Don't Discipline your Attention
Summary
TLDRThis transcript explores the concept of allowing thoughts and feelings to flow without resistance. It emphasizes the importance of not creating conflict between awareness and experience. Instead of trying to forcibly return attention to its source, the speaker suggests letting attention naturally follow the pull towards thoughts and emotions, recognizing that awareness pervades all experiences, even negative ones like depression. The message encourages patience with the body and mind, avoiding unrealistic expectations, and acknowledging awareness within every experience rather than separating from it.
Takeaways
- đ§Č Do not resist the 'magnetic pull' towards thoughts and feelings; instead, allow your attention to go to them without conflict.
- đ„ Watching thoughts and feelings is akin to watching a movie, but being aware of the screen (awareness) without trying to turn off the movie.
- đ Let your attention be sensitive to the awareness that is not just in the background but pervades all thoughts and feelings.
- đ« Avoid setting up a struggle between your experience (objects) and awareness; let your attention move freely.
- đ± There's no need to escape or control your experience, as awareness itself is illuminating every aspect of it.
- đ Even in states like depression, awareness pervades the experience, and the knowing of the depression is pure awareness.
- đ Allow your attention to move freely among thoughts and feelings, recognizing that awareness is the underlying current.
- đ If there's a natural pull towards awareness, let your attention rest in its source; otherwise, follow the pull towards experience.
- đ€ Don't set up unrealistic expectations for the state of your body and mind; accept them as they are in each moment.
- đ Be sensitive to the awareness within the midst of your experience, recognizing it as the essence of all experiences.
Q & A
What does the 'magnetic pull' towards thoughts and feelings refer to?
-The 'magnetic pull' refers to the natural tendency of one's attention to be drawn towards thoughts, emotions, and sensory experiences.
Why is it unnecessary to fight against this 'magnetic pull'?
-Fighting against the 'magnetic pull' creates a conflict between the desire to focus on experiences and the intention to return to a state of pure awareness. It's unnecessary because awareness is equally available in the midst of thoughts and feelings.
What is the alternative to resisting thoughts and feelings?
-Instead of resisting, one should allow attention to naturally move towards thoughts and feelings while maintaining an underlying awareness that pervades these experiences.
How does awareness relate to the experience of watching a movie?
-Awareness is like the screen on which the movie (thoughts and feelings) is projected. It's the background against which all experiences occur, and it's always present even when you're engaged with the movie.
What is the significance of not needing to 'turn off the movie'?
-You don't need to suppress or eliminate your experiences to access awareness. Awareness is not separate from the experience; it's the very substance that illuminates the experience.
What does it mean to let your attention go free without discipline?
-It means to allow your attention to move naturally towards whatever it is drawn to without forcing it to stay in one place or adhere to a particular state of mind.
Why is it important not to set up a conflict between objects of attention and awareness?
-Creating a conflict can lead to feelings of failure, effort, and resistance, which can reinforce the very state of mind you're trying to move beyond. It's healthier to allow a harmonious coexistence of attention and awareness.
What is the role of awareness in the experience of depression as mentioned in the script?
-In the experience of depression, awareness is the knowing aspect that illuminates the depression. It's not separate from the depression but is the very essence that allows the depression to be known.
Why should one avoid setting up ideal states for the body and mind?
-Setting up ideal states can lead to unrealistic expectations and a sense of failure if those ideals are not met, which can reinforce the very issues one is trying to address.
How can one be sensitive to awareness amidst experience?
-By recognizing that awareness is not just in the background but is the pervasive quality of all experiences, one can remain sensitive to its presence even in the midst of the most challenging or mundane moments.
What is the advice for dealing with the 'magnetic pull' if it still occurs strongly?
-The advice is to let the body and mind be impacted in its own time by this understanding, without expecting it to change immediately or setting up an ideal state of being.
Outlines
đ§ââïž Embracing Thoughts and Feelings in Awareness
The paragraph discusses the importance of not resisting the natural 'magnetic pull' towards thoughts and feelings. It suggests that instead of forcing the attention back to its source in awareness, one should allow the attention to flow towards these thoughts and feelings. The speaker likens this to watching a movie while being aware of the screen, emphasizing that there is no need to turn off the movie to see the screen. The key message is to let the attention move freely among thoughts and feelings, recognizing that awareness pervades all experiences, including even the most challenging ones like depression. The speaker advises against setting up a conflict between the experience and awareness or disciplining attention, and instead encourages a non-judgmental approach to the natural flow of attention.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄMagnetic Pull
đĄAwareness
đĄConflict
đĄSource
đĄExperience
đĄDepression
đĄAttention
đĄControl
đĄPure Knowing
đĄBody-Mind
Highlights
Don't fight the magnetic pull of thoughts and feelings; instead, let your attention go to them without resistance.
