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Negative emotions release chemicals in the body that diminish the functioning of the rational part of the brain, making problem solving more difficult. The thought-stream actually undermines intelligent action. You may think this stream of thoughts is how things get done and problems get solved, but it is actually a hindrance. Seeing this is recognizing a very important truth. Even the more positive and neutral stories in the thought-stream are not necessary or useful, although they’re easier to live with:
Moreover, positive thoughts, as much as negative ones, maintain the “I” reflected in the thought-stream, the false self. So, in that sense, positive thoughts about “I,” no matter how true, are not actually so positive.
The difference between a negative story and a positive one is how it makes you feel. You know you have found a positive and true story when you no longer feel tense, upset, or unhappy. A positive and true story brings relaxation and peace.
Life rewards you with peace when you believe the truth or tell the truth. When you don’t do that, you will experience upset, agitation, and a sense of contraction in your body. Life points you to the truth this way.
Does living without involvement in the thought-stream sound dry, unfeeling, and therefore unappealing? If that’s your reaction, you might be addicted to the mind’s drama. People are attached to their familiar stories, and on some level, they enjoy the drama of being stirred up emotionally, even though that doesn’t feel good and isn’t productive. Humans have a very irrational side, which is reflected in the thought-stream. This thought-stream is driven not only by the ego, but by the unconscious mind.
Everyone has many self-images, many of which are limiting and keep them stuck in negative feelings. But why this attachment to self-images, even to negative ones? This attachment is part of the programming that is designed to uphold the illusion of the false self. Self-images, especially negative ones, define the false self and keep it alive. They are the clothing the false self wears. Without this clothing, the false self would not exist, so your ego has no motivation to be rid of negative self-images, even if you do. The ego’s job is to create and maintain the false self through self-images. It accomplishes this by telling stories. If you have a self-image of being someone who messes up, then losing your keys is a perfect opportunity to reinforce that image and remind you, through the thought-stream, of just how inadequate you are. You lost your keys—more proof of your inadequacy!
This is just another fact of life, not proof of your unworthiness. Losing your keys doesn’t mean anything about you. The ego creates a sense of self by making events personal. Events are just events, but the ego makes them all about you: “You lost your keys! How stupid of you!” This is how the ego creates and maintains a sense of being you. But this is a false, limited sense of yourself, not the true you.
self-image may be clumsy, stupid, unattractive, bad, bitchy, selfish, or any other adjective you can come up with, but you can never be any of those things. Each of those words is a story about an image of you, not you. You are a most magnificent creation that cannot be captured in words.
The transition from ordinary human to superhuman is accomplished, not by a change of clothes, but by a change of perspective. How surprising!
The magical power you have been endowed with is simply the power to choose which thoughts to believe.
AI Summary
A Heroic Life by Gina Lake presents key insights from the contemplative tradition. The 10 passages above capture the essential teachings.
Core Themes:
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Key Passages: Highlights 1, 3, and 10 are particularly representative.
This entry was generated from Readwise highlights. Expand with additional context as appropriate.