The more a product gives us a dopamine rush, the more addictive it is. There is momentary gratification followed by regret. The more pleasure we seek, the unhappier we become.The experience of happiness is very different from pleasure. Physiologically it is attributed not to dopamine but to serotonin. This is not an excitatory chemical but a pacifying one, it does not fire the neurons rather, it calms them down.Do the opposite of mind's urges. Every time we resist the urge for momentary gratification, we break the mind's control over us.

Discipline Your Thoughts— Pleasure Vs Happiness

We are not material beings having a spiritual experience. Rather, we are spiritual beings having a material experience in this world.

→ Automatic: They pop into your mind without any effort from your side.→ Distorted: They do not connect with all the facts. They jump to conclusions.→ Unproductive: They undermine your motivation, feed bitterness and rob your optimism.→ Justification: They provide excuses for you to be less than your best.→ Intrusive: They are disturbing or even vicious, and yet quite difficult to switch off.

How To Identify Negative Thoughts

7. Personalization: We assume personal blame for things that are outside our control.8. Blaming: We engage in blaming others that they are responsible for our emotional pain.9. Imperative Thinking: We set the bar high and then project our expectations on others. And when people do not match up, we detest them for it.10. Polarized Thinking: This is all-or-none thinking that we must be fully successful otherwise we will be absolute failures.11. Emotional Reasoning: We think if we feel something is true, so it must be true.12. Finger Pointing: This thinking is filled with fault finding in others.

Adi Shankaracharya asked a question in his book, Prashnavali :'Who shall achieve victory in the world?'The answer he provided was:'Those who have conquered their own mind'In this post we will learn to conquer our mind by knowing—<ol><li class="ql-align-justify">What is Thought</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Why Negative Thoughts Arise</li><li class="ql-align-justify">How to Identify Negative Thoughts</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Three Step System to Eliminate Negative Thoughts</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Discipline Your Thoughts— Pleasure vs Happiness</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Benefits of Solitude</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Positive 'Chintan'— Train Your Thoughts</li><li class="ql-align-justify">The Art of Effective Thinking</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Difference between Religion and Spirituality</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Four Aspects of Spiritual Thinking</li></ol>

What To Expect From This Post

1. Dilution— Distance Yourself From The Thought:Whenever a negative thought pops into the mind, remember that it is not you. Rather than adopting it, you can distance yourself from it.2. Substitution— Replace a Negative Thought With A Positive Thought:When unwholesome thoughts contrary to self-discipline and goodness arise in the mind, the reverse thoughts should be practised.3. Sublimation— Build A Positive Thought System:Focus building on the thought chain of positive emotions. Cultivate in your mind wholesome ideas of inspiration, optimism, cheerfulness.

Three Step System To Eliminate Negative Thoughts

<ul><li>Attachment Thinking: Our emotions prevent us from seeing things as they are.</li><li>Strategic Thinking: It's aim is to devise an effective blueprint for action.</li><li>Abstract Thinking: Thinking about intangible concepts such as freedom, equality.</li><li>Practical Thinking: Use of common sense to evaluate the feasibility of ideas.</li><li>Mature Thinking: Being aware of our emotions and having empathy for others.</li><li>Spiritual Thinking: To find a deeper purpose to life.</li><li>Divine Thinking: It imbues our every thought with selfless love</li></ul>Good thinkers are those who can use any or all of these styles depending upon situation at hand.

— Spirituality is the essence while religion is its external form.— Visit to a sacred place is religion. To sit down in one place and take our mind to the Divine is spirituality.— To take a bath in the holy Ganga is religion. To bathe our mind in Divine thoughts is spirituality.— To adorn the body with sacred tilak marks is religion. To adorn our personality with noble and sublime qualities is spirituality.— To offer oblations of ghee in the sacrificial fire is religion. To offer our obnoxious ego at the feet of God and become humble is spirituality.Both should be practiced to purify our mind.

Difference Between Religion And Spirituality

Self Awareness <ul><li>Distinguishing our lower nature from our higher nature.</li><li>Awareness of the purpose of our life.</li><li>Awareness of the values we live by.</li></ul>Universal Awareness<ul><li>Empathy for others.</li><li>Awareness of the interconnectedness of the universe.</li><li>Awareness of the Spiritual laws that govern the universe.</li></ul>Self Mastery<ul><li>Commitment to keeping our higher self in charge.</li><li>Living according to our values and purpose.</li><li>Commitment to pursuing our spiritual growth.</li></ul>Professional Mastery<ul><li>Serving through your professional work.</li><li>Serving in your personal relationships.</li><li>Serving through your position of leadership.</li></ul>

Four Aspects Of Spiritual Thinking

Thoughts are far more than the electro-chemical reactions happening in the brain. They are subtle energy forms created by the mind, with or without the assistance of the brain. It is pertinent to mention that not all thoughts require the brain's intercession. There are varieties of thoughts that can be generated by the mind only.Brain and Mind are not the same thing. Mind's function extends far beyond the gross tangible workings of the brain's neurons. It encompasses the intangible, invisible and transcendent world of feelings, attitudes and beliefs.

