Method - mind
Don’t think of a monkey!
So what happened then? Perhaps a monkey came to mind. Or, if you didn’t think of a monkey then, maybe you’re thinking of one now! Wearing a spotty bow tie... Playing the banjo! Alright, well then only think of the monkey. Keep the monkey image in your head. Don’t think of anything else...
Although you may be concentrating, the chances are you can’t hold a thought, or an image of one thing in your mind without a whole lot of other thoughts, ideas, and images crowding in on it. You see, the mind is random and thoughts come un-bidden to you. Just as thinking its-self is abstract. We really have no control about what pops into our minds. Your senses, on the other hand, are concrete. They can be relied upon and trusted. Ancient wisdom has it that your mind creates the world you live in. Trying to tame, or still, the mind can be like trying to iron a duck pond nice and flat! The more you try the more ripples you make!
But, by heightening your sensory awareness, you can quite easily become more mindful. Likewise, by observing your mind and not trying to control it, you learn to relax and soon develop mental agility and the ability to respond more appropriately and spontaneously in accordance with any situation.
With practice you will also feel more alert and awake. You will develop informed perception and a readiness to engage appropriately. Such states of mind are, surely, pre-requisites to a positive outcome.
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