Reprogramming Your Mind

Show Notes

Most of us have lives that are like the output of a broken computer. Now, in most cases, it's not the brain itself that's wrong; it's the programme in the mind. In other words, if we want our lives to have meaning, we have to change the way our minds work. All of our unhappiness and pain in life comes from the wrong mental programme that we have slowly built up since birth. If you change the way your mind works, you can start living a happier, and more meaningful life. With a well-trained mind, this world can be like heaven on earth. A mind that isn't well-trained can turn this world into hell. When we harmonise our minds to our surroundings, we automatically feel happy. Happiness comes from inside, not from changing the world to fit our needs. By reprogramming our minds, we can find lasting happiness within ourselves.

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This is such a juicy topic to talk about, so many self help books which talk about some version of this. In the ancient ways, reprogramming our brains has been commonplace since the beginning of time. But let’s begin by looking at this from a modern perspective first. Let’s consider our brain. Our brain is the most amazing computer that has ever been made. It's a biocomputer that is so complicated that we can't even fathom it's complexity. Scientists say that it has somewhere between 10 and 13 billion neurones that analyse, interpret, compare, store, and send information from the outside world and our own bodies. It can process millions of bits of information from hearing and seeing, as well as information from every part of the body, every second. Don't forget that every hair has a link to the brain. There are a lot of connections between the brain and every single part of the body.
But we are completely unaware of most of this because it happens in our subconscious mind. We need to be unaware of these things, because if we knew everything, the constant flow of information would be way too much for us to handle. In some ways, the mind of a person is like a computer.
Most of us have lives that are like the output of a broken computer. Now, in most cases, it's not the brain itself that's wrong; it's the programme in the mind. In other words, if we want our lives to have meaning, we have to change the way our minds work. All of our unhappiness and pain in life comes from the wrong mental programme that we have slowly built up since birth. If you change the way your mind works, you can start living a happier, and more meaningful life. With a well-trained mind, this world can be like heaven on earth. A mind that isn't well-trained can turn this world into hell. Generally, our minds are set up in a way that makes us unhappy. This makes us try to find happiness with external factors such as making money, and accumulating “things” like car s, clothes, the latest phone, iPad etc, or maybe it’s gaining social status, drinking, or chasing after desires that make us feel good for a short time. In essence, we try to make ourselves happy by pleasing or boosting our egos.
What does this way of looking for happiness lead to? It causes us to use other people to get what we want. If they get in our way, we do all kinds of obvious and not-so-obvious things to bypass them or push them out of the way. This leads to anger, fear, jealousy, worry, tension, and so on. When we keep trying to find happiness in these ways, we end up making ourselves mentally tense and, as a result, unhappy. If we don't get what we want, our goals, we end up with mental tension, boredom, and sadness.
We keep going after these things even though they don't make us happy. Why? The answer is that we are sticking to the plan we set up for ourselves. Through programming, we've taught ourselves to want these things, even though they don't make us happy in the long run. Now, changes can be made to a computer programme. In the same way, we can change the way our minds work if we put in the work. We can change the way we react to our environment so that we don't have to rely on "ego trips" and wants to be happy.
When we are always fighting life and the people around us, it is almost impossible to meditate. If we go with the flow of life instead of fighting it, meditation will happen almost on its own. If we can change the way our minds work, we will be able to tune in to our surroundings and meditate without having to try. Our minds will start to get bigger, our consciousness expands. When we harmonise our minds to our surroundings, we automatically feel happy. Happiness comes from inside, not from changing the world to fit our needs. By reprogramming our minds, we can find lasting happiness within ourselves.
Our current likes and dislikes, hatreds, jealousies, etc., distort how we see the world around us and ourselves. Our mind only takes in and acts on information that fits with how we are programmed right now. In other words, if we feel, or if our mental programme tells us, that everyone outside hates us, then our mind will only accept and let us access information that supports this view. Some information will be hidden. If we think that our mental programme tells us that everyone loves us, our mind will again interpret information in a way that supports this idea. This is very simplified explanation, but it shows how our minds colour the outside world to fit how they are programmed. Because of how we've been raised, our wants, attachments, and so on, we never see the outside world and other people as they really are.
We're not saying that desires bad. All we are saying is that they are blocking your spiritual growth and meditative experiences. Indescribable happiness and a higher awareness are waiting for us, all we have to do is to reprogram our minds and meditate.

