Simplify your inner life

What methods have you used to simplify your inner life?  Can the same principles we apply to our closets apply to our minds?

This is an area that I think I've been neglecting the most.  I suppose I was thinking that I needed to create a clutter free house first and my mind would gradually settle behind it. 

How does simplifying your mind fit with the suggestions in Your Money or Your Life about valuing life energy and pursuing activities your find rewarding?

Re: Simplify your inner life

Thanks Maile- I realized a little late that my previous post was rather misplaced.

I simplifiy my head much like I simplify my life. First I clean house. I pile all my crap iin one spot. I examine each piece- and if I can live without it or generally don’t identify where it came from- I toss it. Beliefs, thoughts, ideas, poems… poof.

If my head seems cluttered still, I start adjusting my values. When you tidy a room- the room makes a cohesive whole. Things match. There is a sorta Feng Shui about the place when it’s content. Same with brains. Standing back, if the place looks wrong, the furniture needs rearranging maybe. Perhaps my previous criteria for keep and toss was too leniant. Perhaps I need a Structure to organize into. Or a feel.

Then there’s bustle. Even with just a few things in this lil brain, stuff gets hectic. I sit. Or meditate. I sit and listen to all the monkeys one-by-one until they drop from exhaustion. Then I put them back in bed. This is sort of like trying to organize with a kid on your back.

Now the funny part- outside and inside aren’t all that seperate. A tidy and organized living space yields a tidy and organized mind. And a tidy mind manifests a tidy house. So if you can’t get started in on one, you can always take a spin with the other.

Any other ideas?

Re: Simplify your inner life

     Thanks for the post about the clutter. I've been recently focussing really hard on cleaning my mind (via meditation and daily mindfulness). I've been doing really well- though it sometimes feels as though there's only so far I can go. I've quit smoking. That, oddly enough, made a huge difference. The addiction itself, health effects, cost and all of that- well, they're substantial. Regardless, they've never been enough to keep me quit. I've tried quite a few times. What finally helped me to stop and stay stopped was recognizing the constant pull. I want one. I have it. As I'm having it, I'm thinking of the next. That one is another link in the chain- of no value on it's own. That cleared things up a lot.
     Without this pull, I'm more free to focus on the smaller things. Sometimes while driving, a noble silence is preferable. That ipod (or generic equivalent, hehehe) is a great thing, but sometimes it should shut up. Silence helps. Mindfulness helps. I read somewhere (probably Shambhala Sun) that if you're bored, chances are you aren't paying much attention. The drive home (and i have a substantial commute) is great evidence of this.
     Those are my suggestions for head clearing.
     Thank you for your own. I tend toward messiness and clutter. My room is horrible that way. I'm going to shove yet more stuff in the attic now. Maybe give my shrine it's own wall. Thank you for the idea.

Re: Simplify your inner life

I probably spent close to two years trying to simplify my surroundings before I realized that my cluttered mind was getting in the way.

I had to address my racing mind, and all the old habits and ideas that had always created a chaotic life, and still were creating a chaotic life.

I gradually adopted a practice of sitting in inner stillness; allowing all the thoughts to come up and letting them pass by till there's nothing more there. I don't remember exactly where I learned a process of “critical self-inquiry;” although it came partially from being a long time student of the spiritual aspects of the enneagram, partially from one of my Teachers who helped me actually “get” nonduality, beyond just the intellectual aspects.

When my mind was quiet, it became a lot easier for me to see that a whole lot of my surrounding stuff was just “noise” I had put there; things that didn't really have much to do with what I really wanted in my life. I especially found myself dealing with all those items we invariable accumulate because they are “too good” to get rid of, and we “might need them” some day. The Craigslist “free stuff” area and Freecycle became fast and frequent beneficiaries.

I realized that in keeping all this “fringe useful” stuff, I was being quite selfish. I was just storing it, “just in case,” while there were people out there who had a real use for it. An immediate use. And I actually found a measure of peace not only in giving useful stuff away, but in the knowledge that if I truly was in need for something… I could return to Craigslist or Freecycle, and the Universe would provide what I need.

I realize this is the “inner life” area, but the point here is that the inner and outer have a symbiotic relationship for me. I found quiet within, and started decluttering my “without,” as a result of which I reached a point of quiet within became easier.

Love always,
Peter

Re: Simplify your inner life

It's interesting to me the parallels you both draw between the inner clutter and the outer clutter.  The analogy of the mind as an attic/closet is not new to me, but it is something I think I'd been forgetting.  Or maybe I'd been remembering it too well–that is, like the attic full of stuff you don't need, it's easy to shove it all up there and forget about it most of the time.

I've felt for a long time that I needed to calm my mind, but I hadn't really thought of simplifying it, though this seems so obviously important.  I think I have a subconscious fear that a simplified mind is a simple mind.

Consciously I know this is not true; i know, in fact, that simplifying may even help me focus on improving the things that I keep.  Much as I've adopted the mantra 'i want to love everything in my closet' and thrown out the stuff I don't want, I might think of adopting the mantra 'i want to love everything in my mind.'  Or something like that.

