Emotions

Learning to pause for a moment is an effective way to control your reactions in a world which seems filled with conflict and triggers. Pausing for a moment is very important for your happiness and wellness.

Have you stopped to consider that you may be continually rushing through life, not pausing to notice all the wonder that exists around you? So even if you are not pausing as a means to control your reactions to what you are experiencing in life, try to pause now to savour the moment, whatever that may be.

Simple learning to pause for a moment can be a very powerful tool which not only allows you to moderate your thinking, it also allows you to connect and savour the moments in life.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

Be mindful of the destination addiction where you become fixated with the notion that happiness is elsewhere. Until you surrender that concept of happiness is in another place, it is going to never be where you are. So on examination what does this all mean? If you were to answer the question, do you live your life only to get to the end of it? Then most people would say unequivocally no. However in the world today, many people suffer from the belief that success or happiness is the destination. They are always on the run, on the move, and their goal seems to be to get through the day rather than live each day. Such people become addicted to the idea that the future is where success will be found, happiness resides, and that each intervening moment is just a means to get there.

Rather than living in the now, more and more people seem to be living in anything but the now, being psychologically absent and disregarding everything currently in their life. If you find that you are thinking this way, then you are falling into the trap of destination addiction. You continually chase the illusive notion of happiness and literally suffer from your pursuits. In this case, you may find that your goal has not been to enjoy the day, but instead, you have focused on getting through the day. You have always been focused on getting somewhere, foregoing the opportunities to savour the moments of life along the way. When you arrive at the destination, the feeling of success or happiness seems to elude you, as if it has somehow escaped to the next day, week or year. Then the feeling of satisfaction is continually deferred, and you end up living your life in hot pursuit of some extraordinary bliss which you have no idea how to find.

Social media and an era of excess make a major contribution to the pandemic of destination addiction. In the never-ending pursuit of happiness, you may find that you spend increasing amounts of time or money on trying to acquire happiness. But if you are being honest, how often have you found that the happiness so acquired was only temporary? This is made worse by people and companies peddling items and experiences to “totally change your life” or “make you happier than you ever dreamed possible”. Cars with the newest widgets, fancier clothing, more exquisite jewellery or even the latest gadget, can all be symptomatic of this underlying trend to feed destination addiction.

As increasing numbers of us become engrossed in destination addiction, as we tend to rush through as many experiences as quickly as possible. You may find that you start living by the adage of “been there, done that”. Life should not be about destinations or endings; if it were then life would be very different. If life were about the destination then you would only read the last page of any book, have deserts for meals, or only attended graduation day at school or college. Destination addiction is frequently an attempt to get on with life faster, hoping that you will enjoy your life better. Yet constant rushing through life frequently means that you will miss or bypass golden opportunities along the way. In this way, destination addiction is working against you, as you become too busy or too focused on the objective to be aware of life happing around you. It can become increasingly easy to feel empty as if your life is lacking any meaning.

If you are prone to overthinking, then destination addiction is the perfect setup for failure. It can become very common for people to trade short-term gratification in the hope of reaching the ultimate goal. It could be manifest that happiness is the next deal, the next high, the next acquisition, the next drink, or even something seemingly as silly as the next hot-fudge sundae. In all these instances realise that your mind is overthinking and making you believe the proverbial adage that the grass is greener over the next hill. Destination addiction can cause you to become impatient as you attempt to reach your goal. You then end up with little time for yourself and grow evermore impatient as the destination always seems just out of reach.

It is important to be aware that none of us is immune to destination addiction, and we all have times when we have to convince ourselves that better times are ahead. The trouble with destination addiction is that it focuses purely on the end and not on purpose. Fortunately, there is an excellent remedy for destination addiction, but it is often hard to find.

The key to defeating destination addiction is to find happiness in the life you have and to achieve the goals that are important to you, not what you believe will impress everyone else. When you declare that you are content with what you have, where you are and who you are, it is possible to break out of this addiction. You may then find that you begin to live more in the now and savour the full experiences that life avails to you every day. You can then live intelligently with purpose, make the means the end, and also the end the means. Then you may come to the realisation that true happiness never comes from a destination. Happiness comes from within us as you experience and live in the here and now.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

Energy is the catalyst and creative force of the universe and life within it, which brings into existence atoms, particles, worlds, stars and galaxies. The human form is made of the very same substance and controlled by the same energies; yet is endowed with a mind to think, examine, reason and learn. However, few of us genuinely understand how our mind functions, let alone realise that what is generally regarded as the human mind is a construct of many different aspects. Broadly speaking, the human mind can be categorised into four main areas. First and foremost is what the majority of people consider the mind, it is your intellect or what is referred to as Buddhi in some old languages such as Sanskrit. Various other aspects of the human mind include your personality (Ahankara), your mental form or body (Manas) and the Spark of Life (Chitta) which connects to the basis of creation within you.

