WELCOME TO THE PANORAMA

At first, i couldn't understand how animals used their panoramic vision, because as soon as i tried to be aware of something at the side, i started automatically focusing on that point.

So i fixed my eyes on a point straight in front, and then directed my attention to a point on the periphery, at about 30° up on one side. I immediately realised i could see points on the peripheries at 30° up on both sides simultaneously, still physically focusing on a boring focal point in front.

And it was interesting: it often changed my mood, even after just 30 seconds – so i wanted to do it more and find out what was happening.

Slowly, over a period of around three weeks, i chose different angles and looked over all the points of the compass.

Then, one day i realised that if i looked at a blank space in the sky, i could see the whole oval shape of my field of vision with multiple things moving.

It's a feeling of the direct visual connection with everything which is happening all at the same time. It's panoramic, but it's not like anything i could ever have imagined it to be.

If i'd have imagined it in advance, maybe i'd have thought it would be like insect eyes, focusing on thousands of points at the same time, but it's not at all like that.

The sensation is as though i'd always been looking at life as if i were looking at a T.V. screen, and now instead, it feels as though i'm right up inside the screen. The normal feeling of a subject looking at an object is considerably different. This is an intimate connection.

Panoramic awareness is a 'being with' what i'm seeing – instead of looking at it – immediately and directly connected with all that i sense. It's a state of absorption in what i'm seeing, at times even oneness and wholeness.

I wondered if i would be able to repeat the experience, but i could and did easily, it's like riding a bike, once you can do it you don't forget.

And it was easy to change over, to toggle between the different modes of seeing. So if a heron flew by, it was lovely and naturally i wanted to look and focus directly, and by focusing i automatically lost the panoramic sensation.

I was maybe lucky to have learnt in Summer with good weather every day, so there was always a clear area of blue sky, an optimal central area with nothing special to focus on and return to the panoramic experience.

And this untidy, natural garden was full of birds and squirrels which, compared to humans, all have extremely sudden and unpredictable movements.

I knew nothing about panoramic perception back then, but one thing was obvious, the quicker and more unpredictable the movements were, the more noticeable they were.

This was my experience, and it just seemed so logical and appropriate that vulnerable animals would need to sense panoramically in this way, in order to survive.

By using our eyes in this panoramic way, we can feel this amazement, without having anything awesome or beautiful to sense.

This is something we were all born with, and it's easy to relearn. There are any number of ways to unlock the feeling and speed up the re-learning process. These are described in the Warm-up Exercises. But first...

Please continue with Pre-Emptive Listening

Back to Chapter One : The Animal Teachings
Back to THE PANORAMA SENSES Priority Pages