Most of us are now aware of the mind-body connection. Think ‘tense thoughts’ and you will feel it physically in places like your shoulder muscles or perhaps an ache in the head. Think ‘worry thoughts’, and your stomach will send you a message asking you to stop. Think ‘fearful thoughts’ and you will notice ‘the pump’ in your chest, otherwise known as your heart, start to work overtime. So, it’s obvious that our minds need some attention. It is unfortunate for most of us that no one ever taught us how to think. The mind’s first requirement is a benevolent master (that is you) to help it to change the speed, quantity and the quality of thinking.
TEN PRACTICES TO MASTER YOUR MIND
Here are some ideas which may help you be a better master, guide and friend for your mind.
Over the next ten weeks take one practice and… practise!
1 THINK SLOWLY
Sit quietly and watch your self using your mind to think. Watch your self thinking. Watch thoughts arising. Now see if you can transfer your attention to the small spaces between your thoughts. As you do you will notice the spaces expand and the speed of your thinking will slow down. You will also start to ‘feel’ a profound inner peace.
2 THINK BRIGHTLY
Just as you turn up or down the brightness on your TV screen, see if you can do that with what you create on the screen of your mind. Turn up the brightness one moment then, in the next moment, let the thought fade away. But watch it all the way to ‘fade’! Notice your mind becoming quieter as it does.
3 THINK FOR THE BEST
It is almost impossible to halt the habit of thinking about the future. Besides, everyone else around us seems to be doing it almost all the time. So go with the flow of your thinking but practise turning any thoughts of a catastrophic future, in whatever context, into thoughts that are ‘anastrophic’. That means catch your self thinking ‘worry’ thoughts and practise replacing them with ideas and images that envision the best possible outcome. Cancel the old/unwanted and replace with a new vision! Do not just ‘want it’, just ‘think it’… without desire!
4 THINK RELEVANT
When you ‘think relevant’ you are thinking only about what you need to think about at any moment in whatever situation you are in. In other words, practise noticing when you become distracted by anything outside or inside, in the past or about the future. Gently return and start your mental focus on what is in front of you ‘in this moment’… again.
5 THINK HAPPY
What is a happy thought? Take a moment to reflect. Is it you forcing your self to believe you are happy and then creating thoughts out of that belief? It is not a bad experiment. Some say that with such a practice, over time, the ‘feelings’ of happiness start to arise naturally and all thoughts become imbued with a natural… happiness! It is a practice that, if nothing else, will help you to become more aware of the quality of your thinking. You will also start to see the thoughts that you are using to make your self feel unhappy! Clue? Watch out for external and internal influences on your thinking.
This is Part 1 of the article, the other five coming next week in Part 2.
Mike George is an author of 16 books on self-awareness, spiritual intelligence and personal undevelopment.
