Steiner : How does Clear Perception Work..?

Steiner provides further orientation as to such exercises regarding germinating and growth processes versus decaying processes.
While, where indeed are such accompanying sensations, belonging to each of these processes—when they are observed—to be found.?

(This is a followup post on: Steiner's Clairvoyance Exercise on Processes of Growth and Decay)

The short answer could be: they are to be found in the field of my awareness.
Or: they can be found in front of the chest, but as such, this could add to the confusion.

It is the often not enough as an answer, and we need to elaborate a little more:
Where they are to be found, often relates to where our attention dwells already most of the time. Where our attention mostly dwells, is part of our habits, in a way.

We know of course of physical sensations, it is to say, sensations experienced in certain parts of the body.
This can be in the abdomen, or in the heart region, etc.
But these are sensations manifesting IN the body.

Now to actually come to terms with the exercises as intended, we have to delineate, and bring into awareness, where the actual inner life, or soul life, is to be found.
Names and various approaches may exist, but we'll try to remain as much as possible on the level of pure observation.
Perhaps the closest term, to where we want to get, is called the mind. It is the sphere where thoughts occur, but also images, memories, etc.

This sphere can also be invaded or subjected to emotions, sensation, etc. It can for instance be filled up or invaded by anger.
Now, images, thoughts, memories, all well up within this sphere we could call "mind".
We call it a "sphere" to indicate that these thoughts, images, etc, occur "somewhere".
We are mostly aware that we have thoughts, inner images, etc, and are simply satisfied in the fact that we have them.
But we don't look where we have them, simply believing it is in our head.
Therefore—because this inner sphere is not always well delineated—to put the attention on this sphere, namely on where these thoughts, images, memories, etc, occur, is a required initial step.

Steiner draws the attention on this sphere in the following sections of Knowledge of Higher Worlds:
- Conditions & Prerequisites
- The Path of Veneration / Devotion (Ehrfurcht)
- Inner Life and Tranquility (Innere Ruhe)

While to notice that we actually do have an inner life, and well one that is relatively independent of the body, and to start exploring it, we have to familiarize ourselves with it, by visiting it frequently, and spending some time there.
Many people do so already, through the fact that a though-life etc can run parallel to their outer activities.
This inner life and its sphere can be "scanned" or "probed" by bringing awareness into it, namely attention. Attention is a very real thing, and we can put attention on attention. We can explore and "touch" the limits of the inner world with our attention.

This means, we bring attention into it.
Doing all of this—because it is a doing and perceiving—already by itself starts to make this inner world more concrete, more accessible—given that it can be entered into—and more visible; it gains in density.

Now, to help becoming aware of this sphere or field of (our) awareness, we can picture is as an egg, as an egg eventually surrounding us, where we are in it, body and all.
To speak pictorially, imagine being in this sphere, and with your hands try to sense its limits. Your "hands" here are actually your attention.

Coming back from this little excursion consisting in trying to "define" the inner world, or the "sphere" or place where these sensations occur, we can go back to the exercise in question.
While the sphere of our awareness (the egg) includes the body—sensations can be in the body, or independent of it—we can be differently present in various regions, of the body, and live more out of one or the other aspect.

While with Steiner's progressive approach, a "center of awareness" is at first built in what can be called the head, namely the mind should we say.
Yet if entered into this mind sphere, which we tend to view as "in the head", in this sphere—like with the entire sphere of our awareness (the egg)—all the laws of the physical world are suspended.
They no longer exist.
Heights, length, width, nor defined physical contours, no longer exist as such in this mind sphere, nor in the "egg" really.
This head sphere then expands in fact into the "egg" space as well.
But a "center" is build in the head space, focusing on thought.

The sphere includes the heart as well. And then heart sphere can be involved.
We can even say that with the exercise in question, the sensation can be located somewhere between the heart and the mind, yet not within the body.
One should prevent the sensation from going below the diaphragm. But "keep it up" at least on the heart level.
Nor should the sensation be "felt" physically. This can be done through noticing that we actually do have an independent sphere, sometimes called inner life, or soul-space.It is about observing the sensation as such.

We all too often identify with the body, relating all sensations and feelings to the body, while failing to notice this independent soul-life, or inner sphere.
In fact, the body is experienced through the soul life.
We can translate any bodily sensation, into a sensation as such.In fact, we experience very little of the body. We are absolutely unaware of the organs and their functions, of the biochemical processes taking place within us.
We live as it were at the surface of our body. The sensations emanating from the body are—in Steiner's terminology—mediated through the Astral Body and Sentient Soul.

But the actual processes occurring in cells and their metabolism, all the complex organic functions, don't enter into the sphere of our consciousness, while they would simply invade the sphere of our consciousness, making normal consciousness impossible.
On the contrary, the sphere of our consciousness needs to be relatively "empty" to function properly.
Only in cases of illness, with physical unease or pains, which invade our consciousness, does something of the sphere of organic processes enter our consciousness.

So this is a first "view" on where actually the sensations associated with these exercises happen.
Getting to this precisely, in a way over-complicates everything, while the first step consists in the fact of doing the exercises, whereby we start to "frequent" and become acquainted with such sensations, as "something more," which, by being regarded that way, starts to gradually awaken the inner world, as well as the capacity to "see clear" (clairvoyance) and also to "move" within this inner world..