Things to remember
First, remember that we don't want you to change anything about how you live. By reprogramming your mind, we want to change how you relate to the outside world.
Second, you need to realise that you can't find happiness outside of yourself. If you have tried for years to find happiness in the outside world and still haven't realised that it’s not there, then maybe you aren’t ready to make a change. If that’s the case, stop this episode now, and come back when you have come to this realisation on your own, there's no reason for you to change your mind. You won't try to change your mind until you realise that you can't get peace and happiness from the outside world. Just look at the people who have tried everything to find happiness outside of themselves. They never seem to get what they want, and if they do, generally they aren’t happy. Ever heard of the expression, “more money more problems”? In fact, they tend to lose hope and become cynical. They start to think that permanent happiness and peace is a myth.
The third important thing to remember is that the mind can be changed. There is a saying: as we think, so we become. Our minds are set up the way they are now because of what we have thought in the past. The mind is like a piece of clay, it moulds itself to suit the impression imposed on it. If we start trying to think differently, the mind will slowly but surely change.

Let's look at an example of how programming from childhood can dictate our actions as adults. A child lives in a home where the husband gets everything his own way by acting like a tyrant. At the same, time, the child might find that he is always at the mercy of the whims of others. For example, he wants to go and play with his friends, but his father says no. His mind starts to program itself so that he thinks that power is the way to do and get what you want in life. When he becomes older he therefore seeks power as a means to attaining happiness.
It’s the same with nearly all our external motivations in life; they start in essentially the same manner. At the same time, we have the power to get rid of this existing programme so we don't have to follow its rules anymore and to replace it with a programme that lets us live in harmony and helps us grow as people. We can make a future that is conscious, positive, and awake by just changing the way we think. We can eventually try to find the beauty and truth that are hidden inside us.

Autosuggestion
Everyone has things like phobias, complexes, emotional stresses, and so on that make their minds constantly tense, whether they are aware of it or not. All of these keep the mind from being calm and peaceful and get in the way of meditation. We should remember the cliche, “as you think, so you become”, for this tells us the way to remove these mental symptoms. Suggestion has a lot of strength. If we think negatively about life, it will turn out that way. If we think positively, we will be more likely to act positively. If we think about getting cancer with enough intensity and belief, we will eventually get cancer, smf the opposite is true as well, f we think we are healthy and healing ourselves, we will be. That's how powerful suggestions or beliefs are. These ideas don't just come from inside the head; they also come from the outside world. In fact, they happen almost all the time, because outside events are always affecting our thoughts. When we read a book, it gives us ideas that change the way we act. When we talk to someone, we are always being given advice, even if we aren't always aware of it. Everything that comes to mind comes in the form of ideas. People can give you hints by the way they look at you, move their hands, speak, and do so many other things. Using this power of suggestion in the form of autosuggestion is the easiest way to get rid of all the things that keep our minds tense and stop negative outside influences from making the mind even more upset.
At the same time we should use autosuggestion to prepare ourselves immediately before meditational practices. The essential requirement for effective autosuggestion is the deep need to see the aims and suggestion translated into the desired results. Without a strong need or will, the object of the autosuggestion is unlikely to succeed or materialise. One must want to make a change. If the need is only half­ hearted, it can be built up to a higher level of intensity by continually dwelling on the subject. As you move along the spiritual path, you will become more and more aware of the things that bother you. The more you grow, the more they will show up and rise to the field of consciousness. As soon as they show up, they should be cancelled out by replacing them with their opposite or by making it clear that they are not so important, or needed anymore.

