> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/knowledge/awareness-and-self-inquiry/what-is-awareness.md). # What Is Awareness? A practical introduction to awareness as the capacity in which thoughts, emotions, sensations, and perceptions are known. In ordinary experience, something is known almost continuously: a sound, a thought, a sensation, an emotion, an image, or the feeling of being present. The word **awareness** points to this basic capacity for experience to be known. ## Start with direct experience You do not need to adopt a philosophical position. Try this: 1. Notice a sound. 2. Notice a body sensation. 3. Notice a thought. 4. Ask: **What knows these experiences?** The answer does not have to be verbal. Self-inquiry begins by becoming interested in the knowing itself rather than only in what is being known. ## Awareness is not another object A thought can be noticed. An emotion can be noticed. A sensation can be noticed. Even the sense of “me thinking” can become something noticed. This is why contemplative traditions often distinguish changing experiences from the awareness in which they appear. The purpose is not to reject personality, relationships, responsibilities, or ordinary life. It is to explore experience more carefully and perhaps hold identity with less rigidity. ## Related guidance * [Awareness & Self-Inquiry](https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/knowledge/awareness-and-self-inquiry) * [Mindfulness and Awareness](https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/knowledge/awareness-and-self-inquiry/mindfulness-and-awareness) * [Introduction to Self-Inquiry](https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/knowledge/awareness-and-self-inquiry/introduction-to-self-inquiry) --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://knowledge.theholisticcare.com/knowledge/awareness-and-self-inquiry/what-is-awareness.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.