Greyshaman

A friend approached me the other day and expressed anxiety about the difficulties of becoming free of the constant stream of negative thoughts in the mind.

We all know that there are a constant ongoing thought process where negative thoughts get repeated over and over again. It’s mainly the same sad unproductive thoughts telling you that whatever you are is of no value, or that you won’t succeed in anything that you want to do.
The mind can be very cruel in this way. Sometimes it might even seem as if the mind is your own enemy, constantly trying to keep you on the ground, preventing you from standing up.

There is no doubt that an uncontrolled mind can hurt you. Or as the Buddha said in the Dhammapada:

Your worst enemy cannot harm you
As much as your own thoughts, unguarded.

The mind is Change. Everything that the mind is, is what is around it. If the world around the mind changes, then naturally the mind changes also. No wonder that we feel that the mind seems to work against us rather then with us. If the mind is so easily influenced by whatever it focuses on, then naturally there are many pains and worries that you will face if you identify with your mind.

A way to find peace

Understand that you are not your mind!
When the sea of troubles and worries arises, ask yourself:

Is this me? Am I this trouble, this worries? What am I?

Then wait for the answer within you and rest in this truth that always is delivered to you.

The mind is very much like a disorderly troublesome child. And anyone that has been or knows any children also realizes that; as much as you want to: There really isn’t much you can do to straiten or train them. They will do as they please and the only thing you can do is to simply be there for them and to love them.

The way to become free of the worries in your mind is to deal with them as if you were a grown-up helping a child: Gently tell your mind that you realize that it feels bad, that you acknowledge that it seems to think that everyone is against it.. But don’t try and point out the errors or try and help it. This simply won’t work!
The only thing left to do is to gently acknowledge whatever the mind chooses to concentrate on, and to love it as a troublesome child.

The ever humble and gentle spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle also have something to say about being present and centered in the daily life that I wanted to share.

Just remember one thing while developing.

Your mind, or your little ego “child”, doesn’t understand what you are trying to do. The mental structures that you always thought have made up who you are: such as the mental picture of what people thought of you in school, the working professional you take upon you when you are at work, or even your own mental card house that describes the inner essence of who you always thought you’d were:

- Will react badly to this change.

Upon this new path always remember that you can’t “discipline” yourself into becoming aware or to develop. The only thing you can do is to gently love yourself through hardships and troubles and then watch it grow.

Don’t blame yourself to hard when you feel you don’t succeed. Be yourself and love yourself. That is the only thing you can ever do.