Quiet Mind, Infinite Possibilities

Are you ready to explore the limitless possibilities that lie within a quiet mind? Join Clare in this thought-provoking session rooted in the profound insights of the 3 Principles. Learn to tap into the boundless potential that emerges when the noise of the mind settles, allowing for clarity, creativity, and new perspectives.

Transcript

Hello and welcome to the CalmCast, A time to feel calm and think clearly. I'm Claire Downham, The Queen of Calm, A Transformational Life Coach. I was a burnt out head teacher who finally made the journey to calm after years of trying, And I want to prevent you from having to do the same. The CalmCast is a series of short explorations gently guiding you back to your natural state, Which is calm and clarity. Just listen like you would listen to music, With an open mind and curiosity. There's nothing else to do. Now let's relax into today's episode. So good morning, Or good afternoon, Or good evening, Depending where in the world you are. Today's exploration, Quiet Mind Infinite Possibilities. And as I say that phrase, I kind of feel like I've heard it before somewhere, Like somebody's probably going to tell me it's the title of a book or something, Because I have this inkling that I've heard it before somewhere. So I'm going to start really by, Well, Reminding you that this is a three principles conversation. So I'm always pointing us to the truth of how our experience is created via these three principles of thought, Consciousness and universal mind. And if you are not familiar with that, Then please go look it up. Listen to more of my content, Perhaps read up some stuff about three principles, Because if you love listening to me, Then listen to me and learn about three principles. If you think I'm annoying, That's fine too, But go and learn about the three principles. I listen to lots of different teachers and I've come across teachers that I don't like as much as others. I don't like the way everybody articulates it, Although actually I mostly like everybody. If I'm talking to anybody who's talking about this understanding, I kind of like listening to them. But, You know, If I'm not for you, Then please do find some other way of learning about three principles, Because it's the most life-changing thing I've come across. And I've learned from lots and lots of different teachers over time. So I really do recommend you doing that if you can. So I guess where I'd like to start with this is kind of my story about trying to attain a quiet mind, I think. So I think, Well, Before I burnt out, I had no idea that a quiet mind was a thing at all, Because my mind was like the M25 at rush hour. It was non-stop noisy. So much so that eventually I kind of stopped sleeping, Because my mind would be just so busy all the time that I couldn't even rest, Really. And particularly, And I'm sure some of you are familiar with this, The kind of three o'clock in the morning, I must start thinking about things and getting really, Really, Yeah, Very busy-minded and not being able to get back to sleep. So as I was burning out, That really was the way I was a lot of the time, Was busy, Busy, Busy-minded. So I didn't even know that quietness of the mind was possible for a long time. And then I guess I came across meditation as a practice. And I really can't remember the first time I came across meditation. I remember going to, Years and years ago, I mean, Even possibly before I had my children, Who are 23 and 21, Going to some kind of Buddhist centre near my house in Leeds and doing some meditation course there. So I'd obviously been looking, I'd looked in that direction for a long, Long time. And I think when I got into, So after I burn out, I got really into a regular meditation practice. And I would say that probably lasted about four or five years. But at that point, I would meditate every single day and literally didn't miss a day. I think there was one day I missed and that was the day that I was rushing to see my dying father in hospital. So that was the day I missed. It kind of seems fine to miss that day. But anyway, I was pretty obsessed. I made sure it happened. And I think during meditation, I would have this clarity and start to see something of this infinite possibility thing that I'm talking about today. I would start to feel a little bit more connected to wisdom because that's what I'm saying here with the, You know, Within the space, Within the quiet, There are infinite possibilities, Possibilities that our thinking mind, Our brain couldn't possibly imagine. And that's why the world of humans is such an interesting and fast moving place is because people come up with things that just come from nowhere really. And then they move towards them and the world changes. The fact that I can share this content all over the world via lots of amazing places and mediums is just amazing, Isn't it? Just fantastic. So on my journey, That trying to get to the quiet mind became quite an obsession, I think, Really. And that did include lots of meditation. And I did it in a minor way compared to, You know, Some of my, One of my favorite three principles teachers, Dickin Bettinger, Used to meditate for four or five hours a day. And I was actually listening to a podcast a few days ago where the couple on the podcast had been meditating together and they were in a really, Yeah, Full on meditation practice where they would meditate four hours a day. You know, Four hours. I mean, Who's got time to stay for four hours a day? I certainly don't have. So that was kind of where I was when I came across the three principles, Seeking a quiet mind as if, And now how I see it is so different. Like, How, Why would we think that we need to find something out there that is already inside us? So something that we have to think about doing, That we have to plan, We have to organize, Have to make sure it happens, We have to have it scheduled in, In my case, In order to attain something that is actually natural and innate. But that we spend a lot of time thinking. Because that's the only, Let's be honest, That's the only thing in the way, Isn't it? And I know if you've done any