When Your Mind Wanders In this exercise,
I will explain what to do when your mind wanders,
And how to think of intense sensations in a way that doesn't fuel judgment,
Aversion,
Or other unhelpful thoughts.
As you practice this mindfulness exercise,
Are you finding that they always help your mind settle and become calm like a still water?
Or did you discover that thoughts sometimes rampage across your mind like a wild bull?
Virtually everyone's mind wanders while trying to bring mindfulness to their breath,
Body,
Thoughts,
Or pain.
This is entirely normal.
It's what minds do.
The moment that you become aware that your mind has wandered,
There's actually a moment of mindfulness.
If your mind keeps getting distracted by intense pain,
Try thinking of them merely as sensations,
Pure and simple,
And rest in awareness of them.
You may see that these thoughts about the sensations can actually make things worse.
Then,
In recognizing them as thoughts,
And just letting them be without pushing them away or pursuing them,
You are putting out the welcome mat for the sensations themselves.
Maybe because they were already here anyway.
Why not just acknowledge them for now,
Realizing that the part of you that is aware of the sensation is not itself in pain or moved by these thoughts and feelings at all.
The mind knows them directly.
Underneath all conceptual labels and descriptions and stories,
See if you can just be aware of whatever thoughts and emotions arise.
As you continue to sit here or lie here in touch with the breath in your body,
Moment by moment,
It's a sign that you are moving away from the autopilot,
Toward a more intentional,
Choiceful state of mind,
One that allows you to see the world more clearly and helps you to respond more effectively.
Notice any thoughts that might be floating to the surface,
If you're struggling with thoughts,
Feelings or sensations,
Observe this struggle as it is without reacting to it.
Imagine that these are visitors coming to visit you and you're observing these visitors of thoughts,
Feelings and sensations.
Whatever they are,
You do not have control over them coming and going.
However,
You can learn by keeping still and observing their changing state.
As all these visitors are in permanence with practice,
These moments of awareness become more frequent and join together in the flow of awareness.
Well done.
So let's recap.
If your mind keeps getting distracted by intense pain,
Try thinking of them merely as sensations,
Pure and simple,
And rest in awareness of them.
You may see that these thoughts about the sensations can actually make things worse.
Realize that the part of you that is aware of the sensations is not itself in pain,
The practice is simple.
Be aware of whatever thoughts and emotions arise.
As you continue to sit here or lie here,
In touch with the breath in your body,
Moment by moment.
Now we are reaching towards the end of this practice.
I hope that this has helped you.
May you develop mindfulness through this practice.
