As we go through the day we have thousands of thoughts coursing through awareness of all sorts – practical, happy, sad, memories, plans, judgments, criticisms, fantasies – the list is endless. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this. The amount of thinking we have, the speed of our thinking, the tone of our thinking, the density of our thinking – none of that matters to our life if we realize this one simple fact: we are either caught in our thinking or we are aware of our thinking.
What Does It Mean To Be “Caught” in Thought?
I’m guessing all of us have had the experience of driving down a road that we might drive everyday and one day we miss our turn. What was happening? We were caught in thought. Perhaps we are thinking about our upcoming work day or maybe we’re thinking about our kids, or a conversation we need to have with a partner, or maybe we’re thinking that a BLT sounds delicious right about now. No matter the content of Thought, when we forget the FACT that thoughts are constantly arising and sloshing around and then dissipating 24/7/365, cradle-to-grave, we become slaves to our reactions and some form of lesser or greater chaos typically ensues!
The Binary Choice
When we’re driving and miss an exit, it seems obvious we were hypnotized by our thinking in that moment. It isn’t always so obvious as we’re going through our day – but the exact same thing is happening!
Simply SEEING that thinking/experiencing is happening all the time helps us to step out of thoughts. We simply and easily rest back from thoughts and instantly we find ourselves resting in MIND, in this simple, ever-present source of all experiencing, moment-to-moment.
When you find yourself struggling to “understand” or do it”right” or “figure it out” – STOP. DO NOTHING.
Rest. You are already awash in the clarity and peace you imagine exists somewhere other than right where you’re standing in this very moment.
Look gently in this direction of recognizing and FEELING the difference between being caught in thoughts and WATCHING thoughts. Find out for yourself how this changes your experience. Really look – no amount of thinking will get you any closer to what you already are.
Let me know how it goes and if I can help.
Vince Flammini 