Since everyone has different problems, you need to figure out for yourself how to solve them and come up with your own method.For example, take someone who is afraid of the dark, Since he must spend much of his life in darkness, ie sleeping, this is bound to cause mental disturbances. His mind will always be tense, consciously or unconsciously. The way to remove the phobia is to realise how ridiculous this fear really is; and to realise that darkness is only the opposite of light; to realise that many other people are not afraid of the dark, so therefore why should he have a fear of the dark, and so on. Constant autosuggestion in this way will surely remove the fear. These kinds of suggestions are most powerful when the individual is in a state of relaxation. Even a deep-rooted fear is amenable to this type of treatment, providing the individual devotes himself wholeheartedly to its removal. Eventually a new, indifferent attitude, to the dark in this example, will penetrate the subconscious and the fear will disappear. The fear will go away when the subconscious takes on a new, less caring attitude towards the dark.

Autosuggestion can help with all kinds of problems, fears, and conflicts. All you need, is to want to get rid of the problem. Sounds simple right? But how can a person find out the deeper problems that adversely influence their life? Or that cause them unhappiness and tension? Or the ones that they don't even know about? As a person becomes more aware through yoga and meditation, their problems, phobias, fears, etc., will slowly come to the surface. Doing the meditation technique antar mouna regularly and keeping a mental or written record of what comes up during this practise is a good way to find these deep-seated emotional and mental tensions. The next step in trying to get rid of mental and emotional problems is to stop bad thoughts and feelings from being caused by outside events and crises. In other words, the mind needs to be made stronger so that outside events don't have as much of an effect on it. The method is to slowly learn to be detached from everything and everyone, known as vairagya. We will touch on this in another episode. This doesn't mean you should become a vegetable or ignore the ups and downs of life and your relationships with other people. It means that even if you love, hate, argue, etc., because of things going on outside of you, these things shouldn't change you in a deeper way. On a human level, they must make you feel something, but on a deeper level, they shouldn't.
It's all about how you see yourself. If you see yourself as your body or your mind, then painful or unwanted physical and mental symptoms will have a big impact on your life. In a similar way, if you don't identify with your body-mind but rather with the centre of your consciousness, the physical and mental pains of life won't bother you much. We can think of outside things as ripples on a pond. Ripples stir up the surface of the pond, but they don't change the bottom of the pond very much. The same should be true for a spiritual seeker; negative thoughts and physical problems shouldn't bother you. Now I realise, this is easier said than done, but if you keep practising self-awareness, you can get to a place where you are calm and peaceful even when things are going crazy around you.
Autosuggestion is also used to treat and prevent illness, diseases and physical body problems. Strong-willed aspirants have been able to heal even the most serious terminal diseases, like cancer and leukaemia, by willing the body to become whole, strong, and balanced. The best times to use autosuggestions are after meditating, right after waking up in the morning, or right before bed at night. During these times, the mind is especially open to ideas. For a few minutes, say the autosuggestion out loud and with feeling. Believe with all your heart that the autosuggestions will lead to the change you want. If this is done, the idea can only be a good one. Ideas that aren't given their all are sure to fail. If you’re on that side of TikTok, there re plenty of people touting their quick fix affirmations for all sorts of things. Take this with a buyer beware approach, those particular words may be great for that person and their personal needs, however it would likely need to be modified to fit for your needs.
Self-identification
A process of re­ identification is necessary with regard to ourselves and to our surroundings. We get into a lot of trouble in life because we identify with our bodies, our minds, our jobs, or any other role we play. We identify with things that change over time instead of with the part of us that doesn't change, which is the very core of our existence. If and when we can separate ourselves from our role in life, our body, and our mind and see them as just expressions of our inner being, the self, then meditation will be almost a constant and natural process. Even a small amount of detachment from our manifested parts (mind, body, etc.) will help us a lot to have a good meditation experience because we won't be distracted by our bodies, minds, or emotions. When our bodies, minds, and emotions are all calm, meditation will be a natural, easy, and automatic process.
When asked what they do for a living, people often say things like, "I'm a doctor" or "I'm a plumber" or "I'm a housewife" or "I'm a footballer." How they answer will depend on what they think is their most important job in life. They might say different things. For example, a woman might say that she is a mother, a wife, and a lawyer by day. But what really matters is what these things do, not what they are.
Let's take an extreme example of how this kind of iden­tification can lead to much unhappiness. Consider an actor. He sees himself as an actor, an actor with a great physique, a handsome face and a manly voice. He takes great care to keep himself in good physical shape. Yet as the years pass he will progressively and very critically notice that he is becoming older. His handsome features start to fade, his body loses its strength and his voice loses its depth. He might even spend many hours every day despondently looking at himself in a mirror. He becomes depressed and unhappy because his conception of himself is disappearing. His self-identification with a transitory phenomenon is taking its toll. In many cases, especially with actors, this crisis has often led to an emotional breakdown of some sort, and many, as is the obvious case in Hollywood, not just with actors but by celebrities in general, is that they report to plastic surgeries to try to hold onto their youth.

