Mindlessly Present

This chapter of my journey, I think I’ll call, “Shhh”. Just hush. I’m reading Intuition by Osho. Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever read an Osho piece of any kind, but in my experience, with the books I’ve read, it can be a challenging read. I also now know that Osho was practicing some things in some ways that I totally don’t agree with. However, reading books by people like Osho who I a. don’t always agree with, and b. don’t care too much for the style of writing, is a good way for me to practice taking what I need from what’s offered to me. 

That’s why I Love podcasts so much too. They teach me how to truly and actively listen. I don’t always agree with everything I hear, but even if it pisses me off, they’re not here for me to snap at. That teaches me that it’s okay to disagree and move on. It also helps me appreciate the similarities and shared points that are there. They help me know that just because I disagree with one thing, that doesn’t make everything said garbage. I can sift through and apply what I need. 

Anyway though. This isn’t about that. It’s about my latest application in my journey. Through reading the book, Intuition, I was introduced to this concept that intellect isn’t needed in all spaces. In the book, Osho says that he doesn’t think unless he’s speaking or writing. It definitely sounds extreme, but it really stood out to me. The fact that it did, let me know that I was existing in the right space and time to take in this message and apply it. 

It felt so appealing to me. I’d said a thousand time that I wanted to make everything a mindful practice. I wanted to immerse myself in everything I did whether it was taking a walk, washing dishes, or having a conversation with someone. I would always try, but that’s the thing. I was trying. It always felt like such a task, such effort. What Osho’s introduced to me was that instead of seeking mindfulness out of every event, it was time to be mindless. 

All day, I am plagued (for a lack of more dramatic word) with thoughts. And I see that, when I feel bad, it’s at the hands of something not presently happening. Think about it, unless you’re solving an equation, how much use does your mind have in each present moment? What is there usually to think about? If you commit to monitoring your thoughts for a day, I can almost guarantee you’ll find that a large chunk of each task is done without thought on it, and so many thoughts on so many other things. 

With my intention being on feeling good, and noticing when my anxiety is at it’s worst, when I’m over thinking, this mindless idea felt heaven sent. I had to commit to it. So, here we are. The first day that I committed to mindlessness was so pleasant. I mean, SO PLEASANT. Even the things that did annoy me felt much smaller than they usually do, because I didn’t fuel them with thoughts. So, they just dissipated when I noticed. That was my favorite thing of the day, for sure. 

Throughout the rest of the day, I just listened intently to the music I played. I noticed my breath. I really looked around. And I found so many things to laugh at. It really did feel like a free child, free and playful. When thoughts did come up, if I deemed them important, I wrote them down, and have been scheduling time to give thought to things that actually do need my mind’s attention. 

As I said last week, I’m sharing in real time. So, if, for some reason, this all blows up in my face after a week, I’ll be back with an update. For now, however, this is feeling like the move. I’m enjoying my time of little to no thought. This is true presence. Who’d’ve thought?!