Tuning the Ever-forking Mind

Let me be reflective today. To just muse about things and not having to worry about sticking to a particular subject or theme. And quite inadvertently, I latch on to one: rambling.

We all have a rambling mind. It is the nature of the mind to jump from one thought to another. When we try to focus the mind on a single thing,--what we call concentration--we lose our connection with the surrounding. A focused mind accomplishes great things simply because all mental resources are targeted towards an intended goal. 

To focus one's mind is not an easy task as it is the nature of the mind to wander.  But what if we focus on the mind's wanderings? Is that sort of a meditation too? And of course it is: it's called mindfulness.

Being mindful is a different type of 'concentration'. You are tuned to a process, not an object. The mind in actual fact is a process--a stream of thoughts that does not cease. If we do not have any expectations, anxiety or distractions, the mind bubbles with natural 'thoughts'. 

If we tune the mind to noticing whatever it is that bubbles up, voila we are doing mindfulness meditation. It may sound easy but it is not. The problem is that we always latch on to a specific thought and then fork off from there. The mind is ever-forking and that's how we normally operate.

To be mindful is to not follow a thought. We allow the next fresh thought to surface. If our thoughts have a common theme or setting, then it is not a 'natural' thought--it is an obsessive stream, which we are often sucked into.

To be mindful is also to be in tuned with one's surroundings. You 'see' everything that's occurring as part of the vibratory nature of experience. You are part of the universal ebb and flow of energy--there's no separation between you and the universe.

The universe is the reservoir of inspiration. When we are in tune with it, we are creative. Ideas pop into our heads because we in essence are part of nature that is expressing itself.