Our instincts play an important role in our lives.
Instincts are made up of tendencies+emotions+feelings.
Instincts can have two meanings — 1) sensation and 2) consciousness. Or we can say that when our conscious and subconscious minds combine together, they create sensations, which we can instincts.
These sensations are activated by internal and external causes —the internal causes are our past lives karma; the external, our environment.
The Agamas (scriptures based on Mahavir’s teachings), describe various instincts such as:
- Fear
- Anger
- Pride
- Deceit
- Greed
These instincts are considered “sentimental” instincts and their outcomes are almost identical
- Fear leads to Fear
- Anger leads to Anger
- Pride leads to feelings of superiority
- Deceit and greed lead to possession & dissatisfaction
Then there are instincts that are actually more about our thought processes — one such instinct is having the desire for worldly possessions. And when we don’t get what we desire, it leads to dissatisfaction, anger, and other feelings.
Instincts don’t just affect our behaviors and habits. They also impact us physically (externally visible) and mentally (affecting our mental state).
They lead to changes in our facial expressions, voice (tone), and our physical gestures and posture.
But, the best thing about instincts is that they can be changed. Urges and impulses can be pacified and feelings can be neutralized.
This can be done by adopting two simple habits: isolation and introspection.
Isolation is the first step. When I say isolation, I mean removing ourselves from the day-to-day environment (and people in it). This means sitting quietly in a quiet room or finding a quiet space where nothing from the outside intrudes.
By practicing silence and solitude we stop all inbound interactions. This allows our brain time to process all our thoughts and the emotions we deal with every second of every day.
In the beginning, this process is uncomfortable. It is not at all enjoyable. But by continuing to sit in silence and removing myself from all the stimuli of the external environment, I learned to control not only my emotions but also my thoughts. This led to better control over my actions and words.
Another technique that worked very well for me was counting my breaths. I learned this technique from a very learned man who was my spiritual advisor during my challenging years. He told me simply to count my inbound and outbound breaths to 100, without allowing any thoughts to intrude.
The reason this is an effective technique is because you can’t count and think at the same time.
Try it and you’ll understand why it took me six months to get to 50 breaths without having to restart and another eight before I was able to count 100 breaths without having to restart my count.
My point is that meditation doesn’t have to be complex. We don’t have to visualize a white light (and activate our third eye). [I’ve never seen the “white light” that meditation gurus talk about, so those who have will have to forgive me for saying “I don’t believe it exists”. :)]
Sitting in silence and counting my breaths are two habits that have transformed me. I am in better control of my emotions and maintain a positive mindset even when things don’t go my way. I am also a lot more tolerant these days — even towards those whose only fault is that they’re still breathing. JK, lol.
All jokes aside, whereas in the past it was a chore (to get on the spiritual path), now, I thoroughly enjoy spending time with myself. I am happy to leave a party early or even skip one, if it means I get to spend even one extra hour doing absolutely nothing but talking to myself and understanding all the things I’m experiencing/feeling.
And the best part is that I didn’t spend a dime getting here. All I needed were time, a quiet room, and determination to change myself for the better.
My end goal is to expend as much old karma attached to my soul as possible WHILE stopping new karma from forming. Not an easy task or even 100% possible when you’re an “attached” mom, wife, daughter, and grandma. But being in control of my thoughts, words, and actions, and understanding my motivations helps me get on the spiritual path. And that’s good enough for me.
What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear from you.
