~ Reflections on the Inner Life ~
"Only in quietness do we possess our own minds
and discover the resources of the inner life"
- Helen Keller
and discover the resources of the inner life"
- Helen Keller
Everyone has an inner life. It is the land of thoughts and emotions, beliefs and values, and likes and dislikes. It is also the land of awareness and memory, imagination and reason, and the capacity for understanding life. In short, the inner life is who you are on the inside. Including the conscious and the unconscious mind, it is heavily influenced by your life experiences and it influences how you respond to them.
If you pay attention to the inner life, it thrives and you are likely to experience a sense of calm, well-being, and contentment. You may be more able to respond to whatever happens positively, without overreacting or underreacting. And you are may be kinder and more compassionate towards others and yourself. But if you ignore the inner life you may not do so well. Sadly, this is often the case today. In the busyness of modern life, it is increasingly difficult to find the time and space to slow down and pay attention to what’s going on inside. In this world of more, better, and faster, paying attention to the inner life has become a luxury that few can afford.
Although this frenetic pace of activity can offer a short-lived sense of productivity and efficiency, we inevitably lose touch with the deepest parts of ourselves. And this loss has tragic consequences. When we don’t pay attention to the inner life, it is common to feel stressed out, fearful, or angry. We may become distant from our family and friends. And we may develop serious health problems, such as heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, a weakened immune system, asthma, migraine, and/or musculoskeletal problems. Ignoring the inner life can also lead to psychological, emotional and/or spiritual distress. Put it all together, and it’s not a pretty picture.
When we do slow down and pay attention to the inner life, it soon becomes clear that it is virtually impossible to control our thoughts and emotions. Although we like to believe that we can, the truth is we can’t. As any meditator knows, attempts to force the mind to do anything are doomed to failure. If you don’t believe me, I invite you to stop reading and try not to think about anything, remembering that even the thought “I’m not thinking” is, of course, a thought. Chances are that within a few seconds or less, you will find yourself thinking.
The mind, like life, is largely uncontrollable. From morning until night, thoughts and emotions pass through it like clouds in the sky. Sometimes they are very fast and other times they are slow. Sometimes they are light and fluffy, like cirrus clouds, and sometimes they are dark and heavy, like thunderclouds. Although it is almost impossible to stop the clouds of thoughts and emotions in the mind, with training we can learn to notice them and not get so caught up in them. When we pay attention, we see that some thoughts and emotions are pleasant, some are unpleasant, and some are neutral. Furthermore, we tend to like the pleasant ones and cling to them, and dislike the unpleasant ones and try to get rid of them – the neutral ones are usually ignored.
When we understand that thoughts and emotions are not necessarily true; they are simply experiences passing through, we don’t need to dwell on them or believe them. And as we do this, the mind begins to calm down and relax naturally. Most forms of meditation, including Buddhist practices, offer ways to train the mind in this way. By simply noticing the inner life, without getting caught up in its endless stream of thoughts and emotions, meditation practices settle the mind and make it more peaceful, calmer, and less reactive.
Wishing you peace, calm, and ease.
If you pay attention to the inner life, it thrives and you are likely to experience a sense of calm, well-being, and contentment. You may be more able to respond to whatever happens positively, without overreacting or underreacting. And you are may be kinder and more compassionate towards others and yourself. But if you ignore the inner life you may not do so well. Sadly, this is often the case today. In the busyness of modern life, it is increasingly difficult to find the time and space to slow down and pay attention to what’s going on inside. In this world of more, better, and faster, paying attention to the inner life has become a luxury that few can afford.
Although this frenetic pace of activity can offer a short-lived sense of productivity and efficiency, we inevitably lose touch with the deepest parts of ourselves. And this loss has tragic consequences. When we don’t pay attention to the inner life, it is common to feel stressed out, fearful, or angry. We may become distant from our family and friends. And we may develop serious health problems, such as heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, a weakened immune system, asthma, migraine, and/or musculoskeletal problems. Ignoring the inner life can also lead to psychological, emotional and/or spiritual distress. Put it all together, and it’s not a pretty picture.
When we do slow down and pay attention to the inner life, it soon becomes clear that it is virtually impossible to control our thoughts and emotions. Although we like to believe that we can, the truth is we can’t. As any meditator knows, attempts to force the mind to do anything are doomed to failure. If you don’t believe me, I invite you to stop reading and try not to think about anything, remembering that even the thought “I’m not thinking” is, of course, a thought. Chances are that within a few seconds or less, you will find yourself thinking.
The mind, like life, is largely uncontrollable. From morning until night, thoughts and emotions pass through it like clouds in the sky. Sometimes they are very fast and other times they are slow. Sometimes they are light and fluffy, like cirrus clouds, and sometimes they are dark and heavy, like thunderclouds. Although it is almost impossible to stop the clouds of thoughts and emotions in the mind, with training we can learn to notice them and not get so caught up in them. When we pay attention, we see that some thoughts and emotions are pleasant, some are unpleasant, and some are neutral. Furthermore, we tend to like the pleasant ones and cling to them, and dislike the unpleasant ones and try to get rid of them – the neutral ones are usually ignored.
When we understand that thoughts and emotions are not necessarily true; they are simply experiences passing through, we don’t need to dwell on them or believe them. And as we do this, the mind begins to calm down and relax naturally. Most forms of meditation, including Buddhist practices, offer ways to train the mind in this way. By simply noticing the inner life, without getting caught up in its endless stream of thoughts and emotions, meditation practices settle the mind and make it more peaceful, calmer, and less reactive.
Wishing you peace, calm, and ease.