Can Life be Created as per our Choice or is it a Random Happening?

Life is a mixed bag of experiences.?

Some experiences we deem as difficult - these evoke feelings like anger, frustration, hopelessness, disheartenment and fear within us.?

Another set of experiences that we deem as pleasant - These create happiness, elation, excitement, joy and gratitude within us.?

The Reality of Feelings: What Creates Feelings??

Events, occurrences or situations, by themselves, have no meaning.?

It is our mind that gives it a meaning.

It is our mind that perceives a situation, processes the data and assigns a meaning by generating bipolar feelings or emotions within us—deeming them good or bad, desirable or undesirable.?

These reactions are automatic, based on formulas/equations called Rules, that exist in our minds. These “rules” stem from our beliefs, values, and assumptions, that we have gathered, stored and often put to use since childhood. Most of these are formed in childhood itself, and that is why the great philosopher Aristotle said “Give me a child until he is seven, I will show you the man”.

When we perceive an experience in the outside world, these rules get activated automatically within our minds.?

The result is an instant response, that our mind doles out to us, for immediate use.?

When we live like this, our entire attention is on our ego and its survival.?

The subject matter of this process - the “I” aspect, that we deeply care about – which is survival, safety, or any benefit we seek.??

We seem to make “I” the epicentre of this reaction and have a very narrow framework of ‘I, me, and myself’ (or our ego) as the core beneficiary.?

The Ego Attention: What Happens When We Are Triggered??

When such an auto system is at work, our life is on autopilot and we are controlled by our mind patterns or programs.?

The senses perceive outside events, assign a meaning (good or bad), and generate feelings/emotions. This whole process uses up a lot of energy.?

They create stimuli to release certain hormones/chemicals which get absorbed in our system and create changes in our body rhythm.?

For example, if the reaction results in the emotion of anger, we experience changes like increased heart rate, heavy breathing, involuntary movements, sometimes outbursts, or sometimes not expressing the reaction outside but storing it inside for later use.???

In such states, we are highjacked by our emotions with very little choice-making ability.?

Indeed choices are made for us by our pre-programmed mind. Our entire energy is consumed in this physiological and emotional activity leaving almost nothing or very little for our cognitive use.?

We often feel exhausted after such reactions, and also may feel guilty.

Observer Attention: Can we make Conscious Choices?

There is another way of making choices, which is far more beneficial to us, in every respect. This is when respond rather than react.

To activate this choice-making mind, we must become aware that we are indeed driven by our mind and body. We simply observe.? For example, when our body is aching, we say, “My body is aching”. When our mind is confused, we say, “My mind is confused”.?

This means there is something who knows that we have a body that is aching, and we have a mind, that is confused.

That ‘something’, is called Consciousness.?

Consciousness is very subtle, it can observe our body and mind.??

It regards the body and mind as mere instruments that keep doing what they are supposed to do. The hardware and software are the same for all, but it’s the programming that makes a difference in mindsets.?

What Happens When We Move From Ego Attention to Observer Attention?

When we bring this awareness and become a conscious observer of our own mind, body and environment, we start questioning the auto-pilot systems of the Ego mind.?

We analyse if these instinct and impulse-based reactions generated by the auto-mind are indeed helping us, or empowering us to reach our goals.?

We are then in a position to take initiatives using our discretion, to make choices that have a larger framework and understanding of systems, rather than getting triggered by a narrow and short-term outlook.?

When we say larger framework, we mean seeing the big picture where the “I” is part of the “whole”, we then focus on the larger benefit to all which includes “I”.??

Understanding systems means knowing that the universe runs on a set of systems, and understanding these systems leads us to learn and understand the process that when followed, will make us create the overall benefit.?

Thus, our actions are chosen to follow the systemic way. This requires constant practice, which we call “Observer Sadhana”, by which we see a gradual shift, and eventually, we are in a constant state of observation choosing our response responsibly.?

My Experience

Recently, I needed assistance from a Government agency that had guided me well during an earlier interaction. I looked up the website and called the helpline number.?

The helpline was answered by an agent who guided me courteously, helped me download an app and promised a callback. He did call me back and via WhatsApp, he began guiding me, but first, he asked for a service charge payment.?

As I opened the app to make a payment, I sensed something wrong and terminated the call.?

The agent went on to call me several times thereafter, getting successively more rude and threatening to empty my bank account, saying that they had all my data.?

I was immediately triggered, with my mind creating ‘what-if’ negative scenarios. What would happen if they hacked my bank accounts!??

I could observe my heart racing, my breath becoming heavy, and my legs losing strength. I knew I was being highjacked by my emotions and the chemicals released due to anxiety were at work within me.?

I consciously brought my awareness back in my control and took a few deep breaths. Slowly I restored the calm and thought through the events. I felt that I had not shared anything that was going to enable them to harm me or access my accounts.?

I said to myself, let me consciously accept the situation as it is, and with that, I started examining my best options. Apparently, the number I called was from a fake site on the web.

I called my bank relationship manager and secured my account. I changed all my passwords etc. I also thought that this should not happen to others. I gave the bank all the relevant information on the hacker and requested them to report the case to cybercrime, to which they agreed. I also, in my individual capacity, reported the hacker and blocked their number.?

Having done this, I observed that the mind was now stable. The body, however, although it was getting better, still had residual effects of the chemical reactions.?

I was soon able to move on with the rest of my day, and resume my regular meetings with ease.??

I could have created a totally different situation if I had not called forth my conscious awareness, and had remained in the auto-triggered state of panic, making things worse for me and for others around me.?

Yes, there is a state where nothing can trigger a person in the first place. This is surely possible, with more practice.

This shift from total reactiveness to becoming aware of the triggers and quickly restoring oneself, with deliberate choices, is a result of the continued practice of Observer Sadhana.?

This practice has become a part of me thanks to Ceekr, with whom I have been associated, for the last few years. Ceekr has distilled 5000 years of Yogic and Vedic Science and wisdom, to create a simple model using modern science and technology. They also offer invaluable tools through their Mind Mastery Programmes, which helped me in my continued pursuit towards inner work. Not only me but my clients in my coaching practice have been helped to experience a shift in mindset. We are learning to choose and create our lives, consciously.?

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Srinivas, is a Coach (ICF PCC), Mind Mastery Mentor with Ceekr, and is pursuing scriptural, meditative courses, etc.? He also offers consultancy services, with over 37 years of corporate experience in the Petroleum Sector.?

To know more, head to: https://www.ceekr.com/home