HOW TO MEDITATE - GETTING RID OF THOUGHT

Started by sonipravin, June 08, 2011, 02:30:49 PM

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sonipravin

How to Meditate - Getting Rid of Thought

By Lisa Hepner  
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The short answer is, \'You can\'t\'.

Now, you might think that may sound harsh, but it\'s the truth.

And it\'s complete freedom!

In the past, when I tried meditating, I was told (or somehow led
to believe) that meditation was about getting rid of thought. Of
course, I failed at meditation. I remember my first meditation
being extremely painful because of all the thoughts. After the
meditation, I didn\'t feel any better because I felt like a
complete and utter failure.

Believing that meditation is about getting rid of thought will
set anyone up for failure.

I\'ll never forget the scene from The Hitchhiker\'s Guide to the
Galaxy where the crew is walking through the desert and one of
the men says, \"I was thinking...\" and a big shovel comes up and
hits him in the face. They continue walking and he says \"I thought
that...\" and the shovel again comes up and smacks him in the face.

They make the connection that every time they think a thought,
the shovel will come up and hit them in the face. So someone says,
\"Okay everyone, don\'t think,\" and the shovel comes up and hits
him in the face. Then you see the entire crew running through the
desert getting bonked with shovels in their faces.

That\'s what happens when you try to get rid of the thoughts! When
you tell yourself to stop thinking about what\'s for dinner
tonight, all you can think about is what\'s for dinner! And here\'s
the cold hard truth, the only time you will EVER get rid of
thought is when you\'re dead. Even Buddhist monks who have
practiced meditation since young ages, have thoughts during
meditation. Here\'s the key:

Meditation is NOT about getting rid of thought, it\'s about
becoming the OBSERVER of thought.

You might want to read that sentence again because it\'s
important!

When I check in with people, in our 21 day meditation circles,
and they express that they noticed they had lots of thoughts
during the meditation, I tell them to celebrate the fact that
they noticed all the thoughts!

Just by noticing the thoughts, they have become the observer of
thought. Just the fact that you are aware of the thoughts means
you have dis-identified from them.

Most of the time we aren\'t even aware of the incessant mind
chatter that is going on non-stop, so to even notice the thoughts
is a great!

When you notice the thought you have become the witnessing
Presence. And this is truly the gift of meditation, to become the
observer of thought instead of the \"reactor.\"

So, what does it mean to be the observer of thought?

Let\'s say you\'re sitting down to meditate. You have cultivated
the practice of meditation in your daily life. But as you are
meditating the thought comes into your mind, \"I wonder what we\'re
having for dinner?\" You notice the thought, just as you\'d notice
a cloud floating by and then you\'re done with it, you direct your
attention back to meditation and feel the aliveness within.

Contrast that to this: You sit down to meditate. As you are
meditating the thought comes to mind, \"I wonder what we\'re having
for dinner?\" Then you think \"I hope we\'re not going to have
onions. I hate onions.\" Then the thought comes to mind, \"That
reminds me, I\'ve got to go to the store tomorrow and get toilet
paper.\" Then, \"When am I going to find time to go to the store
tomorrow when I have such a hectic day at the office?\" Then you
think, \"I really don\'t like what I\'m doing, I wish I could do
something else,\" then your mind wanders \"but how would we make
ends meet financially if I were to do something different?\" Then
you think \"I shouldn\'t have tried to make my parents proud of me
by going to law school, I should have stuck with music which was
my real passion.\" Then you think, \"but the music industry is hard
to break into.\" Then you think \"but Celine Dion did it. If one
person can do it, I can do it too.\" Then you wonder, \"what would
I do if I had all that money?\" Then that thought leads to, \"I\'d
buy a bigger house with a jacuzzi bath, I\'ve always wanted a
jacuzzi bath and a three car garage and music studio.\" Then you
think, \"what am I thinking? There\'s no way I can do anything
about my situation, I\'m trapped!\" Then you wonder, \"what\'s the
purpose of life any way? There\'s got to be more than this daily
grind!\" All this from the original thought \"I wonder what we\'re
having for dinner?\"

Exhausting!

Becoming the observer of thought means you notice the thought you
just don\'t follow it out. You don\'t have to become wrapped up in
it! You don\'t get sucked in to the drama! You\'re not attached to
the thought.

I remember once, after starting a regular meditation practice,
that I was working on some project and for a moment I had those
self-limiting thoughts we all have, I thought \"I can\'t do this
project.\" And it was like it wasn\'t even me saying it. I noticed
the thought and smiled like, \"hmmmm, that was interesting. \" Then
I was done with it!

The most important thing I could tell any beginning mediator is
to not try and get rid of the thoughts. Observe them, notice them,
and then go back to whatever \"technique\" you were working with
for your meditation. Continue to do this, as it\'s a practice,
especially when first starting meditation. In this way, you are
slowly becoming the observer of thought instead of the reactor
and this is a powerful \"place\" to be!

