I liked Jerome's question because it very clearly described the different kinds/flavors of thought. Often we feel like we must stop all thinking in order to connect with ourselves/life in a more immediate and real way. This, as far as I know, is pretty much impossible.....or at least it is in a constant way. The mind can use thinking in useful ways and in useless/painful ways. To realize the difference is just a matter of attention. We can, and sometimes do, turn away from unhelpful imagined descriptions of ourselves as a small personal entity destined to fail and then, in a split second, realize the task at hand and engage with it. That focus on what's happening as it's unfolding, without the personal me being in charge of what's happening, contains thought but it's a much more intelligent, results based use of the mind. In other words, thought can be used to engage with the actuality of what is or it can spin stories of what isn't. There's a world of difference between the two but we have to develop a sense of the difference. Personal thinking most often leads to discomfort whereas thinking that's focused on what's actually, immediately impersonally happening doesn't.
I liked Jerome's question because it very clearly described the different kinds/flavors of thought. Often we feel like we must stop all thinking in order to connect with ourselves/life in a more immediate and real way. This, as far as I know, is pretty much impossible.....or at least it is in a constant way. The mind can use thinking in useful ways and in useless/painful ways. To realize the difference is just a matter of attention. We can, and sometimes do, turn away from unhelpful imagined descriptions of ourselves as a small personal entity destined to fail and then, in a split second, realize the task at hand and engage with it. That focus on what's happening as it's unfolding, without the personal me being in charge of what's happening, contains thought but it's a much more intelligent, results based use of the mind. In other words, thought can be used to engage with the actuality of what is or it can spin stories of what isn't. There's a world of difference between the two but we have to develop a sense of the difference. Personal thinking most often leads to discomfort whereas thinking that's focused on what's actually, immediately impersonally happening doesn't.