Two Exercises Using Self-Talk

Because of a negative stigma associated with self-talk, we may regard a person who does so as "out of one's mind".  But in fact we spent a lot of time each day engaging in inner dialogues and frequently talking to ourselves under our breath.  Many of those silent thoughts are based on our distorted views and self-defeating beliefs which often lead to negative emotions.  But perhaps we can also use our inner talk to experience a shift by engaging in these exercises:

Exercise One:
For the next 24 hours, skip the words "I" or "me", "mine", "myself" for any self-talk you might have using yourself as a pronoun.  So "I want to eat an apple." becomes "Eat an apple."  Or "I am so happy." becomes "So happy."

Exercise Two:
For all dialogues that you have with yourself, skip your comparison and instead describe something without labels of value judgement.  Example of such predefined labels are good, bad, love, hate, like, dislike...Those are all labels of definition we use based on splits and differentiation, which of course are also words of polarity or extremes.

Observe how you feel at the of a day when you have done these exercises.  Do you feel different?  Are you more calm?  And do you notice that the second exercise becomes easier when the "I" or "me" wither away?

Doing vs Being

In spiritual practice, a lot of people associate "doing" with actions, an engagement in physical activities.  Conversely, "being" is being interpreted as "not doing".  At best, this can only be partially right.  "Doing" also has everything to do with the act of thinking, thinking of who we want to become.  How can I become this or that?  And how can I go from here to there in life?  Of course this is not the same as planning on mundane matters like how to cook a new dish or to commute in an unknown city.  Rather, it is the desire to become somebody that is not who we are right at this moment.  Or to put it in another way, it is the non-acceptance of the present moment.  Can we really accept that everything is happening exactly at the right time with you perfectly at the right place with the right person?  We are often exerting too much effort which goes against the law of nature and not trusting that all experiences are precisly what we need for our spiritual growth.

But as we are in this physical reality, we are bound by time and space by default.  And most crucially, we are limited by our own thought system.  We do not need to dismiss our thoughts, the key is not to become the slave of our mind.

Bubble

An illusory world that we have created
With one deluded thought, followed by many
Flowing like a river, pouring like a fall
But always perpetual
Can you see the reality from beyond?
Or are you living within the bubble?
Within or without, freedom can be gained
The moment you wake up from your dream and not just dream of waking up
Experience your experiences
- not with a mind of duality but a mindless Mind, not with an ego-grasping self but a selfless Self