Mindfulness- Concept Vs Reality

In this session we explore and play with the idea of Concept vs Reality. In the Dhamma, the Buddha used different words to explain and describe how we very often take what we encounter through the Sixth Sense doorways and add a lot of our own stories to it. In modern neurobiology they're seeing the same thing. In this session we observe this process and get curious about whether or not the patterns and habits and Concepts we are applying to what we experience are useful.

Transcript

Okay,

So welcome everyone and very sorry for the Technical issues there.

Thank you for your patience and hanging in there and I Was saying that I've been reading this really amazing book It's called how emotions are made and the author her last name is Barrett and she's a neurobiologist And her main field of interest is trying to understand how emotions are made Which is why she wrote this book how emotions are made because what she's finding as a neurobiologist and studying the brain is that in the past they used to think that certain brain centers were specifically linked to certain experiences,

But now with the more advanced brain studies are seeing that there's a lot more fluidity and Undefiniteness about exactly how we get to feel the way that we feel And they used to say well Brent one brain center makes you happy and one Brent's brain center makes you sad And you know if there's certain triggers those centers get activated and that's how we experience what we experience But what they're finding out now is that it's not like that at all that for some folks one brain center Seems like it makes them help some experience happiness.

But for somebody else,

It's a completely different brain center and And what the time haven't finished the book but about a Fifth of the way through she's trying to be very clear about that The way that we experience reality is very fluidic and this is what the Dharma Practice has been teaching for thousands of years.

The Buddha seemed to have realized this as well that there's this difference between This thing that we experience of life as phenomena and the relationship we have to that phenomena and So the word that's very often uses concept and I've read it all a lot in the Dharma teachings,

You know about Concept versus reality and in this book this modern book on neurobiology and how emotions are made and how the brain works She's using the exact same term that concepts that we take in information from the outside world and then we Categorize it and we conceptualize it and that leaves us feeling the way that we feel So why is this relevant to our meditation practice?

It's relevant because We as meditators are seeing if we can Unchain ourselves from the conditioned Relationships that we have to the phenomena that we're encountering because It's fluid,

You know that that's what all this Science is starting to help to clarify and again what the meditators been saying for a long time Just because something that in the past has been Considered to be bad or negative.

It doesn't mean that we have to have the relationship to it that we've always had There's a way to Use a channel,

You know what we may define as perhaps it was a bad situation We can reframe that and rework it as being like oh,

This is an opportunity This is a chance to see things from a different perspective.

This is a way to learn about myself reframing reworking Having a different relationship and where we can do that,

Right?

And we know again now because the brain science,

You know,

Not just because of the brain science,

But it's nice when science supports Something like this that meditators been saying for a long long time that oh Depending on the way that you think about something or don't think about it is going to dramatically affect the way that you feel about it and so this practice of mindfulness meditation Allows us to do two things the the Samatha part of the practice the calming disengaging part of the practice allows us to Get the skill that allows us to not be so entangled or caught up or enslaved by some of the things that we are experiencing and then it gives us the opportunity to kind of Know that we can work with it right and just kind of get back in there and say well This is conceptualization and I will repeat the name of the book again It's called how emotions are made and the last name of the author is Barrett B-a-r-r-e-t-l write it in before the end of our session so and One of my favorite quotes is that there's a saying that says So and one of my favorite teachers at Asian,

EIA he and his latest book he also talks about concept versus reality now reality is a little bit tricky because We don't want to start Or I shouldn't say we don't want to but it can be very very we want to be careful I would dare say that that it might be wise to be careful about what we start Defining as reality because it's one of the things that the Dharma teachings warn us against really Feeling the need or watching the desire to fix things into quote-unquote reality Because everything's in motion.

Everything's fluidic.

Everything is changing.

So to have a basic relationship to Functional reality like,

You know,

We have a name we have a job we are you know,

How we're Responsibilities this is a suggestion to pretend that none of those things are real But on the other side to have a more fluidic relationship to them to realize the inherent ephemeral and changing nature of those things might make it so that when those things change which they're going to it's not so difficult or so painful and that is really going right to the core teachings of the Dharma the The three marks of existence the first mark of existence is impermanence.

Everything is changing so intellectually we can certainly probably process that but Emotionally,

It's a much bigger deal,

You know,

Like if we're in a committed relationship and all of a sudden We're not right and we thought everything was fine.

And then all of a sudden our partner informs us like oh,

It's not fine And we're done here.

That's a big change,

Right?

