Eyes Wide Shut: Awaken New Ways Of Perception

Caution: Over-reliance on sight can lead to reduced vision

“But I had my eyes closed. I thought I’d keep them that way for a little longer. I thought it was something I ought to do.

‘Well?’ he said. ‘Are you looking?’

My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t feel like I was inside anything.

‘It’s really something,’ I said.” ― Raymond Carver, Cathedral

At six, I ventured on a school camping trip, my first without the safety net of parents. The cottages, already showing signs of age. The games that knew no end. The campfires. The leaders, giants of fun and command, guiding us.

Today, you might anticipate a menu featuring something like ‘Vegetable souffle with rustic potatoes and farm-fresh greens'. Back then, it was simpler fare: burgers, rice, chicken broth soup, and cherry jello.

Who said basic can’t be memorable?

I can’t find the words to express how much I long to revisit that rustic canteen, if only for a moment; to stand in line, holding my faded blue soup bowl, eagerly anticipating the waft of steaming chicken broth.

The bus rides bookended our adventure, alive with chants. One song, in particular, has stayed with me. When translated to English, it goes something like this:

“One sardine,

two sardines,

three sardines,

and a cat,

made a bet

on how to fit into a high-heeled shoe

on a summer night…”

Somehow, this chant possessed the power to cast a spell on us. It worked wonders in keeping us entertained throughout the entire journey.

I must confess, though, after belting it out for an hour on the way to camp and another hour on our way back, it felt like sardines were about to start swimming out of our ears. By that point, I wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d figured out how to fit into a high-heeled shoe on a summer night…

The First 360 Experience I Remember

They led us into the woods, blindfolded us, attached ropes to the trees and instructed us to hold onto them, sensing our way along. Fear gripped me. I remember fumbling with the blindfold, pleading, “Do I need to wear this?” “Yes, that’s the game”, they replied. So, I did.

Thank goodness, because that day never deserted my mind. It was profoundly transformative.

I felt the brush of herbs against my skin, heard the leaves crunch beneath my feet, the distant calls of birds. Occasionally, the leaders’ hands would transform into playful spiders, skittering over our legs, sending us into fits of startled jumps and screams.

I swear, after just a few minutes in, I could foresee the next direction of the wind and anticipate when those human spiders would leap onto my skin.

Even now, nearly 33 years later, I can vividly recall most of that walk. That’s how powerful it was.

In my childhood, I held a special fascination for scents — as well as a strong aversion to the unpleasant ones, so much they gave me nausea.

I’ve always connected memories with certain smells, to the point that at times, a familiar aroma takes me away to that special place — and yes, if I dwell too long, I’d probably break down and cry. Mom’s breakfast vanilla cake is particularly adept at invoking this sensation.

But that’s not the only way I time travel. The melodies of the harmonica tuner whisk me back to those early summer days, right after the school bell rang for good.

Often, I remember the exact year of a particular song, because it’s tied to the memory of when I first heard it.

I cherish these sensory time machines.

Seeing is Believing?

Do you know an example of engaging all our senses at once without even realizing it? Love at first sight. Yes. You saw it. You sensed it. You smelled it. You even tasted it. It goes far beyond just ‘sight’, as contradictory as it may sound.

As I continued to grow, I never lost my appreciation for the power of these sensory triggers, but I did become increasingly reliant on my sense of sight.

We, the seeing, often fall prey to the tyranny of sight, letting our eyes dictate reality while our other senses wither in neglect.

We forget the joy of enjoying textures. We ignore sounds, unless they’re tunes of our choosing. The feel of grass under our feet. And smells, those powerful conjurers of memories, often fade into the background.

Yet, beyond these five senses lies another realm — the sixth sense. Intuition, possibly a precursor to imagination. This sense is often overshadowed by our reliance on the tangible world.

The saying ‘Seeing is Believing’ has become a mantra for our reliance on the ‘obvious’ world, yet it’s worth pondering if the reverse — ‘Believing is Seeing’ — could be just as true.

We often let our current, visible realities define our beliefs and, consequently, our possibilities. But, truth is, there’s more than meets the eye.

Our eyes can sometimes blind us to true meaning.

