Many people wish they could develop some sort of meditation practice, but don't  know where to begin. One of the best places to begin is the beginning.  The beginning starts with you, through the agent of self inquiry. This most basic of practices requires no elaborate ritual, fancy props or complicated shenanigans. It does, however, require patience, willingness and a desire to be compassionately present with the unvarnished truth of your inner most self.

Witness consciousness brings our awareness home to ourselves. We can be aware of sensations, we can be aware of thoughts, We can be aware of our inclinations, we can be aware of our emotions. There are so many things going on in our inner ecosystem, there is no need to seek beyond the doors of your own self to find a pathway through to the sacred. Any external door will always lead you back to yourself anyway, so you might as well take the short cut.

So what's the big deal about noticing that stuff? I notice all those things all the time!

There is a big difference between being the thinker of a thought, and a perceiver of the thought that's being thunk. There is a difference between having an emotion and witnessing the emotion being felt. A difference between a short check in with sensations, and really being present with them. It's that one step out, moving from being the doer to the watcher that transforms everyday consciousness to conscious meditation.

An essential part of  witness consciousness, is the ability to be compassionately aware of one's self. It's way to easy to allow that perception to be about judging, fixing or changing one's self. Simply by watching one's actions, motivations, emotional and sensations with a gentle curiosity and kindness, the whole self is embraced. and in that embrace, miracles are possible. When we go in with judgment or fixing on our mind, what we often get instead is the ego rearing it's head to defend one's self, and in that position, nothing can really change. It's the old "punishment to get change" scenario, and that often gets no headway at all. On the other hand, a person might sink into some form of self loathing when the judge comes out, which also creates more problems than it solves. 

When we gently embrace ourselves as we are in the moment we're in, then the inner self can bask in the light of love and shift because the light of consciousness is assisting its transformation instead of demanding it, and that's when the magic happens.