So I think that You know for a Dharma practitioner is it's not like that's not gonna hurt if we're if we don't want the change But the way that we process that change if we have the understanding and wisdom of the Dharma can make the transition a lot less painful You know can really start to help us to move on and accept and and this happens all the time in many different ways so we'll do our sit and what we're gonna do is we're going to pay attention and I just wanted to touch on this again sorry for one more second before we go in is that what we might call reality and concept right concept is the Categorization and the conceptualization of what the mind does as soon as it encounters Reality,

Right?

So apparently we're just swimming in the sea of light and sound Waves,

Right and then the brain kind of interprets things very quickly.

Oh,

That's a tree.

That's a car That's a person that person is my brother that sound is a car,

Right?

And so this is really useful.

We need a brain that can do that But on the other level those things can be prisons.

Oh that person is bad Right.

This person is good.

That car is nice.

That car is a piece of garbage,

Right?

And so there may be certain sheens of Relative usefulness to those types of definitions,

But they can also be prisons and we can imprison ourselves Out of habit patterns that we don't even know are kicking in so what we're gonna do as we sit is we're going to just simply ask ourselves what the mind is knowing and be a sound or sight or taste or a sensation or a smell a Thought or an emotion and we'll just try to label it as that Phenomena right as that kind of thing that's happening thinking smelling tasting touching and we'll try to notice how quickly the mind wants to categorize it and Conceptualize it and we want to just kind of be observers It's as if we've gone on a safari and we're watching the animals out there the animals of the mind Right kind of doing their thing.

Oh,

There's smell kicking in Oh there's the part of the mind kicking in that defines what that smell is and whether I like it or not and And this is what we're gonna this is what we're doing all the time and with mindfulness practice We want to see and be aware of this process so situate yourself in a position where you are both really relaxed and yet very very Awake and sharp and clear could be lying down sitting up standing pacing and then eyes can be opened or closed and And turn your attention towards the part of your mind that is simply aware of what's going on and it could be the first things that you notice maybe physical sensations or emotions or sounds or whatever it is and Then see if you can get as simple here as possible The mind is knowing an emotion Could be good could be bad could be unknown and then just notice how quickly we start to try to the mind wants to again categorize and conceptualize and As soon as you notice that's happening.

See if you can take a step back again and notice again.

What is the mind knowing?

And how quickly the conceptualization and categorization starts to happen and then take that step back again to be the watcher as opposed to going along with the momentum of categorization and conceptualization conceptualization Notice perhaps how quickly we get caught up into the categorizing and the conceptualizing Totally common,

Right?

This is what we all do all the time and it's quite radical to try to do something different With that process right nature kind of designed us to do that and what the Buddha realized is You know,

Sometimes a really really useful Natural skill can also become a bit of a trap right as very intelligent emotional beings We can get caught up unknowingly unconsciously Into what these concepts are and the Buddha and folks like him figured out.

Hey There's a way to be free of that enslavement Right what the Buddha called nirvana or emptiness the deathless the unconditioned freedom and This is thing that happens apparently when folks have been in prison for a really long time They don't know how to make it on the outside,

Right?

They've gotten used to being in prison the boundaries the fixed schedule not knowing how to act or behave or survive on their own and This may be happening to us right in our self-created Structures,

It can be really scary to play with that concept But if we are trapped if we are in a prison of our own making We can ask ourselves a question Would I rather know that and be free of it and see what's out there?

Or not And I think the mindfulness practice and meditation practices are for those of us that we want to know We're interested in this type of thing and we're willing to take the risk and go on the adventure of finding out what's out there in a freer state Could be quite terrifying right to leave the familiar to go into the unknown the Buddha spoke about Going from being going from having a home to a homeless state And that doesn't necessarily mean like we can we don't have to necessarily give up,

You know Living that life of a householder but psychologically emotionally mentally Where are we?

That's why they say practicing the Dharma can be dangerous and scary because we're really going into Uncharted territory,

Even though prick people have been practicing for 2500 years and giving us pointers and and suggestions about how to navigate Every one of us is slightly different In certain ways,

It's quite remarkable if you think about how many ways we're really similar And how we are really quite different,

You know,

So You know,

We all need to be aware of that We all need water to drink.

We all need love and shelter,

Right?

These are kind of common alities between us and a good reason to really care about each other and to make sure that we Don't behave in a way that interferes with another's ability to flourish and to find their own way and yet Nobody's like us right?

We're as individual as a snowflake or a fingerprint,

Right?

There's no one that's ever been like us before and we're all different Snowflake or a fingerprint,

Right?

There's no one that's ever been like us before and no one that will ever be like us again Right the circumstances that created who we are in the moment are completely unique And so our journey is also unique our challenges our triumphs our dreams and aspirations And until we're free of the programmed conditioned habit patterns,

Um We're going with the program,

Right?

