Three ways to stop thoughts and change your life. About stopping thoughts
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I would like to give you an exercise today to stop thoughts, so to speak, to convey my experience to you. All practices have their own secrets that can greatly shorten the path to achieving certain results. There is such a secret in the practice of stopping thoughts or transcendental meditation. At the beginning of my Path, I was assured for a long time that stopping thoughts requires long and hard hours of training. But I was able to find a shortcut to achieving real thought stopping, and thanks to this, I was able to create a method that can work for literally anyone. For example, quite recently, I taught it to one person who was able to achieve complete cessation of thoughts within 5 minutes, and this person was completely unprepared and far from all kinds of mystical experiences.
But before I give you my technique, I would like to talk a little with you about stopping thoughts or transcendental meditation, about the goals and purpose of this practice. The main goal of stopping thoughts is to change the state of consciousness with the subsequent achievement of trance states, states of nirvana and Enlightenment.
Such practices at first glance seem difficult, because once they begin to be applied, it becomes clear that thought itself has a three-dimensional system. To put it simply, a person is able to simultaneously think in different directions and about different things. I'll explain this later. In the East, the practice of stopping thoughts is called transcendental meditation, and consists of the exercise of “repetition,” or rather the repetition of a specific mantra. Due to which, with prolonged repetition, not only the stopping of thoughts occurs, but sometimes also the entry into higher states of consciousness. The mantras themselves are different.
There are general mantras - accessible to everyone, and there are mantras that are suitable for a specific person. At least one of the schools tried to convince me that for each person there is a mantra that is suitable only for him. One has only to find her, which, in fact, is what they were doing. Of course, there is some truth in this, but only a highly developed spiritual master is capable of choosing such a mantra for a certain person, and I did not observe such in this school. But now I actually have a technique that is suitable for literally anyone, even those who have never heard of thought stopping.
Some people believe that transcendental meditation was invented in the East. But actually it is not. Long before this, similar schools of “repetition” already existed in ancient Egypt. Of course, there are no serious sources to believe that it was from there that this knowledge came, but I suspect that transcendental meditation originates from Egypt ten thousand years before its appearance in the East. Moreover, it would not be correct to say that only in the East was the practice of transcendental meditation, stopping thought, Enlightenment and entering nirvana applied. Similar practices existed all over the world, in all religions, even in pagan shamanism. One has only to remember Castaneda's book, The Teachings of Don Juan. A huge role in it is played by stopping thoughts or, as don Juan himself said, stopping associations, which leads to “stopping the world.” That is, entering a special state of consciousness and reviving the human energy body, that is, the astral.
If you look at world religions, you can say with complete confidence that they make full use of the methods of transcendental meditation. Let's take Christianity for example. After all, what is prayer and its repeated repetition? It is the same mantra and performed in the same way. I would even say that in a better execution than just mantras, at least for a Western person. I'll try to explain.
When I first became acquainted with the mantra, the religions of the East themselves were alien to me, and even now Orthodoxy remains dear to me in spirit, although I have become imbued with and aware of other religions and teachings. Although I understood the meaning of the mantra, I repeated them without any feelings or emotions, simply listening to the vibrations they produced. Naturally, this is not such an easy practice. Reading Orthodox prayers, I experienced spiritual uplift and special religious feelings. It was precisely this practice that could contribute to spiritual upliftment than the usual repetition of a mantra.
In Christianity, in addition to ordinary everyday prayers, there are prayers that are clearly built on the principle of transcendental meditation. For example, the “Mother of God Rule” includes a basic prayer that must be repeated ten times. After this, read the prayer from the rule. There are fifteen such rules, and before each one you need to read the prayer “Virgin Mary, Rejoice...” ten times. This is Christian transcendental repetition. Hare Krishnas, for example, throughout the day chant and say the prayer “Hari Krishna, Hari Rama...” in their minds, which is their version of transcendental meditation.
A similar thing exists in Orthodoxy. Saint Seraphim of Sarov, revered by many, for example, said: “If you read prayers for the whole day, and in addition to this throughout the day you constantly read “Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner” or simply “Lord, have mercy,” then You will achieve high spiritual development only by following this rule." In the last article I mentioned the book "Father Arseny". So it was his piety, service to God and people, and the constant repetition of the prayer “Lord, have mercy” that led Father Arseny to discover spiritual abilities and gifts in himself.