Our perception is not just a passive receipt of visual information; it’s an active choice. We have the power to decide how we interact with our surroundings.

Which came first, the tangible or the intangible? Perhaps both feed each other in their own unique ways.

No one witnessed a person soaring through the skies and was startled to realize it was possible for us to fly. But they witnessed birds do it, after all. So why not us? It all began as a flicker of imagination, with someone seeing beyond the confines of their present reality.

It was a belief in the nonexistent that eventually made it tangible. This belief transformed into sketches, into concepts, and finally, into a reality that could be seen, touched, and experienced.

But this ‘belief’ demands a heightened intuition that we often struggle to develop due to our persistent blindness.

The key to harnessing this power lies in mindful presence and engaging all our senses to fully appreciate our surroundings and grasp a complete reality.

Often, we absorb far more information from our environment than we realize. If we grant ourselves permission, we can tap into the vast reservoir of data available to us.

It’s valuable to relearn the art of fully engaging all our senses. Most of us, when activating our senses, often do so individually. We might savor a taste, enjoy a melody, or feel the texture of an object, but we rarely combine these experiences.

Yet, it’s the interplay of our senses — the six of them — that makes all the difference, creating a fully immersive life experience that’s far more vivid and meaningful than what sight alone — or any individual sense— can offer.

Our overreliance on sight leads to two fundamental issues: a lack of depth and a lack of vision.

Lack of depth

Limited Perspective: Sight, while vital, offers a constrained perspective. It reveals the world in outlines and colors, but misses the abstract, the emotional, the potential. We see faces, but not feelings; scenes, but not stories; surfaces, but not their depths. Thus, we experience the world in fragments.

A beautiful view becomes more than just a visual treat when accompanied by the sound of rustling leaves, the smell of the ocean, or the feel of sand underfoot.

Overemphasis on Appearances: When we prioritize sight above all else, it’s easy for appearances to steal the spotlight, obscuring what truly matters. This imbalanced emphasis can steer us towards superficial judgments, leaving the deeper essence unnoticed. The genuine nature of things, concealed beneath layers unseen by the naked eye, remains untouched and underappreciated.

Neglect of Inner Wisdom: Relying too heavily on what’s physically in front of us can make us ignore our gut feelings, which often steer us in ways nothing else can. This might lead to missed chances or not-so-great decisions.

Lack of vision

Indeed.

When we rely too much on what we can see right now, we limit our ability to dream, to imagine, and to create a future that’s different from our present. Real vision involves seeing beyond the immediate, beyond the status quo, and into the realm of endless possibilities.

If we believe only what we see, we might resist new ideas or changes that are not immediately visible or tangible. This can hinder personal growth and adaptability.

The Vicious Circle

The causes and consequences of overreliance on visual stimuli.

Dominance of Visual Media: As smartphones and social media took over, our world became all about what meets the eye. It made us put too much stock in looks and the surface, often sidelining the deeper, hidden aspects of people, events, and ideas. Success, wealth, status — they all got tangled up in the visuals we see on social media.

Instant Gratification Culture: Visual tech, with its fast and punchy content, fuels our craving for instant gratification. This rush can chip away at our ability to appreciate the subtler layers of beauty and significance that take time to unfold.

Social Comparison and Mental Health: Instagram, Facebook, and similar platforms put a spotlight on carefully crafted visual lifestyles, often setting the stage for unrealistic comparisons and feelings of not measuring up. This can take a toll on mental well-being, as folks may start feeling their own lives don’t quite measure up to the picture-perfect images they come across online.

Reduced Critical Thinking: The simplicity of taking in visual content can encourage passive consumption instead of active involvement and critical thinking. It’s easy for people to just accept what they see without digging deeper to question its accuracy or understand the full context.

How You Could Engage Other Senses

Mindful Consumption of Media:

• Limit screen time and be selective about the content you consume.
• Engage with media that stimulates thought and promotes critical thinking rather than passive consumption.

Diverse Sensory Experiences:

• Regularly engage in activities that stimulate other senses, like listening to music, cooking, gardening, or tactile arts and crafts.

