Does Your Mind Have An Off Switch?

My honest answer? I don’t know. Or, if it does, I don’t know where to find it and use it when I want to. Sometimes I feel my mind is switched off. But the moment I notice, it’s like I accidentally turn it on and it starts up again. This newsletter looks at the age-old question of how to quiet our busy minds. Needless to say, lots has already been written about this topic. So, what do I have to add? Let’s find out.

There’s no doubt the mind is an awesome information processor. We get bombarded every day with millions of stimuli which demand our attention. Since our attention is limited, it’s critical to separate what matters from what doesn't. Or, as they say, to separate the signal from the noise. Signals are the things we respond to, noise is what we ignore. And, if our processing is really efficient, we’re not even aware of what we ignore. We just cut out the noise. And, let’s face it, some of our days can be very noisy indeed. This means our minds often have a lot to do.

Does our mind ever stop? Perhaps it does when we sleep. On the other hand, we know a bunch of unconscious processing goes on even then. Can we be wide awake and aware and switch off our mind consciously? Perhaps even just for a little bit? Apparently, the answer is yes. What’s more, research shows that doing so (especially if we do it regularly) brings a number of benefits.

Okay. So, where is the off switch and how do I use it?

The off switch is called meditation and, of course, it’s nothing new. It’s been around for ages. Why am I writing about it? Because I know there are circumstances when my mind switches off, as it were, for a while. But I’d like to do a better job of stacking the odds in favor of getting it to happen when I want it to. Let’s start by listing some of the benefits of meditation because that will likely motivate me to actually do something about it (my mind is quite simple that way).

Just a little research shows the benefits of meditation include: reduced stress, improved memory, increased attention, enhanced willpower, better sleep, less pain, lower blood pressure, less anxiety, less depression, and more compassion. Not a bad list. Let’s assume we’re convinced that meditation can bring benefits worth having. How do we do it? Where is that off switch?

The good news is that there might be less to this than meets the eye. My mind might be expecting a ten-step program with levels to achieve (and perhaps different colored belts or trophies for me to display) because that’s a common way of accumulating knowledge and skill. But not in this case. However, it’s also not quite as simple as the Nike slogan “just do it.” So, what’s the answer that’s somewhere in between?

Here's a quote I came across that I think is very helpful. “The mind is a time-traveller; the body isn’t.” For me, this explains why so much of what you read about meditation has to do with sitting still and focusing on your breath, or on the pressure of your backside on your chair or cushion, or on the sounds you hear around you, or anything your senses are telling you is happening right now. This is because all those things your body is telling you are in the present moment. Therefore, focusing on them brings your time-travelling mind into the present moment whether it likes it or not.

And, to be honest, often your mind doesn’t like it. So off it goes, time-travelling again. Perhaps into the future to think or worry about something that hasn’t happened yet. Perhaps into the past to visit fond memories, or regret something you did or didn’t do, or find something (or someone else) to blame for why the present is the way it is. The future, the past, so often anything but the present moment.

Focusing on your breath puts a stop to all that. Why? Because, as we’ve seen, the body doesn’t do time travel. It's always here and now. The breath you’re taking this very minute is right here and right now. Therefore, as soon as you focus on it, your mind will also be right here and right now. This actually works. Try it and see. It switches the mind off. At least for a bit.

But what if thoughts spring up nonetheless? Here’s a practical suggestion. Rather than focus on what your body is telling you about the present moment, you can deprive thoughts of the one thing they need: attention. Thoughts need your attention, preferably your undivided attention. Without it they simply go away.

Try watching your thoughts instead of thinking them. Just watch and see what happens. Your mind will become empty and silent. Lao Tzu asks “Can you coax your mind from its wandering and keep to the original oneness?” (chapter 10). That’s exactly what we’re doing. And “coax” is a great word to describe it because it suggests encouraging or allowing something to happen rather than forcing it.

By the way, what is Lao Tzu’s “original oneness”? It’s the Oneness/Wholeness that exists before our minds get to work splitting it up into all the separate things we think we see, and need to name, talk about, fear, desire, judge as good or bad, and everything else we fill our minds with. This oneness is what Lao Tzu refers to when he says “The Master keeps her mind always at one with the Tao; that is what gives her her radiance” (chapter 21).

Let’s suppose we succeed in being like the Master, at least for a bit. Now what? The answer is nothing. (Or, more accurately, no thing.) Just stillness and quiet and oneness. And how long do we have to keep this up? Well, some sources say just ten minutes a day is enough to start bringing the benefits listed earlier. Worth checking out? I’d say so. After all, ten minutes is not a high price to pay.

Before closing, does Lao Tzu have any other helpful advice? Yes. It seems being alone in natural surroundings stacks the odds in your favor. “Ordinary men hate solitude. But the Master makes use of it, embracing his aloneness, realizing he is one with the whole universe” (chapter 42).

There’s that “oneness” again. Perhaps the biggest benefit of switching off our busy minds is the reminder that we’re “one with the whole universe” regardless of how much time our minds spend wandering away from the present moment and seeing ourselves as somehow separate. That’s enough to make you curious about the off switch – quite apart from all the benefits that come from using it from time to time.

If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, you can get in touch with me by:

• replying to this e-mail (which will include this newsletter)
• sending me a new email, i.e., without this newsletter

Send new email

• reaching me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FrancisPringMillAuthor
• using the Contact page on my website www.francispringmill.com/contact

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share this newsletter.

Francis

IN OTHER NEWS...

Past newsletters are here: www.francispringmill.com/newsletter-archive

In Harmony with the Tao: A Guided Journey into the Tao Te Ching is available here. There Is No Somewhere Else: Insights from the Tao Te Ching is available here.

Synopses and reviews for both books are on www.francispringmill.com/books

If you have enjoyed my books and have a spare couple of minutes, I'd love it if you could leave an Amazon review so more people can discover them. (The customer review link for In Harmony with the Tao is here, and for There Is No Somewhere Else is here.)