Concentrating on thoughts

[How to be wise]

What's going to happen if I concentrate on the thought 'The teacher doesn't like me' for a long time? Am I going to detach from it, or is it just a waste of time?

I've been concentrating on that thought for five days with one hour each day, and I basically got nothing. I usually feel better in the meditation, but I had no insights, and I usually feel bad soon after I finish the meditation. 

Is concentrating on thoughts a bad or long way of detaching from the thought. Is it better to contemplate the thought instead? 

[Pierre]

Concentrating on thoughts will keep you on a mental level. It's much easier, and more effective, to focus on the emotion. That's what make you suffer. If you let them come, accept them, you'll see that they are fluid, inconsistent and superficial. And that will free you.

[Joseph Maynor]

Good start.  Go meta on it now.  Ask what is the thought rather than focusing on the thought-story of the thought, also known as the content of the thought.  So ask: What is this thought?  Why do I identify with this thought in the first place?  Where is this thought coming from?  Is it coming from inside me or outside me?  How am I choosing to cling or not cling to this thought?  Can I let thoughts like this go, or release them?  What if your thoughts were not yours in the first place?  Would that change how you react to thoughts that come up? 

Edited November 26, 2017 by Joseph Maynor

[Nahm]

Why are you thinking about the teacher not liking you? 

[How to be wise]

@Pierre @Joseph Maynor I'm using Byron Katie's self-inquiry to achieve emotional mastery. In the inquiry, you first ask the question 'is it true?' So that's what I was trying to answer. By concentrating on the thought, I was hoping to get insights into that thought and to answer that question. But does it work is the question, or should I be contemplating it instead.

@Nahm That thought has been causing me a lot of suffering recently, so I wanted to resolve it.