by Prof. Ravichandran
"Your thoughts create your life, and you are what you think “You are not going to become what others believe you to be”
Most of us know our thoughts make most of us, almost everything of us, whether we are happy or healthy or prosperous or able to fulfil our desires and goals.
The inherent power of thoughts decides our life, whether we are healthy, happy, or successful in attaining our desired goals. What we think will manifest in life. Everything is a product of thought. If we repeatedly think about how we want to be, either positively or negatively, will manifest in life. Ideas should be deliberate, conscious and guided. The ability to become more mindful or more aware of within is the mechanism to achieve whatever we want in life.
Most of us confuse between the mind and the brain. A brain is a purely physical organ connected with the living body. The mind is immaterial and is the seat of thoughts, perception, emotions and feelings.
Thoughts and emotions are the keys to everything. That premise leads us to the firm conclusion, everything in life that happens, mostly, are controlled by our thoughts, and emotions, which emanate from the mind. Your inner thoughts affect your health, energy, happiness, and success.
Does it mean our entire destiny is all due to our mind, which is continuously exposed to external events, experiences and waves of thoughts? Mostly we can say with certainty, yes, but few exceptions or events might happen through external elements or outside your control. Still, even those externalities can be easily influenced or controlled or tackled or mitigated by a robust and willing mind, if it is trained over time and can become more vital to face all real-world situations and to take control.
Can we conclude, whatever happens to us in our life, it is due to our mind, thoughts, emotions, the reactions and response as a consequence? Yes.
If we control our mind or the thoughts or the thought process, we can reach or achieve the desired destinations or attain the real purpose of life. The next question is, how to control our mind, where our thoughts, emotions, reactions and responses originate?
Thoughts, feelings and imagination – these are so powerful, that create everything in life. These have been bestowed upon us to lead a fulfilling life. They are not meant to lead us to any negativity. The body and mind are the most sophisticated and complex system gifted by the supreme. How are we going to handle this system and take charge of mind, to lead a purposeful life? It is entirely with us, to decide to lead a life on how to handle our thoughts, emotions, reactions consciously or allowing them to be influenced by external events (without much of our control).
Thoughts, responses, reactions, emotions are a result of memories, past and present. That means our actions come from the past and the present memories.
The first step or action in mind control or mind management is to review what is already retained or stored as memories consciously or subconsciously. Is it easy to remove the past unwanted thoughts or events or experiences that have crept into the mind? We can do it if we are firm and have a strong will, what he or she wants to act or decide due to his past or present experiences. Just like our computer, we can only store or retain only our essentials, we delete or remove unwanted things. The more we remove unwanted thoughts or memories, the lighter our mind becomes, leading to clear thoughts and intense focus of mind. Also, if we are more delicate in our mind, we tend to become more positive in our thoughts, thereby removing enmity, hatred, revenge or other negative thoughts, which unnecessarily pollute our minds, causing heaviness.
Let us say, if someone thinks, that some past act of someone has caused some distress to him or her, he or she has got the free will to either forget and forgive or to keep distressing thoughts, that will add more misery, again that might lead to taking revenge on that person. If we forget through forgiveness and remove all ideas, previous memories, that can harm us, we become lighter, leading to better space for the mind to absorb more positive things in future.
The second step in mind management concerns retaining good thoughts, ideas, data or information. To keep thoughts, we start a process of mind management. This process comes with a great pursuit and intense focus on only our desired actions. The approach to control mind or mind management is to approach slowly or gradually. Control of mind is itself a process, just like taming a horse before we learn horse riding. Each one of us needs to decide what we want to achieve in life (Self-introspection) in various aspects – learning, career, health, personal life and other elements. Hence building goals and defining them and prioritizing them (profoundly aware). Then clarify and write or document very clearly and define a gradual path with defined objectives.