I realize that seems illogical. Sitting could not be any easier. On the other hand, if you meditate for a while, you’ll probably experience a lot of unpleasant thoughts and feelings. This is an excerpt from the Dhammapada:
We are our thoughts.
Our thoughts give life to everything that we are.
We create the universe with our thoughts.
If you act or speak impurely, misfortune will follow you like the wheel follows the animal pulling the cart.
As the adage goes, wherever you go, there you are. You cannot escape your thoughts; you cannot move to another part of the world, change careers, pick up new interests, or surround yourself with different people. You cannot run away from your ideas. You cannot escape your feelings. The state of your life at any one time is determined by the state of your thoughts. Marcus Aurelius said, “The soul becomes dyed with the colour of its thoughts.” his Thoughts. The Buddha goes on to emphasize this point once more:
“Observe how he mistreated and injured me, how he knocked me down and stole from me.”
If you think like that, you will always be hated.
Occasionally, unpleasant ideas surface during meditation (or simply going about your day; is there really a difference?). Emotions are connected to those thoughts. Even if you haven’t been beaten or robbed, you’ve probably experienced abuse and hurt at some point in your life. You most likely experience some sort of emotion when you consider that maltreatment and the suffering it brought you during the moment you were harmed. Perhaps it is hate. Perhaps it’s rage. Perhaps it’s sorrow.
Perhaps it’s another afflictive feeling. Additionally, you’ll probably notice that the more intensely you feel that unpleasant sensation, the more you think about it if you sit and observe your thoughts, as one does in meditation. You begin to tell yourself a tale about your feelings, whatever they may be.
“It’s unbelievable that he did that. What a bastard. Why was I treated that way by him? How could I have hurt him? He is a complete moron. I despise him.
