Thinking in the present
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- Joined: June 9th, 2021, 12:39 am
Thinking in the present
In the morning or whenever you feel like it, relax your body, close your eyes and say to yourself "I wonder what my next thought is going to be." Then become very alert and wait for the thought. Be like a cat watching a hole. What is going to come out of the mouse hole?
Normally you will wait for a long time before a thought comes in. As long as you are in a state of intense presence, you are free of thought. You are still, yet highly alert. The instant your conscious presence sinks below a certain level, thought rushes in. The mental noise returns; the stillness is lost. You are back in time.
Regardless, Happy New Year!
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Re: Thinking in the present
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- Posts: 223
- Joined: June 9th, 2021, 12:39 am
Re: Thinking in the present
Mindfulness
- Rhys Griffin
- Posts: 22
- Joined: January 10th, 2022, 3:08 pm
Re: Thinking in the present
If, however, we decide to spend all our time in mindful meditation, then we are committing to being a kind of monk whose basic needs must be met by others. The longer we spend in mindfulness, the greater our dependence on the charity of others. The issue then becomes whether those who charitably support us see a value for them in our meditation. If they do, then our meditation, ostensibly free of work, becomes obliquely a kind of work performed on behalf of others. I once heard a sermon entitled "Who Pays the Price for Your Saintliness?"
I think it has also been shown that mindfulness can have deleterious effects on people with mental health challenges, allowing their problems to deepen and even metastasize, unless guided by highly experienced practitioners.
In general, mindfulness is valid and valuable for basically healthy-minded people who wish to improve their situation, a good option for the "worried well." It enriches cognitive capacity and contributes to enhanced physical health.
Thanks for prompting my thought.
2023/2024 Philosophy Books of the Month
Mark Victor Hansen, Relentless: Wisdom Behind the Incomparable Chicken Soup for the Soul
by Mitzi Perdue
February 2023
Rediscovering the Wisdom of Human Nature: How Civilization Destroys Happiness
by Chet Shupe
March 2023