Don't believe everything you think
Feelings come from our thinking
In this book Joseph Nguyen writes that thinking is the root cause of suffering. Reality is the event that happened with no meaning or thinking or interpretation of it. Our feelings do not come from events but our thinking about them. Therefore we can only ever feel what we are thinking. This means we can change our feelings by changing our thinking.
Our natural state is joy, love, ecstasy, freedom and gratitude like a baby. Only the thinking we do will take us away from this state and make us anxious. On the other hand when we are in a state of flow, we don’t think much at all. So the more thinking we have going on, the more anxious we become.
Thoughts vs Thinking
He makes a distinction between thoughts and thinking. Thought is a noun, it arises naturally. Thinking is a verb and we do it. We can allow our thoughts to come and go through us while we minimize the thinking about the thoughts that emerge. The way to stop the thinking is not by trying to stop but by just becoming aware that we are thinking. Then the thoughts dissolve by themselves.
One of the analogies he gives is of murky water. When we let the water settle, the dirt will settle to the bottom and fresh clear water becomes separated. In the same way if we let our mind settle it without thinking will become clear.
Goals of Inspiration vs Goals of Desperation
No goal is good or bad it depends on where the goal is coming from. If the goal is coming from a place of desperation we feel a sense of scarcity and urgency. It feels like a burden. Even if we end up achieving it, we feel more empty than we did before. The way out of it is to create goals of inspiration. When we create goals of inspiration, we feel moved to create. We feel inspired and expansive and feels more like a calling than an obligation. It is like a powerful force of life coming from us that wants to be expressed through us to be manifesting in the physical world. That is why painters paint, dancers dance, writers write and singers sing even if they are not paid to do it.
“When we stop thinking, we don’t stop having goals and dreams, we actually fall back into our true nature and begin to create goals and dreams out of inspiration versus desperation. ” - Joseph Nguyen
One way to think about inspiring goals is to think about this question -
“If I had infinite money, already traveled the world, had no fear, and didn’t receive any recognition for what I do, what would I do or what would I create?”
Creating space for miracles
When you let go of thinking and start working on things that inspire you, you will be inspired. You will start trusting your intuition. When you’re faced with a challenge, create space by surrendering to the divine wisdom and trust that you will get an answer.
Once you start believing that universe is working for you not against you, miracles will happen.
This book really resonated with me, especially about having inspired goals. I strongly recommend this book to everyone.