Timely Tip
Mind Changes Brain…
…Which Changes Mind
Fleeting thoughts and feelings leave behind lasting marks on your brain that form tendencies and views which can make us suffer, or lead us to happiness – much like a spring shower leaves little tracks on a hillside. This means that your experience really, really matters! There is a scientifically substantiated rationale for being kind to yourself; for creating more wholesome experiences and fewer unwholesome ones.
Here is one practice you can do to enhance the way your brain forms memories, and thereby shift your mind to a more positive stance:
- Help a positive event become a positive experience. Notice the things that go well, or people who treat you kindly, or when you succeed at something.
- Focus on your sensations and feelings from this experience – they are the pathway to emotional memory.
- Savor each such experience - let it fill your body and mind.
- Imagine that these positive feelings and sensations are sinking into your body. You could imagine a treasure chest in your heart, where they reside.
Adapted from: “The New Neuroscience and the Path of Awakening: Science of Mind,” Inquiring Mind, Fall 2007.