Such transcendental repetition exists in all religions of the world. The word transcendental itself comes from the word trance, which implies precisely the entry of a person into trance states of consciousness, or, more simply, into a trance. In such states, the possibility of various mystical and other experiences actually appears. In moments of deep trance, a person’s consciousness and emotions reach the frequency of the necessary vibrations, which can contribute to the connection of lower centers with higher ones, which opens up enormous opportunities for a person. Now I just want you to understand that the very principle of transcendental meditation or thought stopping is repetition. And it doesn’t really matter what kind of repetition it is.
The fact is that, indeed, the principle of repetition is one of the main elements in the creation of religion and spiritual development. Perhaps it is really difficult for you to understand now how all this happens, but just try to understand that a mantra, prayer or something else is not the essence, and the essence of achievements lies precisely in the principle of repetition. Once you realize this, you will be able to understand and achieve a lot.
Now it’s time to move on to the practice of stopping thoughts that I promised at the beginning of the article. Indeed, the method I invented has enormous results, I would even say fantastic. True, it’s worth making a reservation in advance. There is a secret in the method, without which all the results will be exactly the same as with regular meditation. With the secret, you will reduce the time to achieve results by hundreds of times. I also discovered this secret for myself. So first, I will give you the technique itself, an exercise to stop thoughts, and only then I will reveal a secret that can almost instantly bring anyone into a state of purity of mind. Methodology.
When I practiced transcendental meditation for a long time, I realized several important points. Firstly, verbal repetition of mantras, prayers or just words has many difficulties. The mind sooner or later begins to get distracted. The very inconvenience and length of mantras lead to the fact that we continue to think anyway. Secondly, this requires constant high concentration, concentration. This is both good and bad. Why this is well understood is the development of concentration, but the bad thing is that in reality, due to certain laws, a person is not capable of long-term concentration. This will lead to nothing, since it requires a significant amount of energy. Third, it takes a lot of time for the repetition of the mantra itself to become a habit, which would allow for longer repetition. But on the other hand, the habit itself includes the mechanism of double thinking. That is, the simultaneous repetition of mantras and the inclusion of a stream of thoughts. All this led me to think about the unreliability of the mantra and its low effectiveness. Only with a lot of practice was it possible to actually achieve any results. So that you can imagine this, I will say that this will take years.
I needed to find a simpler, more natural way for both myself and my body. It turned out to be not so difficult. That's when I thought about breathing and the possibility of a synchronized repetition effect. The fact is that in our minds we can think not only with words, but also with sounds. After all, in their essence, words are sounds. The essence of the method is to repeat in your mind the breath, the sound of the breath, synchronously with the main breathing of the body. As if listening, concentrating, following the breath, but repeating it in the mind. The point is that the breath in thoughts merges with the breath of the body, and the result is an almost instantaneous emptiness of thoughts. It seems that you are thinking with your breath, but at the same time the overlay gives a clear effect of emptiness, stopping thoughts. And this is true, purity of mind and cessation of thoughts appear. The effect and effect of this exercise is amazing. I called it "Thinking with Breath".
The advantage of this method over other transcendental meditation exercises is many. Firstly, the thought itself stops almost instantly. Secondly, this technique does not require a lot of energy to concentrate on the body; it happens on its own. Trying to think with our breath, we unwittingly force ourselves to feel our body. This contributes to the rapid achievement of a special state of consciousness. With this technique, a person quite easily enters various trance states of consciousness. And with enough practice, even into a state of deep trance with the disclosure of the Self, awakening, and the discovery of special abilities.
Quite recently, I managed to use this method to introduce into a state of pure mind a person who had never practiced yoga or anything else, moreover, he had no idea not only about transcendental meditation, but also about what meditation is in general. In general, a person not of our circle. Moreover, I was able to completely Awaken him in 15 minutes, which instantly caused a chain reaction in him, leading to the revelation of some of his hidden abilities. For example, this man really saw that all the people around him were Sleeping. I didn’t understand it, but I saw it. Almost immediately I began to see the essence of things, and much more.
And now about the secret, which increases the performance of even this method, and which is worth knowing. The secret of mastery. Constantly meditating, I realized that no matter how hard we try, sooner or later, in addition to stopping thoughts, the internal dialogue also turns on, as if on another parallel wave. It all usually starts with the thought: “Yes, I don’t think so,” or something similar. Trying to slow down a parallel wave makes things even worse. It was then, while meditating on this, that I realized one thing. A thought in itself is not a straight line or a line of passing words. Thought is three-dimensional and is in volume. To put it simply, we are able to think about different things at the same time, for example, humming a song in our minds and thinking about a girl, the weather, or something completely incomprehensible. This turns out to be two lines of thought, coordinates. What is the third one? The third coordinate of thought is images. After all, thoughts are not only symbolic, but also in the form of images, pictures, and they pass simultaneously with symbolic thoughts. That's when I truly realized that thought is three-dimensional. This answered many questions.