Practicing Mindfulness:

• Mindfulness exercises can help one become more aware of all senses and the present moment. It’s also a great exercise to help develop intuition.

Cultivating Empathy and Emotional Intelligence:

• Engage in active listening and empathy-building activities.
• Practice seeing situations from others’ perspectives. Doing so teaches us that while it may seem like there’s only one reality, the shades of color shift depending on the angle of observation.

Encouraging Creativity:

• Get involved in creative activities like writing, music, or dance. Painting, too. Visual arts transcend the visual realm. This holds true for both the artist and the spectator.

Physical Activity and Nature Exposure:

• Activities like hiking, yoga, or outdoor sports can offer a more immersive experience, emphasizing physical sensations over visual inputs.

Educational Pursuits:

• Pursue learning opportunities that challenge your understanding and perception of the world.

Shift the way you experience things:

• While watching a movie, tune into the voice tones, immerse yourself in the atmosphere.
• As you behold a landscape, close your eyes, feel the gentle breeze, and deeply inhale the crisp air. Otherwise, a simple postcard would have been enough.

Sensory Exploration Walk

One powerful exercise that can help shift the focus from an over-reliance on visual stimuli to a more holistic sensory experience is a ‘Sensory Exploration Walk’.

Think of it as elevating those school camp games to a whole new level. Engaging in this activity can be incredibly life-changing and eye-opening — no pun intended. It pushes you to use all your senses, intuition included, to fully experience your surroundings.

Objective: To heighten awareness of non-visual senses and intuition in understanding and experiencing the environment.

Maybe you could organize one with your group of friends, coworkers, etc.

How do you conduct it?

Materials Needed:

• A safe, accessible outdoor space with a variety of natural elements (like a park, garden, or nature trail).
• Optional: Blindfolds, notebooks, and pens for participants.

Preparation:

• Gather participants and explain the purpose of the exercise.
• Encourage them to be open-minded and ready to engage all their senses, without judgement. There’s no right or wrong feeling.

Guided Walk (Blindfold Optional):

• If safe and feasible, participants can be blindfolded to enhance non-visual senses (always prioritize safety and comfort).
• Lead the participants on a slow walk through the area.

Engaging the Senses:

• Touch: Encourage participants to feel different textures (like leaves, tree bark, or grass). Notice temperature, air movement, and surface textures.
• Hearing: Stop at intervals to listen to the sounds of the environment (birds, wind, distant noises). Try to identify sources and directions of sounds.
• Smell: Focus on different scents present in the environment. Let them evoke memories or feelings.
• Taste: If appropriate and safe, tasting can be included (like edible plants, but only with expert guidance to avoid harmful substances).
• Intuition: At certain points, ask participants to sense the environment intuitively. What is the atmosphere of the place? What emotions or thoughts arise?
• Mindfulness: Ask the participants to be in the moment, to gauge the environment.

Reflection and Discussion:

• After the walk, share your experiences and revelations.
• Discuss how the experience differed from usual, visually-dominated walks.
• A neat idea could be to do a regular walk first, without any specific instructions or blindfolds. Just walk like you normally would. Then, go for the sensory walk. After that, you can all compare what you noticed on each walk, and see how the experiences differed.

Journaling (Optional):

• Participants can write about their experiences, focusing on how the sensory information affected their perception and emotions.

A few revelations you might encounter:

• Heightened awareness: Participants often report a heightened sense of awareness and connection to their environment.
• Appreciation of subtle details: Without sight, other senses pick up subtle details often overlooked.
• Emotional responses: Non-visual stimuli can evoke different and sometimes more profound emotional responses.
• Enhanced memory and imagination: Engaging non-visual senses can stimulate memory and imagination in unique ways.
• Sense of connection and presence: Participants frequently note an increased sense of being “in the moment” or present.

This exercise can be a powerful tool to unlock fresh avenues. To engage with and truly experience our surroundings. To awaken new ways of perceiving. Then we might understand how to sense, how to feel, how to intuit. We might experience hunches, revelations, epiphanies, flashbacks.

There’s a reason why we were given six senses. Maybe, it’s part of the essential toolkit needed to really live life to the fullest.