What is perceived as the human mind, is typically that of the brain. This is the component of intellect, the domain of thoughts and thinking, however, this is just a small part of the bigger picture. Our minds are undeniably a lot more than our intellect, as they consist of multiple interrelated parts which function as a whole. The complete intelligence of us as humans is distributed throughout our being. The knowledge and understanding of how to access or use these other components of our intelligence is rarely understood.

We unconsciously use some of these other dimensions of our mind all the time, yet few people are aware of the complex interactions and how our minds function. Consider that you do not know how to conduct your mind, your energies, your emotions or your body, and any effort to understand this could be beneficial for you to fully engage in life.

Your thoughts are energy, but they are just the beginning, as your thoughts interact with the various other facets of your minds. Through obtaining an understanding that you are far more than the intellect of your brain, you can begin to comprehend that there is a great deal more to making life happen. Take the time to pause and think with active intellect is an excellent starting point in life, and can lead you to the greatest discovery of the human minds.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

To comprehend who is “Brand You”, you need to first and foremost understand the construct of the personality which adheres to every part of your being, like a really sticky material. Your personality is pervasive to who you think and believe you are. It has the three primary facets of how you perceive yourself to be, how you believe others see you and the actual layers of the thought of others about you.

Your personality is both influenced and affected by numerous other aspects. These include, yet are not confined to conditional thinking, thoughts, emotions and feelings of others; causality or karma (especially of friends and family); astronomical astrological programming; and much deeper elements of your Life Force. Your personality is bi-directional, indicating that it has two distinct sides. This is similar to a stained glass window, which might appear rather drab from one side, whereas when viewed from the opposite side, it can take on an entirely different light.

The concept of “Brand You” is your perception of how the world discerns you, and is in effect the external expression of your personality. Increasingly this facet of your personality is not composed from direct human interactions, but is established and reinforced via your interactions in social media, and the illusionary worlds of computer games and virtual worlds such as the Metaverse. Consider for a moment how you would feel after you make a post on social media or appeared in the news. Think about how your personality can be affected by all of your friends or followers whether they like or comment on your posting; or you receive either no reactions or conversely your post, article or video goes viral. All these reactions on social media generate the energies of thought and emotions which are directed towards you and your personality.

The aforementioned aspects of personality and “Brand You” can become amplified to where the brand becomes much larger than the individual, particularly for celebrities and influencers. This “Brand You” can entirely engulf the personality and dominate that person’s existence in this world. So carefully consider how you project “Brand You” into the world, as all facets of the personality so expressed can bring about numerous lifetimes of accumulated karma

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

When you are joyous, happy or in a positive state of mind, your heart and mind, are open to brand-new things. Savour every positive experience and emotion such as joy, to bring a newfound sense of wonderment to life. Even something which might have seemed ordinary can begin to hold a greater significance as you take pleasure in every moment that life offers.

Taking the opportunity to savour joy can be as simple as paying attention to the things that you take pleasure in or that make you happy. If your mind strays try your best to maintain focus on the joyous moments. Spending time to linger on these positive feelings that arise is an incredibly straightforward form of mindfulness. This can lead to a happier outlook, increased self-worth and better resilience when faced with stress and anxiety. If you savour the joy and happiness, it can bring appreciation and positivity to all aspects of your life, and you can gain greater access to your intuition and creativity. This can be partly because you are not burdened or blinded by negative thoughts and feelings which so many of us have on a daily basis.

The process to savour positive elements of life is relatively simple. If you have previously practised some type of mindfulness, you are partway there. Savouring joy is about being aware and centring your attention on some positive experience or sensation in your life. Savouring the people, experiences and things in your life enables you to grow in mindfulness, though it does not require formal meditation.

To initiate this technique, invest some time to recollect a recent experience that you found enjoyable or satisfying. That could be anything, yet if it entails some sounds or physical activity such as a walk on the beach, having a bite to eat with a new mate, or having fun with a pet, it will certainly be easier to keep your focus. Make the effort to recall that positive moment and immerse yourself in the memories. While it may not last forever, really savouring the moment can make it seem like time has virtually stopped. After that choose an additional recent event or experience which gave you satisfaction or enjoyment, and once again recapture the feelings of joy. You are most likely to find that it is much easier to stay in the moment, as the feelings of joy and happiness from your last sensation operate like a magnet, drawing in the positive sentiments. With the increased sentiments, you will be able to sustain a stronger focus on the happy moments.

Our daily lives are full of opportunities to appreciate, and express gratitude for the things that bring us joy and a sense of satisfaction and happiness. Savouring these positive moments can provide you with an oasis amidst the challenges of life. Gradually, you can develop a growing awareness of the origins of joy, satisfaction and happiness which can boost the positive influences in your life.

