Why most techniques aren't effective

The main reason that most techniques aren't effective is that they have the person either trying to stop the thoughts or become unattached from the thoughts.

The reason trying to stop the thoughts doesn't work is because what we resist, persists. You've probably heard this phrase before, it's very popular because it's accurate. Treating the thoughts as real and trying to stop them, is like trying to lose weight by forbidding yourself to eat certain foods. The result is the same in both cases, you end up thinking about what you can't do all the time. The result is a rebound effect which usually leaves you worse off than when you started. With the meditation technique you end up aware of all these thoughts and feel bombarded by them with no way to stop them. With the diet you end up overeating, usually more than before.

The second technique (becoming unattached from the thoughts) is much more effective, but is still a very slow technique. The problem is that it also treats the thoughts as real. Typically the techniques will have you watching the thoughts pass by as clouds or by having you focus your awareness on a single object, mantra, or idea in the hopes that you'll eventually lose your connection with the thoughts. As you learned in, "What are the thoughts in your head" the thoughts that cause all the seeming problems are the illusionary thoughts and you can't go beyond an illusion as long as you experience it as real.

An example to clarify

Imagine the worlds best holographic video game, so real that to the human eye you can't tell it's a hologram. Now imagine that before you stepped into the game you had no idea that a game this life like existed. You begin playing the game think it's great, when suddenly you go into a new level. In this level things get so crazy and real that your mind gets fooled and you start to get scared. Everywhere you turn something pops up and scares you so much that you want to leave the game, but you can't the door is locked and the game will not shut off.

Now, what do you do? Can you stop the hologram? No. Can you become unattached from the the images and just let them pass by without notice? Maybe, after enough time has passed. Could there be another solution, an easier solution? Yes. If you could simply calm down and remember that it's only an illusion the feeling of fear would stop.

There is no difference between the holographic video game and the illusionary (judgment) thoughts in our heads. Recognize them as illusion and they have no control over you.

Mind Matrix

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