Your Mind is a Chorus

I've talked briefly about the idea of the mind as a chorus of different voices of the mind in my introductory post.

If you have experience meditating, you almost certainly have at least an inkling about what I mean. Otherwise understanding this idea is best done through a simple demonstration.

The gentlest introduction to meditation.

You need no preparation. No special clothes. No special place.

Just sit comfortably. On a pillow or in a chair. Or a park bench. Where does not matter. Sit alert, upright. This is not essential - you can meditate standing, lying, walking -, but it is the easiest way of minimising distractions while reducing the chance of falling asleep.

The only advice I will give is to avoid meditating in your bed. Actions create associations, and teaching your mind to stay alert and focused when you wish to sleep is not a good idea.

If your view is gentle and not chaotic, you may keep your eyes open, or half-open - it too helps avoid falling asleep but may make it harder to focus. For some dryness of the eyes will also make it hard to avoid the distraction of blinking.

Breathe. In. Out. Slowly.

Start a timer. If you want to, you can set an alarm for 5 minutes or 10 minutes, or just let it run so you can see afterwards how long you lasted. This too is not essential; it is an aid that serves two purposes:

1. it makes it harder for your mind to fight you by insisting you've been meditating for too long (any impulse suggesting it's been "too long" is almost certainly false).

2. it teaches you how long 5, 10 or whatever amount of minutes of meditation feels to you.

I give this advice as one of the biggest hindrances I faced when I started to meditate was a sudden insistence in my mind that I was late for something. My mind could not tell me what, or why. I knew I was not, but the compulsion to stop meditating and check my watch got stronger and stronger. Your mind will throw up hindrances, because meditation is different, and strange. It may be like mine, or different, but the more you can find simple ways to counter these hindrances the easier your path will be.

But if the timer is a hindrance, don't use it. If you do use it, do not place it so that you can see it count the time, as it will distract you.

Breathe. In. Out. Slowly. Pay attention to your breath. How it passes your lips or your nostrils. In. Out. Feel yourself become calmer. Your breath slower.

Whenever a thought pops into your head, let it slip away and gently return your attention to your breath. Again, and again.

Whenever you notice your concentration lapsed and you got caught up in thoughts, return your attention to your breath.

This is all. You now know all you need to start meditating.

Afterwards, do two things:

1. Take note of how long you sat, and how you feel.
2. Think through the thoughts that popped into your head.

Chances are if you managed to silence your mind enough at least some of the thoughts that popped into your head will demonstrate wild inconcsistencies.

"You" are shifting constantly. "You" are amorphous like the ocean; a collection of voices creating and breaking harmonies in a dramatic symphony with every moment.

Our lives are full of them: We go on a diet, yet absolutely deserve that cake even though we know it is counter-productive. We're going to be good and do our work in time, but suddenly cleaning the kitchen is vitally important. We're too tired to clean the kitchen, but suddenly we have all the energy we need to go out with friends.

You will start noticing your mind acting much more like a chorus of voices playing out an elaborate drama than a single, united person. I am not talking about literal separate voices (auditory hallucinations happens at some point in life for a lot of people, but that is different), but about impulses driven by separate motivations.

Day to day they appear part of a single narrative. But the moment you allow yourself to truly pay attention, the inconsistencies will leap out at you, and you may start to notice different strains of motivations.

"You" are shifting constantly. "You" are amorphous like the ocean; a collection of voices creating and breaking harmonies in a dramatic symphony with every moment.

You can fight those impulses blindly, like most of us do; you can learn to notice what is happening and fight it knowing what you're facing, or you can learn to listen to them play out, observe them, and learn about yourself.

While repeating just the simple exercise outlined above is often tremendously frustrating at first, fighting to push aside intrusive thoughts your mind throws up to derail your effort, pay attention to the voices.

One notable constant is that these voices often do not present the real reason behind the impulse...

One notable constant is that these voices often do not present the real reason behind the impulse: You do not crave that cake because you deserve it, but because your gut is signalling it's not getting the calories it is used to, and your mind throws up the excuse that seems most likely to push past your diet goal.

You will learn to quieten them when necessary, but do not ignore them. They are just as much part of you as the "you" you hear when you talk to yourself.

Become the director.

Become the director

With time you can recognise the different voices as coming from different motivations or arising from different situations. You'll recognise that the voice telling you that you really deserve cake is just a product of being hungry while going to the store, and learn how to settle it and "negotiate" with the other parts of yourself rather than blindly accepting an internal narrative that is inconsistent and chaotic.

While meditation has many other benefits, I find it important to highlight this one because it is often ignored amid lofty promises of enlightenment and all kinds of spiritual rewards. Meditation can grant a lot of rewards, but this ability to sort through your own motivation is to me the most immediate tangible reward you can expect in your day to day life.

Recognising the illusion of the ego is central to many meditation practices. And that is a worthwhile goal. But the first small step on that journey is to shatter the illusion that your mind speaks with one unified voice.