Yogi: How do I begin to observe feeling?
Sayadaw: You know your mind is made up of the 5 Aggregates and one of the aggregates is vedana or feeling; it’s the aggregate that does the job of feeling. But feeling is just a function and not a judgment yet.
Then you have sanna which is perception; its job is to interpret or give meaning.
So, when there is contact with something, the mind first senses it, and then the mind gives meaning to it, but it happens very quickly and you may not be able to recognize feeling and interpretation separately.
If you understand that these are two different natures that are working together in the mind, it is good enough. Feeling and perception are working together to give you the interpretation that something is a pleasant or unpleasant object.
Yogi: So, when I notice that something is pleasant or unpleasant, it is already observing the feeling?
Sayadaw: Both vedana and sanna are already there, but whether you can recognize the feeling part alone is not important. If you understand that intellectually, it is okay already.