Thinking vs Not Thinking

[freddyteisen]

How do you strike the balance between thinking vs not thinking. Just being present, getting rid of all conceptual frameworks vs conceptually understanding the world, learning, understanding & practicality surviving and going through life—

How much time should you spend learning about life, culture, history, art, politics, different perspectives, human behavior, business or other life fields vs how much time should you completely get rid of ‘trying to understand’ the world and just be present.

How do you know when to contemplate and think about deep topics, trying to understand the world, and when do you just turn your mind completely off and not think about ANYTHING, but purely feeling, sensations and being (the more Buddhistic way)?

[James123]

Just now, freddyteisen said:

How do you strike the balance between thinking vs not thinking. Just being present, getting rid of all conceptual frameworks vs conceptually understanding the world, learning, understanding & practicality surviving and going through life—

How much time should you spend learning about life, culture, history, art, politics, different perspectives, human behavior, business or other life fields vs how much time should you completely get rid of ‘trying to understand’ the world and just be present.

How do you know when to contemplate and think about deep topics, trying to understand the world, and when do you just turn your mind completely off and not think about ANYTHING, but purely feeling, sensations and being (the more Buddhistic way)?

You have to completely let go. When you completely Be, there will be no more world or understanding any topics, because, these are just concept of the mind. 

[Someone here]

Great question 🙋.  I would say there are no "shoulds or should nots". If anything..you "should " live spontaneously.  Think when you feel like thinking ..be silent when you feel like being silent . It's like anything else in life .. You do not ask when should I eat and when I should sleep on an empty stomach..right?  You just do whatever is more appropriate in the moment to do .

These days I literally sleep as much as I want..or skip classes in college..hang out on this forum ..playing GTA on my PlayStation 5..eating sometimes healthy greens ...eating sometimes crappy McDonald's etc no premeditated activities. Just do whatever you feel like doing.  At first you might think this is going to screw your life ..but if you read me the right way it is going to lead you to your authentic most resonating lifestyle. 

[Breakingthewall]

In my opinion the problem is not thinking but the origin of thought. If thought originates from openness to life, to reality, then it is positive and necessary to move forward, it is living thought, thought that opens.

If its origin is learned philosophy, it is second-hand thought. It can be useful when you are immature, but you have to leave it, since it is a dead thought, a thought that closes

[freddyteisen]

@Someone here Yea I get what you say.

Sometimes I have this want to completely get rid of all responsibilities and purely live life of purely magic and adventure.
 

NO adultery confinement, NO rationality or logic, PURE fun, playing and exploring, for hours & hours. Exactly how I could get lost in nothing when I was young. When I could laugh in the nature, sun, ocean and grass fields and just play and be. The childlike awe without any adult beliefs or dogma layered over existence.

No preconceived story, no old patterns or traumas layered over the world. Completely getting rid of ALL that indoctrination from kindergarten, school, parents, highschool or University, and purely seeing Life as mystical.

Purely seeing humans, animals, birds, cars and trees like mystical beings. (Even though humans do have their egos, their worldviews, way of surviving, ideas, way of thinking and pragmatism). I don’t let their worldview inflict with Me seeing Them as Mystical beings—they’re God and they’re mystical, They are just not aware they’re Mystical Gods.

At the same time I need to take responsibility, I need to survive, I must understand business, survival, politics, government, society, human behavior, science and psychology. I need to be serious and pragmatic. I need to have a clear understanding of the kind of society and world I live in, but STILL be able to live in that child like awe, bliss and wonder most of the time, where I don’t think—I just imagine, play and be.

But parents, family and Unifriends are ‘threatened’ when I live too much in the former category—as a wonderous child who sees life as an unserious game.

[Davino]

I like to enter into no mind when I do basic chores, walk from place A to B or just need a rest from too much thinking.

[Snader]

Very good question, it is indeed tricky to find proper balance. There are big difference in which activities or states of being people define to be about survival and what is more connected to their spirit. Also the labels of survival and spirit often have different meanings, so this is generally hard subject to discuss.

I personally have my moments when I'm "in the zone", locked into some specific task/(s) that are serving my survival, for example when I'm working or playing video games. I also have moments when I'm totally in the opposite end, for example going for a retreat or sitting in silence meditating.

Anyway, most of my life I would say is some form of mixture, where those "two different worlds" play together. I take as much as I can from my deepest realizations to my mondaying everyday life. This can be for example a tendency to consciously be kinder and more compassionate towards others or stopping to breath and enjoy a beautiful scenery while heading home at the end of the day. I also often try to be more present when doing simple tasks such as eating or cleaning the house.

Of course it's not that easy and there are moments when I would want to renounce material life and dive into divine while my petty human life requires attention. There are also moments when I would like to focus on some practical stuff such as having fun and socializing, while the sense of meaninglessness tries to creep in, making it hard to enjoy and be present. Sometimes I do the ''wrong thing'' purposefully, for example if I realize I have a deep biological need for it.

I believe it's these hard controversial moments where we grow and become more holistically mature. We must acknowledge the reality of human survival and the fact that it is hard to live truthfully and enjoy life on a deep level while being internally and externally bound to selfishness and ignorance. It seems like a skill that can be developed. I myself aim for balance by combining those two worlds to some extent, while also being understanding and forgiving to myself when I lose grip and get lost in either of the ends for a while. We always learn from those moments, if we pay attention.

[gettoefl]

There are two yous. One is no-mind and the other is all-mind. No-mind means you practice not thinking. All mind means you craft thoughts.

As we say in the UK, different horses for different courses.

[Paradoxed]

There is a utility in thinking, but humans are addicted to it, and it starts to get exhausting. Thinking happens for a reason but it can get you in trouble. Most people don't know anything besides complete identification with thoughts and are unaware they are thinking. It's okay to think, thinking is fun, so don't label thinking as bad, but have a disciplined practice of shifting focus away from thoughts and removing yourself from the constant thought stream. I just practice shifting focus away from my thoughts for longer and longer periods of time. I do think its important to be somewhat disciplined in this practice and do it regularly as to not fall back into your conditioning.