Hello there,
I'm Angie Goen and welcome to this guided meditation called Seeing Thought as Thought.
Let's begin by settling into a comfortable position,
Either seated or lying down.
Bring your awareness to the breath and notice yourself being breathed for a few moments.
So often,
We don't recognize thought for what it really is.
A reflective,
Transient,
Spontaneous,
Uncontrolled,
Impersonal phenomenon.
We are like fish in water with our thinking.
We don't even realize that we are constantly swimming in a sea of thought.
Now,
To be clear,
When I say thought,
I'm simply referring to the experience of words or images that come into your conscious awareness.
Basically,
Anything that comes into your mind that could be written down.
Right now,
Let's see if we can swim up to the surface of this sea of thought and take a really close look at what it is that we've been submerged in.
Take a moment now to tune into your thoughts.
Just act as an observer and attend to whatever arises without any judgment whatsoever.
The content of the thought is not necessarily important.
We're simply examining the nature of what thought really is.
This exploration is safe and any and all thought is welcome.
Go ahead and tune in now.
Imagine you have a brand new,
Beautiful blank journal open in front of you.
In this journal,
Every single thought in your mind instantly appears on the empty page as words or images.
When you see that content appear in the journal,
Whatever it is,
Label it in your mind as thought.
Notice that once the label has been given,
The writing disappears,
Clearing room for the next thought to appear on the page.
Once this new content appears,
Label that thought.
Again,
After labeling,
Watch as the page clears itself.
As words and images appear,
Note that they are thought,
Then see how they vanish.
For example,
In my journal,
I see the words,
I wonder what I'm going to have for dinner tonight,
Appear.
I mentally label that thought and see the words fade away on their own.
Next I see,
I wonder if I'm doing this right.
I label that thought and then watch the page turn blank again.
Now,
Turn all of your attention on your blank journal and allow any thought to materialize.
Label it thought,
Then watch it disappear.
Please,
Take the next few minutes to do this now.
Come back now and return your attention to your breathing for a moment.
What did you notice as you simply observed and saw thoughts for what they are?
Could you choose which thought came up or when it disappeared?
Or did it all seem to happen on its own?
Are thoughts really as solid as they sometimes feel?
Come back to this meditation as often as you'd like to increase your awareness and understanding of what thought actually is and how it might not be as meaningful,
Controllable,
Or personal as it appears.
Remember,
Awakening only ever happens right now.
Until next time,
Peace and love to you.