I think it may also help to imagine posting those things (e.g. negative self talk about my body) to the Craigslist free area.  Or maybe i'll come up with a list and actually post it.  We'll see.

You guys have given me a lot to think about.  Thank you so much :)

Re: Simplify your inner life

When my best friend was diagnosed with cancer two weeks before Christmas, I found more need than ever of simplifying my inner life, in order to cope with the stress of supporting her through this.  I'd been doing yoga for years, but never daily.  I adopted a daily yoga practice, and it's been a huge help.  At the end of every practice session, of course, I lay on my back in Shivasana; it's almost like sitting meditation, in that I allow my breathing to complete itself while I allow my mind to wander without judgment, bringing it back always to the observation of my breath. 

I love yoga now, and will never let it go, even when this crisis is past.

Re: Simplify your inner life

Quick question, though hopefully not off topic. What would you suggest for beginner yoga if there aren't any classes available. Any videos? Books?

Thanks

Re: Simplify your inner life

Well, I started with a great book on Iyengar yoga, lots of details and photographs.  I also love Rodney Yee's Yoga: Poetry of the Body, which came out much later.

And I really like Rodney Yee as a video teacher.  I do his Power Yoga DVD frequently; it ranges from beginner to intermediate. 

The key to beginning yoga is not to force your body into the asanas, but to go to your own limits.  The Yee book above would be a great place to start.

Re: Simplify your inner life

While I was doing yoga today I thought some more about your question.

If I were you, I'd start with the Rodney Yee book.  Reading it, I've often wished I'd had it when I was starting out.  It will lead you through a series of practices.  I wouldn't bother with a DVD until you're comfortable with the basic asanas (postures).

Also, you'll need a yoga mat, if you don't already have one.  Please go through the extra trouble and expense of ordering an EcoYoga mat.  They're made from natural latex and jute.  Good for the planet, and good for you.  Standard sticky mats are made with PVC, a known carcinogen.  In February I found out another dear friend, my ex-yoga teacher (I quit after a couple of years when I realized I was at a point where a home practice better fit my needs) has lymphoma, pretty advanced.  She's not been toxic to her body in decades, except for her daily use of that nasty mat.  (They off-gas, you know, which you can smell, and which really ruins the relaxation of child's pose, when you've got your face in it.) 

http://www.ecoyoga.co.uk/retail.htm

From this page you can find a supplier to order from.  I got mine a couple of weeks ago, and I love it.  It's also simply a better mat.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002EJKJ6/qid=1147318474/sr=1-3/ref=sr_1_3/002-1228081-1728007?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance&n=3375251

Re: Simplify your inner life

Oops, that wacked-looking link is to the book at Amazon, FYI.

Re: Simplify your inner life

Wendy,
     Thank you so much for your thorough reply to that. I'll definately check out the book, and when the time comes to buy a mat, I definately shall spring for the EcoYoga. I have no desire to poison myself anymroe than I already have.

Thanks,
Joshua

Re: Simplify your inner life

Wonderful, Joshua.  I feel like I did my good deed for the day.  : )

I'm going to use that book myself this summer to teach my children yoga.  (They're 7 and 10, and ready to learn…it'll help us beat cabin fever, too, which we get here in the summer, when it's 110 outside with 98% humidity…)  The first chapter is all about discovering (or re-discovering) playfulness through the practice.

Re: Simplify your inner life

I just bought the book today. I'm really excited. I've been looking for something to support or bridge my meditative practice in combination with my workout routine. I'm really pleased with what i've read so far. Good deed indeed!

Re: Simplify your inner life

Will someone remind me to come back and read this AMAZING thread when I can unclutter my mind enough to do it justice?

Really, I'm forgetful.

This is what its all about though isn't it?

Re: Simplify your inner life

I think one part of simplifying your outer life, is to realize inside how rich your inner life is and what you can do without being a rampant consumer. I'm not even sure how I came to that conclusion. Just one day I thought I'd try living without buying any clothes or books or any other personal articles like that for a year. I don't need or want or can do without any of that stuff. I have not felt any misgivings or loss or “doing without” since I made the decision. (I get books from the library, which is a big change for me, as I was an English major and always bought books, though was the last few years buying the majority second-hand.) I never would have thought I could even find that acceptable - but in practice it has been great. I am reading more. I can browse through what's new and what there is and put holds on books that I'd like to read online.

Because going from a diagnosis of depression to manic depression recently and going through havoc in changing medications (still in progress), I have been looking for ways for inner peace and simplicity. I have never been a particularly spiritual person, but I think being on Zaadz this year has had a positive influence in that respect. I also read Peace Is the Way recently by Deepak Chopra, and I think part of the clutter or turmoil in my brain is caused by the lack of peace. So I am trying to learn how to be more inwardly peaceful and respectful so I can be the same way in my dealings with others. I think this will also help with stress, which negatively affects manic depressives and therefore my inner self and how I think about things.