How to become more right here right now?

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator

[C T]

As topic says, i'd like to find out some ways to get more out of my head. I noticed that my defeault mode is "inside". All the time i'm imagining something or narrating something or watching some memories or analyzing in my head, always something is going on and because of that i'm never 100% present in place and time where i am at that direct moment. It's kinda annoying, even if somehow i turn off the self-narrating, my thoughts become like echo - some memories and images are flashing through my mind in chaotic frequencies. It's hard for me to share my feelings and opinions too, but it's more neurotic than psychological issue. Someone is talking to me and i, instead of listening to what he/she have to say, i'm imagining his words or not even listening to him/her, just flying somewhere with my mind.

That wouldn't be a problem, but i'm in college now and i'm not Einstein, so right-here-right-now focus would be kind of useful

Hello Pete!

 

Just wondering if the option of exploring the Buddhist practice of mindfulness is one you would consider?

I am a strong believer in this practice, and have been for a long time. It really helps to keep me as

present as possible at all times Even those times when i am distracted, there is now instant awareness

of that distraction, so that allows me to 'wake up' instantly. i find that immensely helpful.

 

Check out this link:

 

http://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/boo...dhist-practice/

 

All the best!

[effilang]

[Spiritual_Aspirant]

Root yourself to the earth.

[Pero]

If you're not doing it already, do some physical exercises. For me for example basketball and martial arts (and with that body weight training) were helpful. Running is good too, but maybe if you're in good shape your mind can still work too much, so focus on breathing (which is good to do in any case).

 

 

edit: Going out in nature, on hills especially is nice, if you find it beatiful it can slow or even stop your mind.

 

My 1000th post, yay.

I guess I should go back to studying now hehe...

Edited January 4, 2010 by Pero

[rain]

Hey.

You remind me of my younger days, when the min felt like a mineswiper turning 360 degrees

constantly, f' up & constantly reflecting

 

tell me..

how about;

some discipline?

Seems like you've got enough smartness and self-insight

to consider the possibility of using your willpower and adventurous nature

to set up some rules for yourself about how to spend your day;

WHEN and WHERE to give ROOM for

 

mental activity

 

physical challenge

 

silence

 

& keep these strictly separate for a while

Ask yourself what resonates withn you in these three categories

and choose from there

cut the rest. it's crap anyway

Edited January 4, 2010 by rain

[3bob]

Are you using a lot of coffee and sugar? Do you have a lot of inputs going on at once like cell phone, pc, ipod, TV, radio, etc. that can be greatly reduced; and friends or associates and yourself assuming that all of you will keep pace with certain college activities and behaviour or be labeled as a dud?

 

Om

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator

[rain]

Thank you all for answers. I'm doing physicall exercies everyday (but without teacher so i got few injuries ). Some pushups or pullups, some jogging, i tried to stretch for 4 years but without any result, martial arts on my own, some gymnastics also, i love extreme sports. No Tv, just cell phone and internet. Coffee once a day, sugar a lot. I have a lot of discipline, but still i know i can do much more, so i got a lot of things to work on with my personality, but whatever i do, i always have a lot of free time, i can't imagine how busy one must be to not have some spare time... I'm doing Dantien Breathing once a day.

 

Rain - like Bruce Lee - "Cut the unessentials" I'll try to separate things more. Thanks.

 

I love nature, but now it's so freakin cold outside that i prefer to stay at home, i hate winter..

I'm trying to discover myself more and more everyday, that way i can become a better person. It's like im inside my head, always imagining or narrating or other stuff inside but at once highly focus on things around me, noticing every movement, every car on street, every each person and it makes my head tired after longer walk through the city..

 

Spiritual_Aspirant

"Root yourself to the earth" - could you please give a little explanation? Sorry, i'm not a good philosopher

I think that sometimes i have some progress with myself but modern society makes it disapper, like every time i make myself more universal, more "ethernal"(in this i mean, not connected so tight with modern civilization), after few days it's gone because all these trends around and all these bullshit makes me again a modern man (which i think is negative and offending).

 

I'll definitely check Buddhist practices and that link, CowTao, i was raised as Christian but i want to find God by myself, not by some hipocrite priest who don't know what he is actually talking about.. Everything is good till you don't hurt others and if it makes you a better person. Main concept of Jeet Kune Do: "Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own". I'm trying to use this in every aspect of my life, religion also.

 

I just wish there was a "turn-off" button ..or some remote control like this http://www.coolest-gadgets.com/wp-images/remote_03.jpg or this http://www.quiltbus.com/images/women-remote.jpg but to my mind..

