Can You Control Your Mind ?

100%.  But that is rather our potential and the gaining of control usually requires deep practice and cultivation.  So for the majority of us who are still queuing for the ticket to enlightenment, we still have a lot of moments feeling really out of control.  Metaphorically, the sail is steering away in a totally different direction although we know deep inside us that whichever way that we are heading towards, it is not the right action that we want to take.  Helplessness it is called.  Unless you are one of those blessed reincarnated entities who have transcended human suffering, we are born to identify with "I"- me, me and me.  That is when the trouble begins.  When we are are so attached to ourselves, our first and foremost objective is survival and self-preservation.  So rather than controlling our minds, we let our minds control us and lead us to all those fear-based thoughts and actions.  Undoubtedly we have this unconscious belief, albeit wrong, that such thoughts or actions will give us the security and protection that we yearn for.  But only do we realise in hindsight that the inevitable rise to greed and sensual attachment cannot feed our souls, and anger and aversion also fail to shield us off from external attack from enemies.  All these stemmed from our ignorance and wrong perception of our egocentric "selves", which we will move heaven and earth to preserve.

If we can step back, detach and witness ourselves as participants in a cosmic show, we may be able to play along and engage ourselves with awareness in the game rather than seeing it as a threat.  This will loosen our grasp of the "I" and reinterpret our relationship with the world.  Perhaps then the outcome can bring you pleasant surprises when you can let go of the desperate need to control.  And most likely, you will drop the need to have any expectations and no longer equate control with safety.

Seeing is Believing?

Seeing makes it believable because you think what is in front of you is real, as simple as that.  But what we see is only what we are wired to see.  To understand this better, some brief notes on Biology 101 may help.  We all know that we see with the pupil of our eyes.  The light first passes through a protective outer layer called cornea, and then moves into the lens.  The adjustable structure of the lens bends the light, focusing it down to a point on the retina which is at the rear of the eye.  When nerve signals are sent by the retina to the optic nerve, the brain or more specially the visual cortex, steps in as the interpreter and processes the visual input.  It elaborates the visual stimuli we receive and transforms them into what we perceive as reality (visual images).  So thanks to our brains for constantly interpreting, correcting and giving structure to the visual input from our eyes as it is indeed a highly selective process.  It is always busy choosing what to concentrate on and what to filter out.  Casting out all the terminology, it is thus the brain that constructs our visual world, physiologically.  To make it more perceivable, we would like to attribute it to the brain.  Tactile and visible it is, right?  But after all, isn't the brain just a product of the mind?

So what determines what we have chosen to see then?  Visual memory and attention work together to allow a smooth and coherent transition from one source of information to the next.  When the data is stitched together, we do need our brain to create our perception of a meaningful visual world.  But it is only meaningful to, literally, the eye of the beholder.  There is more to what is behind the meaning.  The meaning only makes sense when it is coming from the judgement and beliefs accumulated from past experiences of the individuals.  Some of the things that we can see and observe on a day to day basis may be pleasing to us, but I cannot say that this is the case of the majority of our experiences.  If we were to work in reverse, how about if we can be more mindful and reflect on what we can choose to see and demystify all our judgement behind our choices? 

Blow off the Flame

A primary school science teacher would tell you that a fire needs three basic things:- oxygen, heat, fuel.   A small candle cannot store much heat in the wick.  By blowing on it, you remove heat by blowing the warm air away.  Since the only fuel available is the melting wax at the tip, it is thus possible to remove the source of ignition - the flame.  Once the source is cut off, it cannot no longer burn no matter how much fuel or oxygen is available.

So in our every day life, how can we inhibit the fuel from burning when we are consumed by anger, sadness, anxiety and every other intense emotion?  We surely know that such emotions are derived from or thoughts, and most of the thoughts that we have today or tomorrow are also thoughts that we had yesterday.  Human beings are simply animals of habits.  We tell ourselves stories with content that we seldom doubt its accuracy, only to next realise that we are re-telling it over and over again even though it is bygone and outdated.  Intriguing enough, some neuroscientists have noted that the physiological lifespan of an emotion in the body is 90 seconds, after which it will dissipate and dissolve on their own.  Still there are other new age advocates who claim that within 17 seconds of focusing on a thought, a matching vibration becomes activated until its manifestation begins when you can remain on it for as little as 68 seconds.

But there is not much relevance here to debate on the precise time period for which emotions can survive.  It is more important to know that we have the opportunity to be mindful about our feelings and emotions moment by moment.  The shift happens when we give ourselves a break to the ruminating thoughts just by witnessing our emotions and becoming aware of its physiological expression - and most importantly, with the mind stepping aside.  The mind (ego) would always want to step in, flex its muscles and play the role of a protector.  And if you find that challenging to do, short-circuits it by proactively but immediately engage in a simple new activity.  Say a mantra, take a few long deep breaths or sing a song.  Your choice.