meditation or you've even just spent five minutes quietly sitting, And I do recommend doing this actually, Just as a, Just not, Not as a practice, But as a curiosity, As an experiment, Like, Can you sit still for 15 minutes, Five minutes, Two minutes, And just observe the, The catalog of utter tollywaffle that goes across your head? Can you, Can you do that? Because actually that, That really is, That really, For me, Begins to unravel this relationship we have with our thinking, Where we think all the answers. We think the infinite possibilities are in our thinking, Don't we? Like, If I think about this hard enough, Then I'll find the answer, I'll, I'll achieve my dreams, Blah, Blah, Blah. And actually, It isn't there, You know, The, It isn't in our thinking. It's, It's somewhere much more, Well, It's infinite, Isn't it? So how, How can it be, If it was in our thinking, It couldn't, Couldn't be infinite, Could it? Because our thinking is just like leftover stuff that's, It's finite, Isn't it? There is no, There is nothing, Yeah, There's nothing there but our old thinking. So the, What I saw through meditation was I did begin to see this, Oh, There's my thinking, Became more aware of it, More of an observer of it. And that was really powerful. But this three principles conversation, What happened to me is that I came across it in January 2020, And by the summer of 2020, I had stopped meditating. Now I do dip in and out of meditation every so often. Now, If I, You know, Just fancy doing it, I do it. But I do it, I do it, I do it, I do it, I do it, Because it's a nice thing to do. Like I fancied going for a walk this morning, So I've been for a walk. But, And sometimes I fancy doing a bit of meditation, So I do a bit of meditation. Sometimes I fancy cake, And I eat cake. Like it's not, It's not this doing it to kind of get, Try to get somewhere, But doing it for the pure joy and, You know, Enjoyment of it. But I do notice that there is less, And I think that less noise in my head. There's more quiet, There's more space between the thoughts. And I think that's just come from letting go, Not by, I must let go of this thinking, But really from, Oh, That's a train of thought that's a bit useless. I know there's no answers there, And that's a train of thought that makes me feel bad. I know there's no answers there. And an observation sometimes of a circular, I'm going over this, So you know, Thing over again, Or even just an observation that when certain types of things happen, I've got a kind of default thinking pattern. And these days I kind of know there's nothing in any of that. And that's really cool, Because I just engage less. So the quietness almost comes from the disengagement. I just don't bother as much. I still get caught up in loads of things, Don't get me wrong, I'm a human being, And I do get caught up in things, And I don't see this all the time. But when I do see it, That's what the experience is like. It's like, Oh, Hello, There's that kind of thinking, That's a bit rubbish, Doesn't make me feel good. And so what I'm noticing now these days is just more space, More of a quiet mind, And the possibilities. So the infinite possibilities really are seeing ideas coming and just going with them, Like going with the guidance of my wisdom, As it is. Just seeing that when something just feels right, To just go for it. Whereas previously I would have listened to the thinking, You know, There'd be a thought something feels right, And then there would be a lot of thinking around that. I don't know why I'm so emotional this morning. Sometimes I just am. So this morning, You're probably gathered, If you're watching this, You'll see that we're in Trevor this morning, In a beautiful, Beautiful spot, Wish you could see it. And this morning I was about to do some yoga, I'd got all my gear on to do yoga. I have a little space where I can just fit a yoga mat in. And then I just thought, I'm in a beautiful wood and there's a path over there. So I gave Bruce a nudge and we went for a walk. And I feel really like, I notice my skin feels all like, You know, Rosy-cheeked and energized from the walk. And that was just me trusting. I've made quite a lot of decisions recently, Just because it felt like I was being nudged in a direction, Even though it was unexpected. Or, You know, I've just signed up for some help with PR and that was unexpected. The lady reached out to me I've known for years, Actually, When I think about it, And never really spoken to her much and just had this one conversation and I just knew it was right. And within days I was on the radio. So there was something like, Amazing about that. Like just listening to that, It's got so much, That's where the infinite possibility is. And what I love you to see about this is that it doesn't have to be the cure for cancer. I mean, Brilliant if you do come up with a cure for cancer, That would be amazing. And I'm hoping people looking at cures for cancer are working from this space. That would be amazing, Wouldn't it? But it could just be the decision to go for a walk rather than do some yoga. It could just be the next little, It's generally going to be, Like infinite possibilities, It's not going to be boom. Like people think, I think, With their intuition, That they're looking for some massive, You know, That's it, It's the answer to everything. But it isn't. It's often just so quiet. It's often just the next step. It's often just the next little decision. It's not massive, It's not huge and it's not noisy, It's quiet. And that's almost why you need the quiet mind to access the infinite possibility. And the infinite possibility is not in your thinking, It's not in your personality, It's not in that which is already there, It's the fresh and the new. That's where it is. So just keep, You know, The thing here is to keep looking in this direction, To notice if you are allowing yourself some time for quiet, How noisy is your head? And this is not a tool or technique to make your mind quieter, But to look towards what's possible when it is. So I hope you have a wonderful day with lots of spaces between your thoughts and lots of quiet, Lots of love. Take care.