The goal of true Buddhists is to live completely in peace with a lasting state of serenity by giving up mental suffering. Although becoming a true Buddhist is a step too far for most people, because being completely freed from mental suffering also means renouncing things that mean a lot to the average person, there is a lot to learn from it. The way Buddhists view negative thoughts in particular can be valuable in learning to deal with these thoughts properly.
Who was Buddha?
Who was Buddha anyway? Buddha was an ordinary person named Siddhartha Gautama. He was not concerned with physical theories, inventing a new telescope or even religious issues. Therefore, Buddhism can be seen more as a psychological method and not as a religious one. Siddharta’s goal was purely to get to the bottom of spiritual suffering and eliminate it. He had made this his life’s goal. Once he achieved his goal, he taught others about his method for achieving it.
To eliminate suffering, Siddhartha composed the ‘Noble Eightfold Path’. From this noble eightfold path we can see how Siddhartha and his Buddhist followers viewed negative thinking (or the concept of thinking at all). The eightfold path consists of the following parts:
- proper attention
- correct concentration
- correct knowledge
- right thoughts
- act right
- right words
- right livelihood
- right effort
In particular, the path of right concentration, which requires the path of right effort, is an important path that tells us how Buddhists would deal with negative thinking.
How should we deal with it?
According to Buddha, proper concentration meant the open-minded observation of one’s own mind. Open-minded observation is actually the opposite of what most people do. When most people have a negative thought, such as ‘I am a failure’, they identify themselves with those thoughts (the ego takes it for granted) and that is where the big problem lies. This is wrong according to Buddhism. Just like a bunch of birds floating around in the sky, that’s how we should look at it. We have to look at it this way because negative thoughts make us suffer, but thinking that produces suffering is never voluntary! Truly no one deliberately produces suffering within themselves because we all have the primal instinct of survival.
According to Buddhism, these ‘thoughts of suffering’ are produced autonomously by our subconscious (or memory). Without us realizing it, all kinds of traumas are hidden in our memories (all fears, losses, insecurities, failures). These are actually tensions that remain in our nerve pathways. These traumas in our memory resurface every now and then in the form of negative thoughts, but this happens autonomously of ourselves. As Siddhartha said, thinking is an autonomous plant, nourished by your desires and with its roots deep in your fear.’
How do I become an observer?
A true Buddhist is in fact always aware of the automatism of his own thinking and always positions himself as an open-minded observer: he does not allow himself to be enslaved by his thinking. The open-minded observation requires a great will because our mind automatically responds to our negative thoughts, therefore the path of right effort is needed to break this cycle. The more you practice with it, it will become easier.
First of all, realize that thinking is an automatism of your unconscious mind, wherever you are. You don’t have to think about it all the time, but it is there in your mind. It’s just like your name, you don’t always have your own name in your head, but when someone asks your name you immediately remember it. Apply yourself consistently, your negative thoughts will lose their power. They will be there, but stripped of their venom.
Before you can really start practicing open-minded observation of thoughts, you must first calm yourself down. You do this through breathing. This calms the body and the mind follows suit. Breath, body and mind are related to each other. Since breathing is the simplest process, you can concentrate on it. Take a few deep breaths with your full lungs for as long as you like. Relax your body using your breathing. Continue to keep your breath calm and observe openly the thoughts and emotions that arise within you. Realize that your thoughts are produced by the unconscious. Do this exercise as often as you want, preferably several times a day wherever you are, long sessions are not necessary! Short and frequent sessions also work.
