2023-01-11 How To Notice Your Th

“We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.” — Buddha

Thoughts can arise out of nowhere and wreak havoc if we are unaware of them. There’s a Buddhist saying that reads: “We are not the sum of our thoughts, rather the observer of the thoughts.”

This is important since many people entertain limiting thoughts grounded in an inaccurate reality such as: “I am not good enough” or “I am overweight.” Such thoughts can lead to self-deprecating thoughts, which fuel the emotional body.

Our habitual thoughts are not indicative of who we are because thoughts are mental habits and if repeated, they become formed (stuck) in our stream of consciousness.

Have you noticed this in your own life, where you think the same thoughts day in day out? It is why we must observe our thoughts in the same way we observe a scenery. As the observer, the question arises: who is thinking the thoughts?

Dissociating with our thoughts allows us to be removed from the habitual pattern of believing what we think. We only believe a thought is true since our experience of it confirms it. Therefore, we must let go of unnecessary thoughts by recognising their transient nature.

If we wish to control unwanted thoughts, we ought to become a witness to them, as though standing at the shoreline watching the waves come in. Some waves appear fast and furious, yet break as they hit the shoreline. Others slowly make their way in and disappear.

As the observer, we learn to witness our thoughts and remain detached from them just like ocean waves. The witness or observer does not become invested in the waves any more than respecting there will always be thoughts (waves) appearing in the mind.