It became quite clear why stopping thoughts completely is so difficult and almost impossible. Meditating further on this topic, and later switching to stopping thoughts, at some point I let go of one of the lines of thought, stopped interfering with it, completely concentrating on the second, that is, “thinking with my breath.” At that moment, an avalanche of thoughts fell on me from a parallel line, and then I Realized that all these thoughts were not mine. They all flow on their own, it is not me who thinks and reflects, they are separate from me. I didn’t understand it, but I actually Realized it. At that moment all thoughts stopped and I began to see clearly. No, those thoughts from the other line cannot be stopped, just because they do not belong to me. And no matter what they told me, I knew that it was not me and the thoughts were not mine. At that moment they simply faded into the background, as if they were not there. And they really were not in Me. This is the secret that will help you achieve what you really deserve. Awaken from Sleep and discover in yourself the abilities you strive for. Breathe with Thoughts, and remember that all your thoughts are not your thoughts, they are strangers to you, and alien.
Andrey woke up and began to think about what? - but it’s not clear where the essence is in this stream of thought, and it turns out that for the brain this is absolutely not important. He woke up, began to chew his mental cud, and he didn’t want to stop at all. It's just a habit, such a peculiar and harmful habit of thinking. The young man remembered that today the weekend had finally begun, he was happy, and then frowned, because it would fly by so quickly again. But then he thought about plans, and then about work, about the weather, about friends, then he looked out the window - and again about the weather and again about plans...
As the brain woke up, the thought process became faster and faster and it became more and more difficult to separate one thought from another, they mixed into a mental mess of everything. And as a result, it is no longer clear why the mood changed so dramatically, and why now I want something completely different than half an hour ago. The topics of thought are very diverse and sometimes quite unexpected. And every thought leaves its own special aftertaste and often influences the formation of mood.
Modern man thinks a lot, sometimes even too much, sometimes completely unaware of this tedious background process in his head and has no idea what is really going on in his thoughts. But the famous philosophical saying says: “A person’s life always moves in the direction of his strongest thought.” The amount of information is growing rapidly and, often, it is so difficult to understand that it is absorbed entirely and indiscriminately.
Such an overabundance of information leads to unpleasant consequences - a kind of information intoxication. People rarely manage to keep track of their thoughts, and, meanwhile, every day internal dialogues and heated discussions are quietly gaining more and more momentum, and in order for your head not to explode, you need to be able to stop this flow of thoughts in time. Below is the quintessence of effective ways to stop the flow of thoughts in your head.
Stopping the flow of thoughts is a useful skill
The stream of thoughts is a vivid mix of information accumulated over days, weeks, months and years, lived emotions, critical assessments, various comparisons of situations and events, memories, fantasies, etc. If everything listed above had its unique correct place in a person’s head, then it would be simpler, but the human brain is designed in such a way that without ordering, this entire mental set turns into garbage. And, before you put things in order, you need to stop cluttering your mental space, where your thoughts originate and develop.
Methods:
The methods will be described in more detail below. And now I suggest you familiarize yourself with some methods for stopping the flow of thoughts:
- "Here and now".
- Suspension of breathing.
- White screen.
I am here and now
One of the simple and, at the same time, effective ways to stop the seething stream of thoughts is to remember where you are now, what is happening and surrounding you at a particular moment in life. You need to look around and try to intentionally perceive everything that comes into your field of vision and is felt. Take a closer look at the people who are nearby or examine the objects that are in front of your eyes, remember what they are called, how they appeared in your life and what properties they have. Take a deep breath, stretch, become aware of the space in which you are, its size and shape, feel the sensations of your physical body. This will shift your focus and stop your flow of thoughts.
Hold your breath
In order to try this method, you need to notice what it feels like - your breath. You need to feel its depth and rhythm, the way you inhale air through your nose, then it reaches your lungs, there is a barely noticeable stop and then you exhale it. When you do not control this process, with each action, various thoughts appear in your head, which can rush in a variety of directions, which can be fueled by emerging emotions or external events. You need to take control of this process and start tracking your breathing.
The speed of thought is in some way related to the speed of a person’s heart rate, and, accordingly, to the rate of breathing. You slow down your breathing and, at the same time, notice how the speed of your thought processes changes.
At this time, you can close your eyes, relax and begin to tune in to the pleasant silence that will soon arise from the absence of thoughts swarming around in your head. Next, based on how you feel, you choose the right moment and draw in enough air to fill about ¾ of your lungs, then gently stop and hold your breath. Simultaneously with this action, your flow of thoughts will stop.