There are very clear benefits of recollecting these moments of joy and happiness, including improved physical and psychological health. While savouring can be beneficial, it does not deny the reality of what is difficult in our life such as challenging emotions. When you find yourself in an unpleasant mood, consider that you cannot be open to new ideas, regardless of just how fantastic or amazing they are. Without some joy in your heart, life can seem to be slow and frequently dull or uninteresting. However, this practice of savouring can enable you to bring positivity to your life by paying attention to what feels good.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

Usually each of us does not have issues with thinking or expressing what would be identified as positive thoughts or emotions. Unfortunately, it is a normal human response to avoid or wish to bury difficult emotions, and even in some cases those which might seem to be neutral but have become taboo as a result of societal norms. Sequestering your emotions and thoughts can be an appropriate way of managing them from a mental mind standpoint. These subdued emotions will normally not create problems when you undertake mindfulness or basic meditation, as the power of your mind can maintain them metaphorically under control. Even if these concealed thoughts or emotions are not leading to problems, be aware that you have pushed them aside. Suppressing an emotion does not admonish an emotion. The emotion still exists within you, secreted in the background of your mind and subconscious. So for your own wellbeing, you should take the opportunity to understand them whenever the time is right.

The state of affairs changes considerably when you start on the pathway to the awakening of your inner light. It is very important to know that suppressing or subduing thoughts and emotions, especially the unfavourable ones, can be perilous as you advance on your journey of attunement or advanced meditation. As you progress with your meditation techniques, increasing levels of the power of your Life Force enlivens your form. These energies flow into all parts of your being from the energy centres and along the meridians. As these energies circulate throughout the human mechanism, their increased energy can activate thoughts or emotions which have been hidden, and may have laid dormant for years or even numerous lifetimes in the body’s think centres and chakras. When these energies trigger one of these suppressed thoughts or emotions, the intensity of that thought or emotion will be increased as a result of the greater energy levels from your awakening. Hopefully, you can now comprehend why it is so necessary to know yourself, to be aware of and understand all of your thoughts and emotions, even those which you might not wish to deal with.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

Often in life, we become side-tracked by matters that annoy, upset or perturb us, which can lead to overthinking. When you start to overthink something, your mind can become overloaded and overwhelmed as associated thoughts and conditioned reactions are replayed over and over in your mind. The original thoughts have triggered conditioned thoughts, emotions, feelings and reactions. These aspects of overthinking can pull you down the path to additional worry, concern and sometimes stress.

At such time, if you were to stop or pause to carefully examine your life, you may discover that some of these matters are totally out of your control. You may realise there are some situations in life which you could not change in a proverbial million years. While we may recognise this in hindsight, many of us still attempt to change these apparently immutable aspects, which can lead to more anguish and upset emotions.

Rather than dwelling on what is beyond your control, you can choose to take a different path. Instead redirect your thinking to focus your intent on the things which you can change. As you begin to shift your focus, you will feel more in control of your life. Those aspects which you cannot control will usually lose some of their significance, or may completely fade away.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾

When attempting to meditate, do you have problems clearing your mind of thoughts? Often those thoughts keep on coming back, and you seem destined for failure no matter how hard you try. The good news is that this is a very common challenge encountered by anyone starting meditation. It is not a sign of failure that you are having difficulties making your mind clear, quiet or supposedly blank. Even those who have practised meditation for many years may at times have problems. The most important thing is to keep persevering, and if necessary try different approaches or techniques, until you find one which works for you.

While quietening your mind is an important goal for any meditation, realise that each of us will achieve different degrees of success. For some people attaining the ultimate goal of full quietness of mind may not be possible, but that does not mean you cannot meditate.

The first and foremost thing to realise is that your very efforts to clear or quieten the mind can often be the cause. Your mind becomes filled with the distractions of the very same ideas you are making an effort to clear. If this is the case or you have a very rowdy mind, then you should shift your efforts to achieving a small area of calmness.

The second obstacle most people face is that they try to erase or eliminate their thoughts. The ability to quell or eliminate thoughts is very difficult to achieve for most of us. So the best approach for success is instead to push your thoughts aside or to the background, thereby diminishing their presence. With time and effort, you can build the skills to be observant of your thoughts, acknowledge them if necessary and push them aside. Then as you push more of these thoughts away, you can establish a small beachhead of quietness in your mind. Be happy with this achievement, as it is an important milestone. As you practice more, you will find that you can expand the quietness outwards, pushing your thoughts farther aside and into the background.

A very useful technique which can be utilised to help with meditation or even mindfulness is called Ekagrata, which simply means focused thought. Applying Ekagrata enables you to focus on one thing, such as your breath, repeating a mantra, or mindfully shifting your attention to a specific thought. As a master of your mind, you are not thinking of everything at the same time, you are being purposeful and focusing on one thing at a time. If stray thoughts enter your mind, you acknowledge them and push them aside to achieve that focus of mind which is Ekagrata. Become the master of your mind with Ekagrata, so that you may learn to clear your mind.

♾ Awaken your Mind ♾