual matter. Therefore, each person has to determine which area requires more alertness—and then try to be conscious in his or her actions and responses in these areas.
By being alert we are living in the present,and we make our life stupendous.