How To NEVER Be Worried Again - Alan Watts | A life-changing speech

so then let's consider first of all what is a mind in the grip of vicious circles well one of the most obvious instances that we all know is the phenomenon of worry the doctor tells you that you have to have an operation and that has been set up so that automatically everybody worries about it but since worrying takes away your appetite and your sleep it's not good for you so the doctor tells you not to worry because he wants you on the operating table in a state of good health well rested etc but you can't stop worrying and therefore you get additionally worried that you are worrying and therefore will not be in the right shape to be on the operating table and then furthermore because that is quite absurd and you're mad at yourself because you do it you are worried because you worry because you worry that is a vicious circle so now can you allow your mind to be quiet isn't it difficult because the mind seems to be like a monkey jumping up and down and jabbering all the time once you've learned to think you can't stop and an enormous number of people devote their lives to keeping their minds busy and feel extremely uncomfortable with silence when you're alone nobody's saying anything there's nothing to do there's this this worry this lack of distraction I'm left alone with myself and I want to get away from myself I'm always wanting to get away from myself that's why I go to the movies that's why I read mystery stories that's why I go after the girls or anything that you do or get drunk or whatever I don't want to be with myself I feel queer so well why do you want to run away from yourself what's so bad about it why do you want to forget this why do you want to become absorbed because you are addicted to thoughts this is a drug real dangerous money compulsive thinking going on and on and on and on and on all the time it's a habit so there's a difficulty about stopping that activity and you really have to stop it if you want to be sane because if I talk all the time I don't hear what anyone else has to say and then I'll end up in the situation of having nothing to talk about but my own talking or so in exactly the same way if I think all the time I won't have anything to think about except thoughts and that's the academic fallacy see when you add books to the library the great many of the books that are added to the library our books about books they're not necessarily books about life some of them are but most of the books especially PhD dissertations are books about books of our books of our books and that doesn't really get us very far so in order to have something to think about there are times when you simply must stop thinking well how do you do that the first rule is don't try to because if you do you will be like someone trying to make rough water smooth with a flat iron and all that will do will stir it up so in the same way as a muddy turbulent pool quiets itself when left alone you have to know how to leave your mind alone it will quiet itself

Channel: Absolute Motivation

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Id: 6CmgzjJMzTY

Length: 4min 39sec (279 seconds)

Published: Thu Jul 26 2018