# Deep Open Awareness Meditation — Complete Beginner's Guide

> Source: https://positivity.org/meditation/deep-open-awareness-meditation-guide

![](https://positivity.org/media/2026/08/1775809146110-yoga-9856956-1280-d2daad56.webp)

## Deep Open Awareness Meditation

Deep Open Awareness meditation is a beginner-level practice designed for profound inner work. This 20 minutes session guides you through a structured sequence that cultivates present-moment awareness and inner calm.

**Duration:** 20 minutes | **Level:** Beginner

## Benefits

- Enhances cognitive flexibility and creative thinking

- Cultivates acceptance of present-moment experience

- Strengthens the capacity for choiceless awareness

- Develops metacognition and witness consciousness

- Reduces reactivity to thoughts and emotions

## Preparation

Find a space that feels safe and welcoming. Whether indoors or outdoors, ensure you can maintain your chosen posture without strain. A blanket nearby can help if you tend to get cold.

## Step-by-Step Guide

- Settle Into PresenceSit comfortably and close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths to arrive in the present moment. Let your body settle and your mind begin to quiet.

- Release FocusUnlike focused meditation, here you release any specific object of attention. Simply sit and be aware of whatever arises in your field of experience.

- Notice Without GraspingThoughts, sensations, sounds, and emotions will arise. Notice each one as it appears. Do not follow it, push it away, or hold onto it. Simply witness.

- Label GentlyIf it helps, softly label what arises: thinking, feeling, hearing, sensing. This light labeling creates space between you and your experience.

- Rest as AwarenessBegin to identify less with the contents of awareness and more with awareness itself. You are the sky, and thoughts are the passing weather.

- Include EverythingExpand your awareness to include everything at once: your body, the room, sounds, thoughts, emotions, the space between objects. Hold it all with equanimity.

- Close with IntegrationTake three conscious breaths. Appreciate your capacity for open, non-judgmental awareness. Carry this quality of spacious presence into your next activity.

## Tips for Practice

- Use guided meditations when starting out, then gradually transition to unguided practice.

- If you fall asleep during meditation, try sitting upright or practicing at a different time.

- Bring a quality of curiosity to each session rather than expectation.

- When emotions arise during meditation, welcome them as part of the practice.

- Consider joining a meditation group or class for community support and accountability.

## What Research Says

Studies using fMRI show that open monitoring meditation strengthens the anterior cingulate cortex and insula, improving metacognition and emotional awareness.