Being aware is like watching a movie while being conscious of the screen; you don't need to turn off the movie to see the screen.
Allow your attention to move among thoughts and feelings, recognizing that awareness pervades the entire experience.
Do not escape or control your experience; let it be as it is, illuminated by awareness.
If there's a natural invitation to return attention to its source, follow it; otherwise, let attention go where it naturally wants.
Feel that the attention you give to your experience is itself awareness, pure knowing, and consciousness.
Even in the midst of depression, awareness pervades the experience; you cannot separate the depression from awareness.
Let your attention go free without disciplining it; there's no need to control the experience.
Accept the body and mind as they are, without setting up ideal states or expectations.
Avoid setting up unrealistic expectations and feelings of failure, which can reinforce the settled state.
Be sensitive to the awareness in the midst of experience, not just as a background presence.
The entire experience of the body and mind is at every moment pervaded by awareness.
Surrender to the natural flow of attention without setting up a conflict between objects and awareness.
Acknowledge the recognition of awareness and let the body-mind be impacted in its own time.
The awareness that knows depression is pure awareness; the knowing is all there is to the depression.
Transcripts
if you feel that magnetic pull towards
thoughts and feelings and don't fight
with it if you if you fight with that
and try and forcibly return the
attention to its source in awareness
you're going to set up a conflict
between these two and it's not necessary
to because when it is actually equally
available when your thoughts and
feelings are appearing so if you feel
that very strong magnetic pull let your
attention go to the thoughts and
feelings and this is it's like say
watching a movie but being aware of the
screen you're trying to turn off the
movie in order to see the screen you're
fighting with your thoughts and feelings
you're resisting the magnetic pull of
your thoughts and things in order to
return to awareness but you don't have
to turn off the movie so judge if you
feel that the strength of this pull let
your attention go to thought don't
resist them let your attention go to
thoughts and feelings but just be be
sensitive to the awareness that is not
just in the background of thoughts and
feelings but actually pervades all
thoughts and feelings so you don't have
to escape or even control your
experience if you feel this natural
invitation to return attention to its
source then return attention to its
source behind the mind but if it's a
struggle if you feel that actually what
your attention wants to do is go towards
experience that is go towards objects
then let it do so feel that the very
attention with which you are attending
to your experience is it self awareness
so then you just let your attention and
move amongst thoughts and feelings and
feel that
awareness itself is pervading your
entire experience you don't need to turn
the movie off you don't need to control
the experience whatever experience it is
even the deepest depression is only an
experience because it is illumined by
awareness and if you look at the
awareness with which the depression is
known the awareness is not off in the
background somewhere that the entire
experience of the depression is pervaded
by awareness you can't separate the
depression from awareness just like you
can't peel an image of a screen all
there is to the depression in fact is
the knowing of it and that that knowing
is pure awareness so let your attention
go free don't discipline your attention
as I say if you feel that a natural
invitation to allow the attention to
come to rest in its source as opposed to
going towards objects then that's fine
but if there is this magnetic pull don't
set up a conflict between objects and
awareness let your attention go wherever
it wants and feel that that attention
itself is is pure knowing it is pure
consciousness it is awareness itself
yeah thank you I I think that that is
that that recognition is there and I
guess I may be I just am surprised that
some of these you know some of it still
happens so strongly and I maybe I'm just
expecting it not to and yes yes it just
let the body mind be impacted in its own
time and by this understanding and don't
set up some ideal state of the body mind
what my body mind should look like if I
was fully aware of my true nature
because then we set up these unrealistic
patience and then we start feeling a
sense of failure a sense of conflict a
sense of effort and all of these
feelings actually reinforce the settle
itself so no expectations of the body
mind just take it as you find it from
moment to moment and see that the entire
experience of the body mind is at every
moment pervaded by awareness just be
sensitive to that awareness in the midst
of experience not just in the background
of experience
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)