We're going with What has been laid out for us?

And that's not always a bad thing,

Right?

If breathing wasn't programmed into us We would have a problem if a lot of the automatic systems of the body weren't programmed into us We wouldn't be alive for very long.

So not all programs are bad But we want to notice which ones are limiting us And that's where wisdom kicks in.

Where am I?

Cutting off my ability to be happy and joyful and loving and kind to myself and to others As dharma practitioners,

That's what we're interested in How am I sabotaging my own flourishing and interfering with the flourishing of others?

These are the big ethical and And uh,

And the big ethical life questions,

Right and just kind of functional life questions Am I living my life to its fullest?

Or am I being held back?

So on that note,

We'll transition into our loving kindness practice and The loving kindness practice again can really help us to connect to the part of ourselves that cares deeply and truly about What we're experiencing and the effect that we're having on Ourselves and our others in the way that we speak and behave So we're seeing if We can really stoke this fire of caring Said that the buddha's last words were Things fall apart Tread the path with care Right.

So,

Um,

He taught a lot he taught for four years and for that to be his parting words It's pretty Um,

It's pretty intense.

It is different.

Uh,

That's one translation of his last saying but um,

I like that one because it really just kind of care kind of really seems to create a sphere of Of attention to all our activities and everything that we do So as you Say the loving kindness phrases to yourself See how much you can feel them If you're feeling them and it feels nourishing and enriching Let yourself really take that in and let that resonate as deeply and thoroughly as possible And if it's not Notice that and see what is resonating and see what is uh,

Kind of surfacing and this is all really useful,

Right?

Whether you're there or whether it feels far away if you're doing it consciously if you know what's going on You're doing the work really well So you don't have to force yourself to feel something that you don't feel or put pressure on yourself Just be with what is that is the nature of the mindfulness practice.

What is actually here?

What are we actually experiencing?

So to yourself,

May I be safe?

May I be happy free from mental and emotional suffering suffering?

May I be healthy and find the wisdom to keep this body running as smoothly as I know how And may I be content And find a way to survive that isn't too difficult May I know compassion Sympathetic joy meaning can I be genuinely happy for other people that are happy?

Without resentment or envy or jealousy And may I be Equanimous may I try to stay pretty balanced Even as life is just throwing me here and there and up and down and all around which life does And then sit with this for a moment or two and just Again,

Try to have a very honest Experience with yourself give yourself permission to say hey,

This feels really nice or This feels like a lot of nonsense or whatever.

It is.

Just can you give yourself permission to have the experience that you're having without needing to fix or to change or to force or to repress or deny what your real feelings are about this process now to others right to The people and animal beings that you care about the most to right through to people that you Like but it's more complicated to what we call neutral people that you Kind of know but don't really think too much about to someone that's challenging To someone that's really challenging all the way to someone that you might actually have some seriously dark feelings for They're all other right?

That's the categorization of other Not not this embodied being that you are and the buddha didn't differentiate between When he said tread the path with care to care for ourselves and to care for others,

Right?

He didn't differentiate because uh,

The reality is that we are Intermixed we're interwoven with all the living beings and the planet itself and to Kind of accept we have to contemplate that and see Is that something that we can swallow?

Is that a pill that we can swallow because it's it's hard,

You know We look out there and we see a lot of things out there that are very hard to say.

Well,

That's part of me It's easy for us to say well,

I didn't have anything to do with that And to a large degree,

You know,

This is very complicated,

You know,

So but that we are Connected is is definitely Something I think worth considering So all these others again from our dearest to our most challenging relationships Putting it out there and then also putting it in there asking ourselves.

Well,

You know,

What could I do?

What would I do?

What will I do given the opportunity?

And basically offering and caring May you be safe?

May you be happy?

May you be?

Healthy and content May you know compassion?

Sympathetic joy and equanimity And mindfully observing.

How is this resonating right?

So What does that mean mindfully observing it just means that we are just asking ourselves?

Well,

What do we do?

We are just asking ourselves.

Well,

What are we knowing?

What is the heart mind knowing in relationship to this list of recitations?

To this orientation towards caring for self and others so easy to get caught up in our habit patterns of Disappointment and fear and frustration and anger,

Right?

These are completely normal things to do and so Sometimes we can do our mindfulness practice and it's all Lovely,

And then we get out there in the world and our buttons get pushed and we're off to the races you know kind of in our minds and in our bodies and words and um,

You know as practitioners we want to See this if that's happening and uh And accept that this is happening and then decide is this who I want to be?

