An excellent day today, although it didn’t start particularly well. Because of our work in the loft I have a stiff back and after 15 minutes of my exercises I went back to bed – there’s no use rushing things!
Karaj and I discussed my problems with observation. I find it difficult to observe. The reason for this is that I go straight into analysis, which is based on my upbringing – a time when I was told what to see. My analysis distracts me from whatever is going on. Whilst I am analysing an incident, based on my (cultural) conditioning, everything else is passing me by. Instead of trying to work out why something is the way it is, all I need to do is to observe what I see. It is a simple case of recording the information my eyes and ears and physical sensations provide me with. There is no need to take it any further. The answer will follow automatically.
It’s a matter of trusting myself. As a human being, I am a complicated organism capable of so much, yet I lack the appreciation of the vast resources available within myself, all of which transcend my cultural conditioning. One aspect is being able to analyse information at a level which goes beyond conscious thought and conditioning. Let go, relax, and things will happen. Instead of using unnecessary, energy-sapping analysis, why not allow my being to compute the information and provide me with the answer when I need it.
I am reminded of the story of a man who could calculate enormously complex mathematical problems in his head. This did not happen in an instant, however. What happened was that he would listen carefully to the problem and promptly walk away and forget about it. Some time later – hours or days, depending on the complexity of the problem – the answer would simply come to him. It would just pop into his head. The explanation for this is that his unconscious mind went to work on the problem while he went about his life. When the computation was finished his unconscious mind would supply him with the necessary information i.e. the analysis.
We can all do this if we observe. When we observe, the natural consequence of our observations is an analysis which will appear to come from nowhere. We do not have to expend energy unnecessarily because we all have the capabilities to provide ourselves with the answers with the minimum of effort. All we have to do is observe. In the mathematical story, once the man had listened carefully to the problem, there was nothing else for him to do.
All of us are wired up to be able to do this – it is not a trick, it’s a tool, and a wonderful one at that. It is simple and effortless, provided we take in all the information. It is important to note that the analysis should not occur at a mental level – there’s no need – the intuition will deal with it. Furthermore, the analysis will not appear as a worded conclusion in the mind. It will emerge as a feeling which surrounds and envelops. I simply need to trust my feelings. Trust myself.
Related posts: Observe Rather Than Analyse | The Analysis Will Come | One Simple Observation | Listen To Yourself