Creating Gaps in Thought

[awake]

This thread is dedicated to methods that one can employ to create gaps in their thoughts.

 

Much of what I have learned from religious and spiritual doctrine and teachings, old and new, point to a place of no thought, and awareness on the present moment and inner body without labelling, judging, or other mental processes.

 

But as I'm 100% sure many of you will attest to, its impossible to stop thinking.

 

You must either accept your thinking and the suffering that comes with it, and be patient along the path, as the buddha said, or develop your own ways of intentionally shifting your attention.

 

The former technique being complete in and of itself, this thread is dedicated to the latter.

 

I will start off with two very powerful techniques I have learned:

 

-Hypnosis works great to decrease the minds constant talking. However, most hypnotists have very limiting beliefs, and so will put you into a "trance" where your outward attention is decreased. This is a fine practice in increasing awareness, only if you remember that after your thought is gone, to maintain what the hypnosis developed within you, while increasing your awareness of the outside world, or getting the hypnotist to install that belief in you as well.

 

-Identifying your mental processes generally and out loud. Thank you Eckhart Tolle for this one, it works great and gives an almost instant sense of peace, and an even more instant gap in your thought. What you do here is identify the patterns your thoughts follow (every thought is part of a pattern) out loud the moment you have it. For example I will stop typing now and provide you with how I would do this process. The first quote is my mind, the second quote is me. If you are not comfortable doing this out loud, then you can do it internally. I also don't know if this process is perfect, there may be various things that you can change, such as the pronouns, etc. Anyway: "Abagale, the dinner is ready", "I have a random voice" | "I have a random voice", "I repeat things unnecissarily" | "Abagale, lunch is ready", "I have a random voice" | "Doing this makes you become aware of the ego", "I speak as if I have an audience when I do not".

 

Do you understand? The last quote had some relevance but still, in this practice, no thought goes unidentified. It is profound and powerful, try it for yourself, and ask for clarification if you don't understand. I may also recommend listening to some Eckhart Tolle to get examples of thought patterns.

 

What will happen is eventually the amount of thoughts you are having will decrease and the space between them will increase. I am excited to practice this.

 

Now please share your methods of creating gaps in thought streams!

 

For example, paradoxes you have to ponder without thought, methods like the above, or other ways to focus your attention.

 

 

But please note: Please do not come here with the stupid non-dualistic acceptance-only debates. Please leave if that is what you are going to say, perhaps make your own thread.

 

Yes, everything is one thing, yes, form is emptiness, emptiness is form. But there is also purpose in those forms, and meaning as well. And especially before you physically begin to see that buddhist sutra is true, form plays an especially important role in removing your attachment from it.

 

Thank you.

[Zhuo Ming-Dao]

-I typically use the good old Rinzai standard method of sitting and counting my breaths. I count on each exhalation and go up to ten before starting over. During the exhalation I focus on the number alone and during the inhalation my mind is totally silent. I also count when I am washing dishes or doing other simple activities. Eventually I hope to be able to just use concentration and breath without having to count, but I am not quite there yet.

 

This technique is very effective, but it can take months of daily zazen before you are able to focus strongly enough to just be with the number. Background chatter that goes on during the count eventually disappears, as you build up the habit of focusing only on the number. The the exhale becomes a relaxing of the concentration, during which the mind relaxes and a much deeper, more profound silence floods in the gap between breaths.

 

 

 

-I have also found that synchronizing my steps with my breathing increases my awareness and therefore

decreases my mental chatter.

 

 

-I love hearing any additional methods that people might have. True silence is one of the most amazing experiences we can have in this life.

 

 

And thanks for the hypnosis idea, Awake. I think I will try out some self-hypnosis and see if it helps my practice. Does anyone have some good affirmations or other mind quieting hypnosis scripts?

[dwai]

This thread is dedicated to methods that one can employ to create gaps in their thoughts.

 

Much of what I have learned from religious and spiritual doctrine and teachings, old and new, point to a place of no thought, and awareness on the present moment and inner body without labelling, judging, or other mental processes.

 

But as I'm 100% sure many of you will attest to, its impossible to stop thinking.

 

You must either accept your thinking and the suffering that comes with it, and be patient along the path, as the buddha said, or develop your own ways of intentionally shifting your attention.

 

The former technique being complete in and of itself, this thread is dedicated to the latter.

 

I will start off with two very powerful techniques I have learned:

 

-Hypnosis works great to decrease the minds constant talking. However, most hypnotists have very limiting beliefs, and so will put you into a "trance" where your outward attention is decreased. This is a fine practice in increasing awareness, only if you remember that after your thought is gone, to maintain what the hypnosis developed within you, while increasing your awareness of the outside world, or getting the hypnotist to install that belief in you as well.

 

-Identifying your mental processes generally and out loud. Thank you Eckhart Tolle for this one, it works great and gives an almost instant sense of peace, and an even more instant gap in your thought. What you do here is identify the patterns your thoughts follow (every thought is part of a pattern) out loud the moment you have it. For example I will stop typing now and provide you with how I would do this process. The first quote is my mind, the second quote is me. If you are not comfortable doing this out loud, then you can do it internally. I also don't know if this process is perfect, there may be various things that you can change, such as the pronouns, etc. Anyway: "Abagale, the dinner is ready", "I have a random voice" | "I have a random voice", "I repeat things unnecissarily" | "Abagale, lunch is ready", "I have a random voice" | "Doing this makes you become aware of the ego", "I speak as if I have an audience when I do not".