Is this how I want to live?

Is this?

Something that is worth paying attention to and working on Um,

And again as individuals as mature conscious adults We have to make those decisions every day.

We will wake up and uh,

Every event that we're in just to kind of keep on saying.

Well,

What am I going to do here?

I was mentioning last session that I have this phrase that I started to use pretty recently.

It's like um,

Going to connect to my dharma,

You know,

So for me,

That's just a catch phrase.

It means i'm going to remember What I care about,

You know,

I care about trying to be a decent person I care about um trying to be as loving and and connected to what's going on around me and pay attention and Just trying to do my best,

You know and trying to figure out what does that mean in every given situation I very often will link that to a deeper breath or two to kind of help ground me if i'm not feeling ungrounded and um It's lovely you can really play with this and you know If there's a phrase or a word or a thought that kind of concept can kind of conceptualize All those things and again,

We kind of started the whole session around this idea of conceptualization It's not like it's all bad,

Right?

We can use concepts and Break down the ones that interfere with our flourishing and reconstruct ones that are really useful in helping us to uh be the Happiest and and most joyful and uh kind that we can be So a few moments of gratitude practice same type of mindful awareness around As you ask yourself,

What am I grateful for?

And just giving yourself permission to Feel whatever it is that you feel Sometimes when I do the gratitude practice if things are really tough,

It almost makes me angry I'm,

Just like,

Uh,

I'm not grateful for anything.

Everything is really difficult right now and i'm so Not grateful for that and then I kind of have a different I reframe and say well i'm grateful that I give myself permission to Be honest with myself enough to admit that you know,

And that feels it then feels better and uh,

And so whatever or you can have a whole list,

You know,

Maybe things are really great right now and Uh,

There's many things you're grateful for and I wish that for all of you,

But uh that can fluctuate as well So maybe some things are great and some things are challenging But what can you actually feel?

And appreciate right?

Can you feel that gratitude?

So what can you feel gratitude for?

Okay,

So,

Um,

So jennifer just asked me to repeat the um,

Part of the loving kindness practice.

I think if I understand the question correctly,

Um the part about Um,

May I be happy and that's uh free from mental and emotional suffering so again,

These are huge uh inquiries,

You know that we kind of can encapsulate into these small phrases and that's the way that the practice was communicated for thousands of years before writing and recording devices,

Um small phrases In which contained a lot of information and content So on that note,

Um,

I strongly recommend um Finding the dharma lists either through my website morphisyoga.

Com Under the dharma section.

There's a link to the dharma list or just googling the dharma lists and trying to populate uh and familiarize yourself with these lists and Seeing how interested you can get in them because they create a frame of reference And they give us some contextualization of you know,

What do we do when we're in a normal life situation?

And um,

How do we use these practices?

How do we use the teachings?

How do we use what the wise ones have said in the past about how to navigate?

So we can navigate with greater care for ourselves and others The dharma lists are really really Amazing set of tools that we can access in order to help us walk this path with a little bit more ease and then uh,

Just as a reminder You can always be mindful through the course of your day.

You can check in and say well what phenomena am I encountering?

And what concepts and conceptualizations and Categorization start to kick in and are they useful do they feel wholesome and useful or do they feel like they're dragging me down?

And even just with that noticing we don't even have to do much more than that.

We're doing a really excellent practice The loving kindness practice anywhere anytime to yourself and others and gratitude practice anytime anywhere Just checking in and being like well,

What am I grateful for?

The heavy lifting is if when we're really challenged we try to do loving kindness and gratitude because that's completely radically going against the grain of the moment,

But That's perhaps how we get really really strong With them is doing the heavy lifting and then when we we have this reservoir of strength and uh and nourishment when we need it and that I think we just start to kind of kind of dwell there and that's the Brahma viharas right the loving kindness practice and compassion Sympathetic joy and equanimity are all part of what the buddha called the brahma viharas The highest dwellings so I think by naming it that he was saying You might want to live here,

Right?

And these states,

You know,

Because they're beautiful and it makes life a lot more enjoyable so Thanks friends for joining.

I wrote quickly the name of the book how emotions are made by lisa barrett Really interesting.

Um,

I love the teachings of uh,

Tajaniya There's several links to His work so by all means check out tajaniya and Hope the rest of your day is filled with Peace and well-being.

Sorry for the technical Glitches in the beginning.

I'm not sure what happened there and thank you for hanging in there if you did And look forward to seeing you next time.

Be well Bye.

Bye

Reviews

Love your meditations and talks !❤️ Very grateful 🙏