Ep. 256 – The Experience of Consciousness: Question About Cultivating Awareness & Focus On the Buddhist Path

About this episode

Joseph Goldstein discusses the nature of consciousness and mindfulness in relation to spiritual practice.

Joseph Goldstein responds to questions on spiritual craving, mental focus, and what it truly means to become aware of awareness. This time on Insight Hour, Joseph Goldstein mindfully explains: Bringing your daily life into your spiritual practice Mindfulness of seeing: focusing on the seeing itself rather than on what we are looking at Resting in open, non-reactive spaciousness The cognizing power of emptiness and realizing that there is nothing to know Keeping the mind steady and how concentration deepens insight  Understanding both relative and ultimate reality  Defining dukkha as the inevitability of unwanted experiences How to not waste suffering: taking an interest in the shadows of our own minds  Having agency over our own minds during difficult experiences Mindfulness of anger and other negative emotions  This episode was originally published on Dharmaseed “How do I become aware of awareness? Where is it? How can I put my finger on it? When we realize that there’s nothing to find, and yet the knowing is happening, then we relax back into the mystery of consciousness, and you’re very aware of the capacity of the mind to know.”  –Joseph Goldstein See…

People in this episode

Host: Joseph Goldstein

Topics covered

• consciousness
• mindfulness
• Buddhism
• spirituality
• mental focus

Keywords

• spiritual craving
• awareness of awareness
• mindfulness of seeing
• non-reactive spaciousness
• cognizing power of emptiness
• relative and ultimate reality
• dukkha
• agency over our minds
• mindfulness of anger

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Ep. 256, The Experience of Consciousness, Insight Hour

More episodes of Insight Hour with Joseph Goldstein

• Ep. 262 – Letting Thoughts Dissolve · June 10, 2026 · 34 min
• Ep. 261 – Gradual Cultivation in Buddhist Practice · May 8, 2026 · 42 min
• Ep. 260 – The Union of Relative and Ultimate Truth · April 9, 2026 · 40 min
• Ep. 259 – Selflessness, Dukkha, and Freedom · March 13, 2026 · 48 min
• Ep. 258 – The Goal Without the Grasp: Aspiration in Buddhist Practice · February 5, 2026 · 31 min
• Ep. 257 – Releasing the Knower: Equanimity and Awareness · January 8, 2026 · 33 min