Introducing the clean white screen
This method is more likely to suit creative people with a good active imagination or those who seek to develop it and free their heads from thoughts. All thoughts that come to mind can be reflected on the screen of your mind's eye. Each person will have this screen with its own unique shape, special frame and color. At every second he can change in the most unexpected way, but sometimes in his image you can find some distinctive features that remain unchanged over a certain period of time. Pay attention to its color and tone.
How colorful are your thoughts? Since almost all thoughts have their own special emotional connotation, they are painted in different colors and paint peculiar pictures in the imagination. To turn off thoughts, you will need to bleach your inner screen. In order to influence the course of thoughts using color, you will need to track the emotional charge of your mental images for some time and, in accordance with it, color your inner screen. The background itself or what is happening on this screen can be colored. It is better to start with bright colors and gradually reduce their intensity towards white. And the moment your screen turns white, translucent, thoughts will become transparent and lose their former power, which previously controlled your thought flow.
Daily practices bring quick results
A person’s desire to manage his thoughts largely indicates that a person is ready to take responsibility for managing his life. And this is a good sign. Thus, a person takes the path of a free personality, he directs his unique internal resources to effective self-realization and achieves a high level of awareness. Try these techniques and you will soon notice that directing and turning off thoughts is not only a useful skill for normalizing your internal state, but also harmonizing a person’s personality as a whole.
1. Imagine that your worries are written in chalk on a blackboard. You're supposed to be sleeping, not reading what's written! Therefore, as soon as something appears on the board in your mind's eye, it is as if you take a sponge and erase what is written. If a new problem appears, use the sponge again. Is something tormenting you again? Erase what you wrote immediately! So continue to continuously and immediately erase everything that appears on the board.
2. Try to imagine pictures of beautiful and calm nature in your head. How the reeds sway in the wind, how the water in the lake rattles.
3. Imagine the screen of a damaged TV, or without an antenna, when the screen does not show anything. And for several months now I’ve come up with this technique: I lie down on my back and simply don’t let thoughts enter my head, they crawl in like annoying flies, I still don’t let them in, my head is empty, and sometimes I fall asleep within a few minutes.
4. Today you can find a lot of different practices and meditations on the Internet, for example, if you can’t let go or forgive a person, then there is the corresponding meditation “How to forgive and let go of a loved one”, if anger does not go away, then there is also a lot of things on this topic . Just before going to bed, put on your headphones, turn on the audio, close your eyes and listen.
5. The next method will require a little imagination. Imagine that your head is a computer with many files open. They load your RAM and prevent you from working normally. What do you usually do on your computer in this case? Correctly close unnecessary files and applications. Do the same in your head. Close your eyes, imagine your thoughts in the form of open text files, some applications and mentally close them. As an express version of this method, you can imagine a large stop button and by pressing it, turn off all thoughts at once. Or a red cross that crosses out all thoughts.
6. The next method will require a little imagination. Imagine that your head is a computer with many files open. They load your RAM and prevent you from working normally. What do you usually do on your computer in this case? Correctly close unnecessary files and applications. Do the same in your head. Close your eyes, imagine your thoughts in the form of open text files, some applications and mentally close them. As an express version of this method, you can imagine a large stop button and by pressing it, turn off all thoughts at once. Or a red cross that crosses out all thoughts.
7. Thinking in a foreign language, i.e. Any thought that comes to mind needs to be translated into English, for example. For some reason, after this a vacuum comes into my head.
9. Do you still have a lot of anxious thoughts running through your head? Then one sobering thought will help you: “All worries can wait until the morning.” Repeat this phrase to yourself many times until it takes effect.
10. Use visualization techniques. Visualization can be compared to the well-known technique of counting sheep, but visualization is many times more effective. The visualization technique is very simple: you need to draw a picture in your mind that calms and lulls you to sleep. It could be something you've ever seen or a figment of your imagination. There is no difference, the main thing is that the image should really calm you down.
You need to try to imagine the image or picture in as much detail as possible, which will keep your attention in focus for a long period of time. Suitable images are: sunset on the sea, a green meadow with a stream, a view of snow-capped mountains... It can be anything. Anything that truly calms you down and lifts your spirits.
Restore a pleasant image in your mind every time you experience difficulty falling asleep. While holding a picture in your mind, first concentrate on the colors and shapes, and then slowly move your attention to the details. Waves on the sea, the slow swaying of ears of corn in the wind, birds soaring over the tops of the mountains... Your thoughts gradually calm down, your eyelids get heavier and you fall deeper and deeper into sleep.