 

 

ahhh hahaa haaa haaaaa

 

 

you aren't wishing it strongly enough

[Sloppy Zhang]

Pinch yourself.

 

Or take up some qigong.

 

B.K. Frantzis has a lot of good books, and one of the things he emphasizes when doing circle walking meditation is to focus on your feet. I'm just like you, I have a lot of stuff going on in my head, all the time. Thoughts, plans for future, reflections on the past, a song I like (let's just say I have no need for an iPod with the way my mind cycles through songs). Any type of method or technique that draws my attention lower- to my dantien, place where I pinch myself, to my feet- allows my consciousness do go down (out of my head), and out (spreading to my whole body).

 

When I can do that, I am "present".

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator

[rain]

Thanks. Actually i believe that i can achieve anything i want, but the problem starts at "want" place. For example; one wants to travel around the world and become the best martial artist in the whole world, but from the other side he have family, wife, kids and love them very much. It is his dream to travel and become a master, let say he want it for 90% but he love his family and want to stay with them and support them, let say 100% and vector of traveling is opposite to vector of family and these two give resulant 10% for family, and that way one is stick unhappy to his family because he is unsatisfied with his dreams. If one wants something for 100%, he don't care about risk, about what he can loose or what will it take, he just gives all he got to reach it or even more and he reaches it. And here i am, knowing i can do everything (yeah, i'm not mental) but everything at once and that way nothing is complete. Same with wishing strong enough - rain. I wish to have empty and clear mind but at once i wish to be prepared for many situations so my mind is always working (the fact that it came to an extreme is a different story).

Novadays it's not easy, you have to concentrate on your work, studying, training, food, water, toilet, other people. But man(kind) has no limits, so i'm not worried.

I'll use all the advices i got here and let see what will happen

 

wonderful mind you have Peterminator

have fun

 

if you should get exhausted, confused, incredibly curious, bored or desperate..

just recall

it is possible to turn off the sound

 

prepared for everything? .....

[glooper23]

Peterminator, I think you are attached to the ideas you feel are stuck in your head. While meditating, if the thought of having to study pops up, that's acceptable. If the thought of studying persists after you've attempted to let it go or refocus onto meditation, then something is wrong. That is, you wanted to focus on meditation, yet you're now focusing on something else. Why?

 

The attachment is not something you ought to sever. There is no should or ought or have to. However, intellectually, you can realize that you are indeed attached to this thought of studying. The next step, in my opinion, would be to ask yourself why you are attached to it. Say you meditate for 15 minutes, and you whole heartedly know that studying can wait. Why then are you worried about what you've already decided is unimportant in this moment?

 

It's because you still believe it's important. Once again, I'm not saying it shouldn't be. But it would seem like it's not if you've already decided it can wait. If that's the case, remind yourself of that and gently put your focus back onto meditation. Any time studying pops up, thank it for being a reminder to get back into meditation. Eventually, after practicing for a while, you will improve your skill of prioritizing. In this moment, you're already good at focusing on something. You're likely close to 20 years old for goodness sake! Where you have room to improve is on your self-understanding. When you learn that meditation while meditating is more important to you than studying when you're not studying, you will see progress.

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator

[glooper23]

I've noticed some "magic" when I let go and be in the "now". In your case, if I had another exam coming up, I would let it go and meditate. More specifically, I would accept that I have a test in the future and decide to calm myself down and relax for 15 minutes. By acting to what is happening right now, I take care of what is happening right now. If you feel you must study, then go study. But be sure to study what you're studying instead of thinking about what you will have to study after you're done studying what you're currently studying. Because then, instead of studying what you're currently looking at, you'll be instead imagining the future.

 

Now that's what I call wasting time.

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator

[glooper23]

I'm glad to be of help.

 

Your awareness of the consciousness conflict with the subconsciousness is a great thing. I've been reading about how to influence the subconscious so that you can have more control. As it stands right now, when you say, "I'm going to study all day today", chances are you will not. You may sit in the library all day, but your mind will wander; you will go to the bathroom often; you will look around at others; etc. This isn't so much that you consciously lack discipline - it's that your subconscious has been trained to do those things. You've habitualized the art of wasting time, or simply focusing on other things than the studies. To change the subconscious, you can look into:

 

http://www.thegeniewithin.net/

 

http://www.psitek.net/pages/PsiTekTMKSContents.html

 

Both refer to methods of communicating with the subconscious to alter those habits.

 

Also, if how I described you above is inaccurate, I apologize.

[Peterminator]

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Edited March 14, 2016 by Peterminator