The Constant Interruption of Thoughts

written by YeShey on Sunday, November 8th, 2009

The first question that I asked to Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo when I met her was “is it possible for any and every westerner to achieve the state of shamata?”* Her answer was quick and precise…”Yes”.  I was a bit shocked that she answered without making any further statement like ‘if they try hard enough’ or ‘if they have the right karma’ or ‘if they do it everyday for 3 years’, or ‘if they are in retreat for a minimum of 30 days’ She simply said “yes”.  I ventured forward with one more question, just in case she wanted to make an addendum to her answer  “are you sure?” and she again, said “yes”.

At that point I had been unsuccessfully meditating for about 7 years.  I was sitting on my cushion and doing my practice, but I found that most of my time was spent thinking and not meditating.

I learned Shamatha about a year before and knew that if I could master shamatha, I would improve my other forms of meditation. When I met Tenzin Palmo, I was living in India and had just come out of a 40 day silent and solitary retreat. During the retreat, for the first time,  I had extended periods of focus without distraction. I wanted to know if this was possible for the average meditator that could not or would not go into retreat.  ‘Yes’

Tenzin Palmo has been a Buddhist nun for 40 years and has received teachings and guidance from some of the great Buddhist masters of our time.  She has also spent 18 years in retreat (12 of them in a cave).  I trust her and what she says.

A few years later, when I began to teach meditation, I felt confident telling my students that anyone of them could get full control of their mind.  There are clear and easy instructions, it just takes patience, diligence and practice.

During meditation, the constant interruption of thoughts can be completely frustrating and easily generate a feeling of failure.  And, because we are sitting there watching the thoughts, we can become quite exhausted by the nature of the thoughts themselves (anger, worry, self-loathing, fear, etc.).

Everyone experiences this, they are just obstacle.  No problem.  Don’t worry about any of that. The moment that you notice  you are thinking, just happily return to the breath. No judgment, no frustration, no comment at all, just breathe. Notice every breath like you would notice every breath of a snake that is sitting in front of you,  coiled and ready to strike.

It takes time to break any habit.  The habit of the mind being in control is a habit that is deeply ingrained, like a line carved in a rock. It will take time and effort to make the rock smooth.

Know that it is possible and know that you know how to do it. Have faith in the process. Keep a positive attitude, remember your motivation and keep checked in with the forums here.

With metta,

Yeshey

*Shamatha is the type of meditation that we practise in step one and step two of meditation village. It is a Sanskrit word translated as calm abiding. When we achieve the state of Shamatha, we are able to keep our mind on an object of our choice for an extended period of time.  Shamata has many advantages, one is that is is a very peaceful state, we are completely present, in the moment – concious and connected. It is is also a state of mind that is necessary to have if we are going to go further in mediatiotion and learn how to put your life into a state of balance and live happily.