11. Even if I fall asleep calmly and my mind is relaxed during such periods of my life, I try to always say the sleep instructions: “I fall asleep in a calm, light, bright and joyful sleep. In my sleep, I am completely restored and rested. I am filled with Light and Love.” . After such a simple installation, I have never had a bad dream. Usually then I completely switch off and don’t dream. And in the morning I feel great.
12. Close your eyes. Relax your muscles and even out your breathing. Imagine that your head is a balloon. Inside it there is only clean, fresh air, in which all worries and thoughts dissolve and disappear. Feel its shell - nothing can penetrate through it, the ball is absolutely empty. Feel the lightness and airiness of the ball. Stay in this state for as long as you need.
13. Give yourself a special time (preferably a couple of hours before bedtime) and a special place for various thoughts and experiences. For example, this could be a comfortable chair at a desk, where you can think and look for solutions to the issues that bother you and then leave these experiences in this chair. Let the bed be a place only for rest.
14. Have sex. Good sex, as we know, really helps us relax and fall asleep calm and satisfied in the arms of our loved one.
15. Give thanks and rejoice in what you have. This method will help you switch from negative thoughts to pleasant and relaxing ones. You can thank life, God, yourself, other people for their participation in your life, for their help, love and kindness. After this practice, you will notice that you wake up in the morning blooming like a rose and in a great mood, without any signs of fatigue or lack of sleep.
16. Imagine that there is a huge hourglass above you, and your head is its lower part. And slowly, very slowly, sand pours into it from above. A thin stream covers the entire surface of your brain, leaving behind a continuous, even layer. This layer is so dense that no thought can penetrate it. There is boundless peace and quiet in your head.
17. Imagine that your head is like an empty jar. Start gradually filling it with small pebbles. Pebble after pebble gradually adds up in your head. Their layer has already reached the very top. Take a good look at how tightly the pebbles lie and how much empty space there is between them. And then “take” a large scoop and fill all the gaps with sand.
18. Imagine that your head is completely filled with liquid gold. It’s like you have a huge lake of pure gold inside of you. Take a good look at its surface. Make sure that this liquid is very viscous and heavy. Nothing can come up in it. Every sound fades here. Likewise, not a single thought can appear on its surface. All thoughts remain somewhere there, in the depths.
19. Imagine that there is a magic broom in your head. As soon as you have a new thought, you immediately, like a good housewife, take a broom in your hands and sweep it somewhere beyond your head. Gradually your head becomes clearer and clearer, and your thoughts become less and less.
One of the most important abilities for a person’s health and success is the ability to stop the flow of thoughts at a moment’s notice. The first logical question is: why is it so important to stop thoughts. There are many reasons to stop uncontrolled and chaotic movement, spontaneously arising images and emotions.
But I will talk about what is important in this for me and what I believed in practice.
For those who know why it is important to regulate the flow of thoughts, but do not know how to stop thoughts, you can start reading immediately from the second part: WAYS TO STOP THOUGHTS.
My reasons for stopping the flow of thoughts
1 . An endless stream of thoughts causes sharp and fleeting, and sometimes protracted changes of an emotional nature, which leads to nervous stress, and subsequently to other pathologies.
2. There is practically no chance of making the right decision when the brain is feverish with thoughts, and it becomes almost impossible to thoroughly think through any thought.
It sounds beautiful, mysterious, and most importantly terrifying. But as an inquisitive person, I personally would ask “ how and why does this happen».
Thoughts and reactions
Every thought leads to an emotional reaction, which subsequently manifests itself on the physical level. I think everyone knows about a simple experiment with lemon, or rather with thoughts about it.
Think about the fact that you are chewing a lemon and you will feel how salivation increases, you want to swallow or spit out the excess.
The same thing happens with thoughts “about others”! And the deeper and longer the thinking, the more vivid and noticeable the reactions become.
As soon as you think about a situation or person that causes unpleasant sensations, the next thought, association, memory appears, entailing a desire to act in a way that was, in principle, not necessary before. A certain passion for the idea appears, based on the created emotional background.
There is a layering of some thoughts onto others along with their emotional background, which can lead to actions.
This is called "getting into trouble." The most common example of a layering of emotions due to the inability to stop thoughts, which everyone has encountered as a participant or observer, is a conflict at work (or any other team), after which harshness appears or is simply felt towards loved ones or acquaintances (or the situation is the opposite) .
