AWARENESS

AWARENESS...!!!

What does that mean ?

I watched a documentary titled "Beyond thought".

At the end people were asked this question....

IS AWARENESS AWARE OF ITSELF ?

Good question ....but what could be defined as a "trick" question.

Buddist teach by way of what are called "koans".

Questions that are designed to make you think (How scarry is that?) as a way of leading you into enlightment. 

One of the more familiar is the queston, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"

Well, it takes two hands to clap, therefore one hand can not make a sound.  So some might answer,

the sound of silence.  This in and of itself is a contradiction because sound and silence

can not exist together.

They are contradictory terms.  Sometimes called
an "oxymoron".

If you went back to the monks and told them this, they would say, that's not the answer.  Why?  Because the object of the question is to make you think.....and think...and think.

Gate, gate, parama gate

Beyond, beyond.

Hit the pipe again, things are startin' to get interesting.

Now back to the question...

....is "awareness"  aware of itself?

First let us deal with two concepts, awareness and conciousness.  Are they seperate or the same? What

is concious awareness?

Awareness is not enity. It is a concept. Only an enity can have concious awareness.

Therefore the question of can awareness be aware of itself is not a legitmate question..

...only a trick question