Chapter 6 of Meditation for Dummies by Stephan Bodian explores various approaches to meditation. The mindfulness method of following the breath is a central one, but in a text box Bodian discusses an "alternative":

• Just breathing: "... merge yourself completely with the flow of the inhalation and exhalation, until you as a separate observer disappear and only your breath remains. Now you're no longer breathing; instead, your breath is breathing you. Like welcoming whatever arises, this practice, known as just breathing, is supremely simple but requires tremendous concentration."
• Just sitting: "... expanding to include the whole realm of sensate experience. But instead of being aware or mindful of your experience, you 'disappear,' and only your experience remains — seeing, smelling, hearing, sensing, thinking. As a Zen friend of mine put it, 'When you sit, the walls of the meditation hall come down, and the whole world enters.'"

(cf. Air Breathes Me and Wherever You Go, There You Are, esp. Try It for a Few Years, ...) - ^z - 2011-05-21