Stop thoughts - improve your energy
There is also an energy component to the problem with a continuous flow of negative thoughts. I think everyone knows or has simply met a person who seems to “glow with happiness”, attractive, like the “sun” - these are people who live on high vibrations.
Every thought, as well as every word (letter) has its own vibrations. Vibrations can be high and low, and the higher the level of vibration, the better it is for health and other aspects of a person’s life.
A person with a higher level of vibrations, if you calculate the average over a long period, is less susceptible to diseases, attracts people more strongly, and is often more successful than a person living on low vibrations (I will return to this in more detail in future articles). Thus, the flow of thoughts can affect health, and the point here is not that thoughts materialize; it is absolutely not necessary to think in a negative way about the state of your body!
Finding the right solution is easier if you stop thinking
In a normal state, a person sees 1-3 ways to respond to a problem. In a state of feverish flow of thoughts, there are many times more possible reactions.
The solution to any problem is a path, and not just one “yes” or “no” solution, as we prefer to think. On this path there are always key points (more or less significant) at which a reaction follows from us. At a minimum, it is “whether to go further or not” in a given direction. In fact, there are more questions!
Being in a calm state, all the decision-making functions at these points are performed by my “comp” in my head. If you are reading this article now, then you are an active Internet user, so I will give an appropriate example.
How the computer that couldn’t “stop thoughts” died
For example, let's take a computer of average power. And, believe me, I also flattered us, people, because with the power of our internal computer and conscious processing of information, all thought processes, everything is not so good for us! 🙂
♦ First, we open 1-2 sites related to some topic of interest - these will be our 1-2 main thoughts.
♦ Now the decision points: click on the page of the first site, without making gaps (and our brain works without stopping) on all the links that are there. Then go to any of the open pages and click the links you like there.
♦ We repeat this several times, well, if the computer does not get a “brain explosion” from so many simultaneous and non-stop actions, and does not begin to puff, resist and try to “stop thoughts”... Well, and squeak from viruses.
♦ Viruses can be compared to strong negative emotions that will lead to actions that harm the person himself.
Let's see what we have with this “stream of thoughts”:
1. There are many open windows - a huge flow of information (thoughts in our case) that needs to be analyzed and selected. Those. We still don’t have a solution at the moment, but we know that there is still a lot to be studied!
2. If you scroll through all the pages opened in such a chaotic manner, it turns out that even at first glance, not all open pages relate to the question that interests us; moreover (!) the necessary pages are most likely not even half! The chaotic movement of thoughts and emotions leads to the same thing.
3. Some sites open a new link in the same window, which reduces the number of open windows, this also happens with the flow of thoughts. This is comparable to diving deeper into a thought. But what does this give us? We generally move away from the question asked - we move away from the real original problem!
Result: Let's say your computer withstood a 15-minute attack, coped with honor and did not even suffer physical or mental injuries in the form of viruses. Honor and praise to him! 🙂 But without closing all these windows, how many more windows can you open? But life does not consist of one problem, and that means we have to discover something else. And again our “weak baby” will puff, seethe and fight the flow of information. And 15 minutes is too weak a problem. The chaotic movement of thoughts during emotional “madness” can last much longer.
What are we left with, the owners of a “computer” unable to resist and “stop thoughts” if it still works and reinstalling the system is not required due to viruses?
Result: Stress, a lot of information, the understanding that it turns out that you don’t know anything at all and you need to study everything in more detail and only then draw conclusions (well, now I’m talking about more advanced “users” of the brain who do not want to take the first information they come across on faith 😉).
What we definitely didn't get (if we consider all the currently open information): a simple, correct and understandable solution to the specified request! It turns out that all the activities to find the correct answer to the question did not bring any benefit and did not bring us closer to a solution! But this is the most simplified example of how the flow of thoughts and emotions, the inability to stop thoughts, leads to a dead end.
If you have read up to this point and realized the need to stop the chaotic movement of thoughts and regulate the flow, or realized the need to stop thoughts and simply moved your gaze to specific recommendations, it’s time to move on to them.
Ways to stop thoughts
♦ At moments when my brain “boils” and I feel that my thoughts are becoming chaotic and negative, I begin to repeat one of the pre-prepared phrases: I love you Universe, Universe you are beautiful, I wish everyone happiness, I love and thank you Universe.
♦ There is a phrase that can be used for any situation, including to stop thoughts, I call it “fail-safe”: forgive me, I love you, thank you. Despite the obvious appeal “you/thee,” it does not have to be used in relation to a person.