What Is Thought

<ol><li>Helps us to unwind from the clamour and noise of today's busy world.</li><li>Stimulates the Parasympathetic System thus relaxes the muscle tension.</li><li>Allows our brain to relax. Helps us to calm down our overactive brains.</li><li>Promotes body-mind sync. It makes us feel more grounded and in control of ourselves.</li><li>Provides an opportunity for perspective. Coming to a standstill helps us step back from hustle bustle and helps us to muse about the bigger picture.</li><li>Allows us to plan our life. Quiet space provides us an opportunity to introospect and evaluate where we are in our journey versus where we wish to be.</li></ol>

Benefits Of Solitude

In Sanskrit, mental practice is called Chintan. It means 'deep reflective thought'.Strategies to train your Chintan:-<ol><li>Think Intentionally: Disregard the programmed response & instead consciously choose your thoughts.</li><li>Revise Desirable Thoughts: Push yourself past the complaining mind & practice the contemplative thinking.</li><li>Think New Thoughts: Try new ways of thinking.</li><li>Feed Your Mind: Feed the mind a good diet of wisdom, inspiration & knowledge.</li><li>Physical Exercise: Exercise releases pleasure chemicals that supercharge our thinking.</li><li>Spiritual Exercise: Invest time daily in keeping the mind healthy.</li></ol>

Positive 'Chintan'— Train Your Thoughts

This includes a huge variety of thought skills.<ul><li>Diffused Thinking: The conscious mind is relaxed, our subconscious gets to work. Often happens while our conscious mind is engaged in some diversion.</li><li>Focused Thinking: The conscious mind is in deep work to get tangible results.</li><li>Big Picture Thinking: We explore possibilities and identify opportunities amongst them.</li><li>Detail Oriented Thinking: Going into details of something to do excellent work.</li><li>Critical Thinking: Thinking clearly and rationally to understand a matter in depth.</li><li>Reflective Thinking: Allows us to revisit experiences with fresh eyes.</li></ul>

The Art Of Effective Thinking

1. Overgeneralization: We make a general assumption based on a single incident.2. Fallacy of Fairness: We feel that life should be fair.3. Expecting a Catastrophe: We expect the worst to happen.4. Filtering Out Positives: We take negative details of a situation and make mountains out of them, while forgetting all the positive aspects.5. Imagined Mind Reading: The thought process where we are sure we know what another person is thinking. And typically, we assume it is something negative about us.6. Labelling: We observe a particular behaviour by a person and apply a tag.

Why Negative Thoughts Arise

About 2500 thoughts run through our mind every hour. Even at this moment we are bombarded with them. Imagine their potential healing power if they are joyous and optimistic. This book took an in depth approach to understand our thoughts.

Incredibly, the ingredients of a hugely successful life cost nothing at all. In fact, we mass-produce 60,000 of them every day. These are the thoughts that our mind creates. They are responsible for the happiness and distress we experience. They are the precursors of all we do. We grapple with improving our actions, only to find our attempts undone by impure thinking. If we focus on transforming our thoughts instead, incredible results will accrue from a fraction of the efforts. Since all aspects of our life are so strongly linked to our thoughts, we have much to gain by deepening our understanding of them. In this book, Swami Mukundananda, a world-renowned spiritual teacher from India and an internationally acclaimed mind-management authority, will teach you about watching your thoughts, directing them, dismantling harmful thought structures, creative thinking, meditation and much more. When you focus on revolutionizing your thoughts-the most fundamental aspect of inner personality-you will discover yourself evolving to divine heights to fulfil the purpose of your life.

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Religion & Spirituality

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

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Books

Incredibly, the ingredients of a hugely successful life cost nothing at all. In fact, we mass-produce 60,000 of them every day. These are the thoughts that our mind creates. They are responsible for the happiness and distress we experience. They are the precursors of all we do. We grapple with improving our actions, only to find our attempts undone by impure thinking. If we focus on transforming our thoughts instead, incredible results will accrue from a fraction of the efforts. Since all aspects of our life are so strongly linked to our thoughts, we have much to gain by deepening our understanding of them. In this book, Swami Mukundananda, a world-renowned spiritual teacher from India and an internationally acclaimed mind-management authority, will teach you about watching your thoughts, directing them, dismantling harmful thought structures, creative thinking, meditation and much more. When you focus on revolutionizing your thoughts-the most fundamental aspect of inner personality-you will discover yourself evolving to divine heights to fulfil the purpose of your life.

Swami Mukundananda is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Swami Mukundananda has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Swami Mukundananda's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

SWAMI MUKUNDANANDA

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