Lisa Hepner is an author, speaker and meditation facilitator. She
is the creator of Project Meditate and the international Don\'t
Wait-Meditate (R) campaign. Her goal is to help people develop
the habit of meditation through simple and fun tips and techniques.

aastha93

I have this habit of noticing all the stuff that\'s going on in my mind, listening to all the \"constant chatter\" going on.

Sometimes my only reaction to this is \"My god ! What was I thinking ?\"

I think I would call this Self-contemplation rather than Meditation.


And also sometimes I feel that this self-contemplation is not really neccessary because we can\'t really help change thoughts and thinking pattern. Like if our mind is programmed to think about food at a particular time, we\'ll think about food, no matter food is there or not.


So what\'s the point in being an \"observer\" when you really can\'t get rid of what you don\'t want to enter your mind ?

orangeprince

Hey there\'s a quote regarding observation of J.Krishnamurthi.

who is the observer and is the observer different from the thing observed? I look at my consciousness - I don\'t know if you have ever tried to look at your consciousness. Look at it as though you were looking at yourself in the mirror. To look at all the activities, conscious as well as unconscious, activities of this consciousness, which is within the field of time, which is within the area of thought. Now can one observe it? Or does one observe it as though it was something outside of oneself? And if you do observe it, is the observer who is observing different from the thing observed, and what makes him different? Are we all meeting each other? We are taking a journey together, don\'t let me walk by myself please, we are all together in this. What is the observer? And what is the structure and the nature of the observer? Is the observer the past, with his experiences, with his knowledge, with his accumulated hurts, with his sorrows and so on - is the observer the past? Is the observer the \'me\'? And is the observer, being the past, is he capable of looking at what is going on around him now? That is, if I am living in the past, the remembrances, the hurts, the sorrows, all the knowledge the mind has accumulated - and all knowledge is always in the past - and with that mind observe. And when I do observe with that mind I am always looking through the eyes that have been wounded, through the eyes that have remembered things of the past. So I am always looking through the past, through the accumulated tradition, and so I am never looking at the present. There is a division between the observer who is the past, and the active, moving, living present. So there is a conflict between the observer and the observed.
Can I, as a human being, lead a different kind of life?

sonipravin

Dear aastha93,

Do you want to change yourself? Do you want to rise up high in life? If yes then you have to try to meditate or do something exceptional. I remember hearing a T.V. Interview of Shatrughan Sinha, yesteryear Bollywood Actor. He said looking at his face he would not have got a roll in any films so what did he do? He adopted a different way of delivering dialogues which became his speciality and liked by his fans. This is how he ruled the Bollywood during his time.

Amitabh Bachhan was also a failure in many of his earlier films some 6/7. If he had thought like you he would have been out of film industry long long time back. In fact in his first audition he failed to win a confidence vote, and now look where he is. The greatest star of 20th Century and he still rules the Bollywood in whatever rolls he is given. He succeeded in everything but in business i.e. producing/directing his own film and even his own Company ABC ran into losses initially. So he chalked out a plan how to come up after incurring losses in his business venture and he was out of industry with no rolls in films. He went to B.R. Chopra and said: I want a job (A roll in your film). He got Baghban and since then he is always climbing the ladder.

Unless you do something special you will remain where you are. It is not impossible to regulate your mind but hard work is necessary. At a time when athletes beat records after records in Olympics and so many other impossible feats in Sports are performed at every Olypiad/World Cup etc. etc. to say that this is not possible shows a negative approach to life.

I remember when I was only 7 and playing with boys from 12 to 16. The eldest boy climbed down a stiff cliff. It was difficult. Nobody followed him but I thought if he can do it I too can do it. I climbed down but got stuck midway and started crying. The boy who had climbed down encouraged me: Don\'t worry. Come down if anything happens I am there to help you. I summoned courage and climbed down and then I climbed up and down 3/4 times daily. What would have happened if I had said to myself I can\'t do it. I would have remained there.

So you can only try to regulate your mind? Being a female I know it is difficult for you as females talk a lot but I have seen some very matured and highly intelligent ladies of various ages who have been calm and talk very less but talk with great confidence and sense. I admire them for they have conquered their most difficult thing i.e. chattering/talking unnecessarily.

When a guest comes to your house unwelcomed. You will show your disapproval. He may come again and you will be even more evasive. Gradually this guest will think thrice before coming to your house uninvited again. Same is the situation with negative thoughts. If you do not welcome them then these thoughts go away and pure thoughts enter your mind. You think as much as you can about positive ventures, about nature, about God, melodious music and you will find that your mind is elevated and you feel great and on top of the world. It is then you are ready to give something to the world from your own experience and others will follow you otherwise you follow others the rest of your life.

Pravin Kumar



aastha93

This was nowhere related to negative or positive approach or even wanting a change.