♦ Sometimes I read a prayer that comes to mind, most often the prayer is the Our Father. And although the flow of thoughts decreases already in the first minutes, repeating a phrase or reading a prayer to stop thoughts should be repeated and emotional, but not aggressive. In principle, there can be any phrases, and there can even be several phrases, but for me it is much easier when it is short and clear.
♦ These can be simple sounds (such as a long “ooomm”).
A loved one once asked me: “How long should I repeat this so that I feel good and this flow of delusional thoughts stops?” The answer is simple - until it becomes good, and when it becomes good, it will feel more positive in peace and fulfillment. And the more often such an action is practiced, the easier and faster it will be to achieve results in the future.
As a result of this action to control and stop the chaotic movement of thoughts, it is possible not only to stop thoughts, but also a little (and for some, a lot!) to adjust your energy to a “higher level.”
A method that is quite effective for me is when I concentrate on a specific action. It’s very simple, for example, to count your breath.
While inhaling, I count to 4, holding my breath - 2, exhaling - 4, holding before the next inhalation - 2. All my attention is focused on this action, I am completely concentrated on this process and the chaotic movement of thoughts stops.
I never track how long I continue to breathe this way, but the flow of thoughts decreases already in the first 5-6 repetitions, and after about 10-15 minutes it completely changes the format of my perception of the problem. You can use another rhythm, but this one is acceptable for me.
You can concentrate on anything to regulate the flow of thoughts: rubbing cream into the body, sweeping the floor, counting your pulse, looking at a spot of paint on a piece of paper or any other action.
For myself, I know: it is important for me that the action is not new to me, and if it is associated with movement, then it should be in the same rhythm - this makes it easier for me to concentrate. Close and continuous study of any subject or action will help stop thoughts and correct the emotional background.
I use this method more often to destroy annoying thoughts, and not just to stop thoughts that are trying to fight with each other. Mentally, I find myself in my head and imagine how I throw out all the unnecessary garbage, all my thoughts from there. First, to “disperse” me, I tell them: “Come on, get out!” Those that cling, I throw out without malice (they are mine, why be angry with them 🙂), but with a firm hand - let them know who is the boss in the “house”!
My choice is “throw away”, but thoughts can be erased with an eraser or a rag. It is better to close your eyes so as not to be distracted by foreign objects, but to calmly normalize the chaotic movement and stop the flow of useless and destructive thoughts.
The way to stop thoughts and calm the chaotic movement depends on the person himself. Everyone chooses their own convenient option to stop thoughts, not to let them go into an emotional state that prevents them from being happy!
A very important ability that allows you to accumulate energy and not waste it is the ability to stop the uncontrolled running of thoughts. This is not a simple matter at all. After all, some questions constantly arise in your head, problems are solved, forgotten facts are remembered, future activities are planned, a dialogue is conducted with an imaginary interlocutor, etc. and so on. Thoughts don’t leave you alone for a second! Moreover, many people, even in their sleep, cannot stop the work of their “word mixer” - they worry about something, scream, and toss and turn. There is no real rest even in a dream! And so on throughout life, which is noticeably shortened due to lack of rest from thoughts.
“Word mixer” does not just distract our attention, it actually takes away our vitality, our energy. If we think a lot about a person, then we unconsciously direct our energy towards him. If we think that everything is very bad and will only get worse, then we give energy to the “egregor of an unhappy life,” and he will try to make sure that you can fully enjoy depression and all the troubles that accompany it. That's why the ability to manage your thoughts is a very important quality for a successful person.
The classics of various spiritual teachings talk a lot about the need to manage the state of your mind. For example, Roshi Phillip Caplo in his work “The Three Pillars of Zen” writes: “Most people never think of trying to control their consciousness, and, unfortunately, this fundamental exercise remains outside the framework of modern education, is not an integral part of what is called acquisition knowledge." One of the first steps on the path of spiritual development in Zen is the development of the ability to concentrate and stop the racing of thoughts. Completely stopping the racing of thoughts is the ultimate goal of many Eastern spiritual schools. For example, the highest phase in yoga is called “samadhi” and is translated as “highest spiritual insight, ecstasy, trance, superconsciousness.” Samadhi can only be achieved through long meditations, as a result of which the racing of thoughts stops for several hours and a person, in a state of complete emptiness, comes into direct contact with the inhabitants of the invisible world. But to learn to stop the racing of thoughts for several hours in a row, you need to practice a lot. Most people don’t need such extremes, so let’s look for other ways to curb our restless mind.
Methods for stopping racing thoughts
How to stop thoughts?
There are many ways and techniques to stop the racing of thoughts. Conventionally, they can be divided into four large groups.