 

Do you understand? The last quote had some relevance but still, in this practice, no thought goes unidentified. It is profound and powerful, try it for yourself, and ask for clarification if you don't understand. I may also recommend listening to some Eckhart Tolle to get examples of thought patterns.

 

What will happen is eventually the amount of thoughts you are having will decrease and the space between them will increase. I am excited to practice this.

 

Now please share your methods of creating gaps in thought streams!

 

For example, paradoxes you have to ponder without thought, methods like the above, or other ways to focus your attention.

But please note: Please do not come here with the stupid non-dualistic acceptance-only debates. Please leave if that is what you are going to say, perhaps make your own thread.

 

Yes, everything is one thing, yes, form is emptiness, emptiness is form. But there is also purpose in those forms, and meaning as well. And especially before you physically begin to see that buddhist sutra is true, form plays an especially important role in removing your attachment from it.

 

Thank you.

shavasana after asana practice.

doesn't have to be complicated asanas, but at least 20-25 mins of static asana with ujjayi breath.

after that, sink into yourself in shavasana. don't think...simply melt like a slab of butter on a hot plate.

 

gaps will become evident and then expand

 

my 2 cents wrth

[awake]

Good posts so far guys, thanks for the input, I look forward to learning more about those techniques and trying them out, but please try to be as descriptive as possible so people dont have to go google these things.

 

@Zhuo Ming-Dao, I experienced multiple instances of feeling bliss after Richard Bandler's DHE 2000 program. Its avialable on sites like demonoid, the pirate bay, thevault.bz and theplace.bz Its a very very good program that teaches you how to control how you feel.

I strongly recommend immersion into guided hypnosis before self-hypnosis, and the program I mentioned is excellent. Richard bandler is often touted as the world's best hypnotist and I know he's very good. He is also very smart, and the inventor if the psychological field of NLP, which he uses extensively in his teachings and sessions. I would consider almost anything by him to be gold, as everything I've listened to by him so far has been, I only say almost to cover the slight chance that he may have released something subpar, which I honestly doubt though.

 

I also wanted to clear up as I noticed what I said about non-dualism sounded sort of harsh, my actual meaning was that that approach is already completely covered in the "accept everything" approach. Though sometimes that can be hard, its comforting and peace-inducing.

Edited June 22, 2009 by awake

[Guest sykkelpump]

this method is very good

 

http://meditationexpert.com/ebok/howtomeditate.pdf

[Josh Young]

ever drop a thought before it was completed?

[Inedible]

A techique I heard about was to use a prayer or a mantra. Start by saying it out loud, then go on to say it to yourself in your head. Go slowly and focus on each word intentionally. Allow it to slow down. When you feel ready, mentally jump backward into the gap before the word you just said. The quality of the silence will be flavored by the energy of the prayer or mantra you have been using.

[Josh Young]

I practice Japa, I really appreciate that last post.

[Siliconvalley1]

I practice Japa, I really appreciate that last post.

 

 

I do that too... I practice Japa, without verbally uttering any syllables (called manasik or mental) and observe or hear every syllable recited in the mind. After a period of practice, there is a high vibrational rate and then boom, silence. However there is no intentional effort to find this gap as the practice naturally leads to the realization of this gap that has always been. Hamsa or Soham (depending on what you choose - cessation of karma or enjoyment of its fruits) recited while observing the breath eventually leads one to the Gap as well.

Edited June 22, 2009 by Siliconvalley1

[Squatting Monkey]

Personally, the method that I keep coming back to because of it's effectiveness is Pure Land Buddhist recitation.

Or, nenbutsu as it is called in the Japanese tradition.

Using a mala with 108 beads for counting, I find that I can do a few rounds of mindful recitations without any external thoughts entering.

I am really pleased that I found out about Master Honen, his works and his tradition of Buddhism.

SM

[11:33]

Just my 2 cents:

 

The phrase "creating gaps in thought" seems strange. There are already gaps between thoughts. Perhaps just relax into those gaps, and enjoy them, and see them grow longer over time?

[DaoChild]

Just focusing on the sound / feeling of your breaths. After some time you no longer can feel the inhales and exhales, so you focus on the abdomen slooooowly rising and falling.

 

Like someone else said, I'm not quite sure it's about creating gaps in thoughts, but being present when thoughts arise, and then dropping them before your mind continues.

 

It's especially important to focus on this when doing things you do every day -- e.g. shower, using the toilet, brushing the teeth, washing dishes, doing laundry. Most of us have a tendency to let the mind wander then, as a product of conditioning.

[gendao]

When you feel ready, mentally jump backward into the gap before the word you just said.

That's similar to a technique I came up with a few weeks ago...

[forestofemptiness]

Different things work for different people. Some need to do, some need to not do.

 

Just my 2 cents:

 

The phrase "creating gaps in thought" seems strange. There are already gaps between thoughts. Perhaps just relax into those gaps, and enjoy them, and see them grow longer over time?

[JustARandomPanda]

Edit: tried it again. I think I understand now finally. Except for some weird reason - For a split second - I got the distinct impression that not only was my awareness not my thoughts - I was not my breath either. WTH?

Edited July 18, 2009 by SereneBlue

[dwai]

Edit: tried it again. I think I understand now finally. Except for some weird reason - For a split second - I got the distinct impression that not only was my awareness not my thoughts - I was not my breath either. WTH?

 

Because the gap is the "Real" you.

[Inedible]

The tongue tends to tense in preparation for actually speaking when the thoughts are going through the mind. Deliberately relax the tongue.