Alan Smithee:
I have recently been trying verbal noting. What I like about noting out loud is that my mind wanders less. As long as I maintain the technique I tend to get lost in fantasy/dream/memory/image/intentionality much less. This is huge.
My problems with the technique are:
1) It feels clunky and awkward,
2) The speed with which I am able to note is slowed down,
As you've mentioned that you expect, it will start feeling more natural and you will end up speeding up quite a bit once you're used to it.
3) The number of sensations I am able to note slows down,
It's worth testing over time. It might speed up over time. My mind wanders when I do Daniel Ingram's "dat dat dat" superfast 10x/second silent noting technique. I can note out loud slightly faster than once a second and don't seem to miss stuff that I'm noticing (maybe as fast as twice per second). I can't note much faster silently and I find faster noting stressful anyway. It hasn't gotten in the way of getting the first or second path. I still prefer the feel of silent noting, despite having done lots of both. If I'm feeling drowsy, unfocused or find myself prone to mental wandering, I'll start noting out loud. I'll switch back to silent noting once I think I won't skip a beat. I might switch back and forth several times during one sit. The type of awareness can be a bit different, I feel more rapture, leading to jhanas and more energetic sensations when noting silently. Sometimes my mind is too dull to maintain silent noting, though increasingly I've found that's an interesting state to investigate or dwell in and accept, rather than something to get rid of through out loud noting.
4) I am unable to note breath simultaneous to noting other phenomenon [primary and secondary object noting],
5) The type of things which get noted are the easier to describe gross sensations,
I find noting breath sensations or otherwise paying attention to the breath drowns out other sensations. I find the sensations of the breath to be very gross, not that this really matters, though personally I avoid it as much as possible. I find this allows me to notice and investigate other sensations. Obviously, paying attention to the breath will also bring up subtle sensations related to it, but that hasn't been my thing. As for out loud noting prioritizing grosser sensations, that might be my experience, too, though I find I mostly only need it when my mind isn't energized and I'm not feeling the vibrations as much as the grosser sensations anyway. Once I get into the groove and start noticing energetic sensations more or start seeing quickly changing visual sensations more, I'll drop the out loud noting, note silently and allow the pleasant sensations to develop. If they develop enough and my noticing works better without noting, I'll drop the noting.
6) I have a secret suspicion/fear that since the number of sensations I am able to note slows down, the speed with which I am able to note slows down, the sensations I tend to note are gross ones, then possibly verbal noting is less effective at building concentration and is possibly less effective at getting a meditator through the insight stages.
I got the first path on a silent retreat. My main issue with that retreat was that I couldn't use my out loud noting technique. I'm certain I would have gotten stream entry faster had I been able to note in whispers when needed instead of only noting silently. I tend to enjoy noting subtle sensations more than gross ones, but I don't think it matters for the sake of moving through the ñanas and getting a path. In my experience, you can get to equanimity while noting anything, and the last bit is just a matter or continuing the same technique or enjoying the ride and noticing things as things get jhanic and move forward with their own momentum.
My feeling is that with more experience and training the clunkiness and awkwardness will go away, so I guess my main questions are the others, particularly #6, since this really gets at the heart of the matter. I suppose that it is possible that, even though it feels like I am noting slower, noting less, noting grosser sensations, etc., since I am wandering and getting lost less, then in reality it is better at building concentration/getting one through the stages, etc.
Is noting verbally just a training wheels kind of activity or can a meditator take this technique all the way to stream?
Both. Noting is a set of training wheels, whether you do it out loud or silently. As long as it works for you and you enjoy it, there isn't much reason to drop it while it works for you. It's a good tool to develop for your toolkit of meditative techniques. Like Jane said, you can cease to note at times and "enjoy the show". It depends on how you're feeling. One of the great benefits of out loud noting is ping-pong noting with someone else. It's very easy to maintain concentration for an hour when noting back and forth with someone else over skype. You can't do that with silent noting.