1.Methods of crowding out thoughts (with other recurring thoughts).
2.Methods of concentrating attention on some object.
3.Methods of using mental images.
4.Methods of switching attention.
Let's look at each of these groups in more detail.
Displacement methods
The essence of the “repression method” is to replace the chaotic running of random thoughts with repeated repetition of the same phrase or a certain sound combination. In Eastern spiritual schools, similar sound combinations like “o o u m m” or “oum mane padme hum” are called “mantras”. If you repeat the same mantra for a very long time, for several hours, you can steadily move into an altered state of consciousness, in which a person begins to manifest unusual abilities and establishes strong contact with the inhabitants of the invisible world.
Prayers “work” in approximately the same way in Christianity - it is well known that only long and frantic (i.e., concentrated and highly emotional) repetition of prayer leads to the desired results (cleansing the soul, enlightenment, receiving help). You can try this method to stop the racing of your thoughts by repeatedly repeating to yourself the mantra “o o u mm” or some kind of prayer, or do the already familiar “forgiveness meditation”; in Reiki we practice Gassho, when we turn all our attention to touch middle fingers in palms joined together. It also works great to suppress uncontrollable racing thoughts. Practice and you will “kill three birds with one stone”: stop the “word mixer”, strengthen your energy and cleanse yourself of accumulated experiences.
As soon as you notice that your “word mixer” has started again, start repeating any of the formulas of this meditation. For example, this one: “With love and gratitude, I forgive this life and accept it as it is. I apologize to life for my thoughts and actions regarding it.” In order to learn to stop your “word mixer” as necessary, you will need to make some effort. Experience shows that the first results appear in those who have been engaged in repressing unnecessary thoughts every day for 20–30 minutes in any free time for two weeks.
As a result, you should learn to enter a state of complete absence of thoughts for 5-10 minutes (then they will appear anyway, and this is normal).
Methods of concentration
The next method of “concentrating attention,” also widely used in teaching in many Eastern spiritual schools, requires focusing attention and continuously observing any object or process. This could be a point on the wall, a picture or a drawing (special drawings for concentration and meditation are called "mandalas"), and maybe your internal process: breathing, blood pulsation, etc. For example, in Zen Buddhism, one of the first exercises is counting your own breath.
At one of the Club classes, I talked about the method of establishing the boundaries of your body: touch and direct your attention to your left leg, right, arms, head, etc. - feel the boundaries of your body, this will help you be “here and now.”
Methods of using mental images
You can stop the flow of thoughts and get rid of their uncontrolled running by using various mental images. For example, you can imagine that you take an eraser and “erase” all the thoughts in your head with it. As soon as a new thought appears, immediately pick up an eraser and erase it. Either you sweep it with a broom, or you erase it on your mental screen with a cloth. An image that produces excellent results is when you “fill” your head with a viscous “liquid”, such as liquid gold. Not a single thought can emerge in it - it fades away as soon as it begins to appear. For the best effect, use the Golden Ball meditation. Such exercises are usually performed with eyes closed, solely in order not to catch other visual images.
Methods for switching attention
They are the simplest and most often used in everyday life, and consist of loading your mind with controlled thoughts instead of uncontrollable thoughts. For example, when you shake a rattle over a screaming baby, you are using the technique of switching attention. Previously, the baby was focused on a problem known only to him and loudly demanded its solution. But then you shook the rattle, and his attention switched to a new stimulus. He began to think about it, and the old problem was forgotten :).
This technique works just as effectively as an adult, especially when you use it to redirect the attention of another person who is immersed in his own problem. How to use it? Yes, very simple. If you are tired of your interlocutor's long verbal outpourings, then ask him a question so that he forgets what he just said, i.e. The question should touch on a topic that is important to the interlocutor. For example, if your friend talks long and tediously about what a scoundrel her husband (or friend) turned out to be and you are tired of it, then ask her unexpectedly: “Are you sure you turned off the iron when leaving home?” Or: “Where did you get the hole (or stain) on your new sheepskin coat?” Most likely, after this she will run to look at her sheepskin coat, and the scoundrel husband will be forgotten. You will probably be able to stop her “word mixer” using this method.
Choose your “switch”
The last method can be strengthened if you choose a certain “switch” in advance, i.e. a topic to which you will consciously shift your attention if necessary. It is best if it is some very fun and pleasant event in your life. Or just a humorous statement that can put you in a cheerful state in any situation. In this case, along with a shift in attention, there will be a devaluation of the problem that your “word mixer” has just successfully savored. Thus, you will disconnect from the egregor of “unhappy life” to which you just gave your vitality.
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