And its not about being a female. All humans talk. N I guess you\'re quite senior and experienced (many times more than I am), so you must have seen men talking more.

I wasn\'t talking about that constant chatter of words but the constant chatter you mentioned in your first post. The constant chatter of mind.

N you gave example of unwelcomed guest. Unneccessary thoughts are like unwelcomed guest. I agree. But then this is like controlling mind (directing your thoughts/not thinking about something) which in your first post, was mentioned as wrong method to meditate. Meditation was mentioned as being an \"observer\" and not \"controller\".

So I hope you see the contradiction there. This was what I responded to.

There\'s no point in being an observer and telling yourself you are bringing a change/meditating.
 

And on a laughing note (don\'t take this seriously pls pls pls), when you being Man, need so many words to explain a thing, I wonder how many words you need when you\'re talking. So I can see MEN TALK A LOT. :) :)

aastha93

This was nowhere related to negative or positive approach or even wanting a change.

And its not about being a female. All humans talk. N I guess you\'re quite senior and experienced (many times more than I am), so you must have seen men talking more.

I wasn\'t talking about that constant chatter of words but the constant chatter you mentioned in your first post. The constant chatter of mind.

N you gave example of unwelcomed guest. Unneccessary thoughts are like unwelcomed guest. I agree. But then this is like controlling mind (directing your thoughts/not thinking about something) which in your first post, was mentioned as wrong method to meditate. Meditation was mentioned as being an \"observer\" and not \"controller\".

So I hope you see the contradiction there. This was what I responded to.

There\'s no point in being an observer and telling yourself you are bringing a change/meditating.
 

And on a laughing note (don\'t take this seriously pls pls pls), when you being Man, need so many words to explain a thing, i wonder how many words you need when you\'re talking. So I can see MEN TALK A LOT. :)) :))

Ravi Varma

this topic was already under discussion by Virinchi
https://www.astrogle.com/forums/index.php?topic=545.0

i hope sonipravin writes something on his own, from his own, instead of just copy+paste some text by others

sonipravin

Aastha,

There are many ways of meditating. There is one method in which I tell my clients to recite from 100 to 1 very very fast. Doing this daily 3 times at a time and 3 times a day will make you control your mind.

Another way is to recite 100 to 1 very slowly by first concentrating on the scalp (head) and remove all pressure and tension over there. Then go down to forehead, right eye, left eye, right ear and then left ear, right cheek, left cheek, Chin, Right Shoulder, left shoulder, right chest, left chest and so on and so forth by making the whole body tense free going up to the foot. Your whole body becomes free from any ligament pressure and lifeless just like in Shavasana. When you reach this stage then the thoughts are automatically regulated. I say regulated and not thought free for you can never be thought free. While doing the above exercise you have to repeat from 100 to 1 very slowly, repeatation mentally only and when you finish you reach Alpha Level.

There is another method: You are working in a office. Your boss shouts at you. You cannot shout back. So the energy generated by anger gets hidden in your body and causes a blockage. You can imagine how many blockage you generate in your day to day life by not speaking openly as Society or Situation does not allow you to. So what to do as these blockages then generate respective health problems in the area they are formed. For this one way is to clench your fist very very tightly and imagine the blockage melting away.

Another way is to do vigorous full body exercise. This will also melt the blockages in your body. I taught 1 lady meditation exercises. Instead of following my method she just recites some word.

This is her reply received just today:  

I do a different type of meditation but usually at nights. I repeat a word in my mind, it works a little, I feel a bit relax till some bad thought enters my mind. I have a lot of issues so it is not easy for me.

So the method I posted first was someone else writing about it and subsequently I gave you another method of meditation. Chattering of mind results in lots of talk through mouth too. You are lucky to find so many men talking a lot. As a nature of boys and girls if you observe carefully girls have different characteristics as compared to boys.

When I see the palms of girls and boys then the same fate line in both palms mean differently. Break in Fate Line or cut in Fate Line of discontinuity of fate line in a girls palm could result in personal problems concerned her marriage, her life partner and if she is not married then it will be concerning her parents, brothers, sisters or anyone with whom she is deeply attached like uncle, aunty, neighbours (all well wishers).

The same indication in a boy\'s palm is read differently as they are more career oriented. So I commented that women talk much more. Look at your palms. If there is a gap between your Index and Middle Finger where both fingers join the palm then you must be most curious/inquisitive. Not that men don\'t have these indications but comparatively it is much less.

Anyway Aastha, glad to know that at such young age you talk less and take so much interest in meditation.

Pravin Kumar


CHamer

For beginners it is difficult to concentrate on one thing.You should relax your mind slowly and then start to meditate.The point of meditation is so bring you present in the moment.Focusing on feeling rather than imagery will bring you present in the moment.By going inside your body through meditation it brings you present in the moment.

bhatnagarashish

Its a nice thread on meditation. I learned couple of new things from this thread. Thanks for sharing it with me.