A similar thing happens to a mother: her kids will leave her at some point. Again, the fact that she sees herself as a mother can cause a lot of unhappiness. The same thing goes for a doctor, a plumber, a housewife, or a lawyer. They are not permanent realities. Have you seen the original Dr Strange movie? The main character goes through a period of turmoil when he can no longer be a surgeon, because of his strong identity with that title. Identification with our body, mind and emotions is so com­mon and widespread that we automatically assume its truth. For example, someone says, "I am thirsty." This statement is said with no thought of its significance. It is not realised that the 'l' signifies our self-identification, and the 'I' refers to a temporary phenomenon, the physical body. A more realistic statement should be, "My body is thirsty". In this way it will be implied that the body is merely a temporary manifestation of the permanent self, the inner core of existence. The same applies to our emotions and thoughts. We say "I am angry" or "I am depressed" and so on. Yet it is really the emotional system of the mind that feels these things. These are temporary emotional states which disappear as quickly as they arise; one moment there is friendship and then later there is a feeling of enmity. They are not perma­nent, even though we habitually identify ourselves with these states. We say "I think this" or "I think the sky is blue"
or "I think that one plus one equals two". Yet it is not really 'I' that thinks, it is the mind, and the mind is changing from day to day. It also is not permanent, so how can it be the permanent reality that is 'I'? One day our mind can think one thing and the next day it can think something else. It is in a state of flux. How can we really identify ourselves with it? What we should say is "my mind thinks" or "my mind feels", for the mind is not the real ‘I’.

We have the ability to watch the activities of the mind and the body. How could something that we watch be who we really are? Someone or something must be looking. The body and the mind are just tools that help us act, see, and think. Not a thing. The centre of our consciousness is who we really are, the real "I." The self is what shines a light on everything we do and sees what we do. Even though this is where we come from and what makes us who we are, very few of us act from or identify with it. As we've already said, most people identify with the mind and body, which are its outward signs and tools. If we worked from the self and knew that the self was our true identity, we could use our body and mind to their fullest potential. Both our minds and bodies would be at their best. We would be healthy because our complexes and prejudices wouldn't get in the way of how our mind and body work together. From this point of view, meditation would be something that happens on its own.
How does one start to act from the real "I," the centre of consciousness? This is what the spiritual path is all about. The path is long and hard, but the information here is a big help on its own. Also, as was already said, even partial identification with the self and dissociation from the body, mind, and roles in daily life are great tools for having meditative experiences. And meditation, as we know, is a powerful way to get to the centre of your own being.

The first thing you need to know is that everything you do in life is just a role you are playing. They have nothing to do with who you are or what you really are. They are nothing more than a sign. This doesn't mean you won't play your roles anymore; you will still do them, but now you'll see yourself as an actor. You'll be able to see yourself acting and performing your parts. You will see your true self in the audience while your body and mind play their parts.
The next thing you need to understand is that you are not the body and its sensations, you are not your emotions, you are not your intellect, you are not your mind in any way whatsoever. At first this will have to be done intellectually, but after some practise, you will stop identifying with all these manifested aspects of yourself and you will know yourself as your true inner being, a part of the whole, the collective consciousness, the manifest and the unmanifest existence which we know as God.