Aug 28 2008
Quieting the Monkey Mind
Monkey Mind is a Zen Buddhist term.
I’ve read that we have 60,000 “thoughts” every day. We haven’t much control over most of these thoughts; they just “happen.” Zen Buddhism just refers to this as mind-clutter, like a room full of monkeys.
I experience Monkey Mind every day, whether I am sitting at the computer, washing dishes, standing in a room full of people, mowing the lawn, taking a hike, and even during yoga and meditation. My monkeys annoy, distract, and can ruin the present moment. Mind monkeys can produce repetitive thoughts, repetitive thoughts, worry, anxiety, repetitive thoughts, and all kinds of unnecessary concerns, at inappropriate times. They just create busyness. A lot like the world we live in. (With a lot of repetitive thoughts.)
But all these thoughts use energy; energy that could be available for CREATIVE thought. If we could harness or control our monkey minds, we would have a great deal more energy available for better use.
And Monkey Mind can create doubt and ruin our creativity. I am writing now as a writer, of sorts anyway, and when I am creatively writing, my monkey mind will suddenly interject “What’s the use? No one cares what I think. Go do something useful instead.” That negative thought can destroy my entire session if I don’t find a way to get that out of my mind.
So I am still learning about how to quiet my monkey mind. I have also found common references to “taming” the monkey mind. Same thing. Half the battle is being aware of the problem. The other 90 percent is solving it. (Ha Ha, with apologies to Yogi Berra.)
I meditate and do yoga, and one of the tools we learn in meditation is to simply acknowledge the thought and then let it go. With time and practice, the interjecting thoughts diminish, although I’ve never completely cleared my mind. Nope. Not a chance of having an “empty mind” here. Closest I’ve come is just falling asleep during meditation. But that’s a nice way to fall asleep. Just don’t do it while driving.
