Witnessing your thoughts is a most important aspect of Yoga practice. Witnessing the thought process means to be able to observe the natural flow of the mind, while not being disturbed or distracted. This brings a peaceful state of mind, which allows the deeper aspects of meditation and samadhi to unfold, revealing that which is beyond, which is Yoga or Unity.
Introduction
Simple and complex: The process of witnessing your thoughts and other inner processes is elegantly simple once you understand and practice it for a while. However, in the meantime it can admittedly seem quite complicated. In the writing of this article the intent is simplicity, though the length of the article makes it appear complicated. If we hold in mind the paradox of the simple appearing complex, then it is much easier to practice witnessing, and then allow it to gently expand over time. Most of the aspects of witnessing described below are in Yoga (see Yoga Sutras) and Vedanta, although they are universal processes that are also described elsewhere.
A simple process:
Witnessing starts with an extremely simple process of 1) observing individual thoughts, 2) labeling them as to their nature, and then, 3) letting go of any clinging to those thoughts, so as to dive deep into the still, silent consciousness beyond the mind and its thinking process. (See also the page on inviting thoughts.)
Calm the mind: This practice is quite insightful and useful in calming the mind.
It's easy: Labeling and witnessing thoughts is easy, provided you spend some time with it, both in daily life and at your private practice times. (It only looks difficult.)
Weaken habit patterns: The practice gradually weakens the deep habit patterns, which are not useful to your growth, and are blocking spiritual realization.
Increase freedom: The more you can become a witness to the thoughts, the less control those thoughts have over you, increasing your freedom of choice.
Preparation for advanced meditation: Witnessing prepares you for advanced meditation and samadhi.
Practice patience: Practicing patience with yourself while learning this process is a very good idea.
It would also be useful to explore the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, particularly the first part of Chapter 1, the first part of Chapter 2, and the notes on witnessing.
Both in daily life, and during meditation: It is extremely important to know that you can do much of the witnessing practice in daily life, right in the middle of your other activities. You will surely want to do this at meditation time as well, but tremendous progress can be made without having to set aside a single minute of extra time for this practice. You do it while you are doing your service to others.
What does labeling and witnessing mean?
Simply observe: Labeling your thoughts is an extremely simple process of observing the nature of your thought process in a given moment. (The basic principle is so simple that it is easy to make the mistake of not doing it!)
What's useful and not useful: A simple and obvious example will help. If you have a negative thought about yourself or some other person, a thought that is not useful to your growth, you simply notice it and note that, "This is Not Useful" silently saying the words internally. Or, you may internally say only the single phrase, "Not Useful". Negative thoughts can continue to control us only when we are not aware of them. When we notice them, and label them as "Not Useful" thoughts, we can deal with those thoughts in positive, useful ways. (See Yoga Sutras, particularly the notes on discrimination)
See your thoughts honestly:
This is not being negative about yourself, passing judgment on yourself, or calling yourself negative. Rather, it is a process of honestly naming the thought pattern for what it is, a negative thought. Such observation is not a guilt-ridden passing judgment, but rather, a healthy form of adjudging a situation, in this case, that the thought is negative.
Remind yourself what is useful or not useful:
What about the positive thoughts? Similarly, when positive, helpful thoughts arise that lead us in the direction of growth and spiritual truths or enlightenment, we can remind ourselves, "This is Useful," or simply, "Useful". Then we can allow those useful thoughts move into actions.
This reminding process becomes non-verbal: After some time of doing such a practice, you will naturally find that the labeling process becomes non-verbal. It is very useful to literally say the words internally when you label the thoughts. However, the non-verbal labeling comes automatically as you increasingly become a witness to your thought process. During meditation, the thoughts can then easily come and drift away. (This means the mind is awake and alert, as well as clear, which is not meaning dull, lethargic, or in a trance.)
Label and go beyond the thoughts:
Yoga science maps out many aspects of the mental process so that the student of yoga meditation can encounter, deal with, and eventually go beyond the entire thought process to the joy of the center of consciousness. We learn to label the thoughts, and then gradually learn to go beyond them.
(Some of the types of thoughts to witness are described below in this paper. Also, a summary page has been written, so that you can print this out as an aid to study and practice.)
Parts to the process of witnessing:
Witnessing the thought process means to be able to: 1) observe the natural flow of the mind, and 2) notice the nature of the thought patterns, 3) while not being disturbed or distracted by this mental process. There is a simple formula to this process:
Weaken the grip of samskaras:
When one can begin to witness the thought process, meditation can be used as a means to weaken (Yoga Sutra 2.4) the grip of the deep impressions called samskaras, the driving force of actions or karma. Then, the deeper aspects of meditation are accessible.
Training your own mind:
It is important to remember that there is another aspect of labeling and witnessing that has to do with the direct training of your mind. This is the process of deciding and training your mind whether a given thought is Useful or Not Useful (This was mentioned above, and is covered later in the paper, after introducing all of the thought processes).
Labeling and witnessing is spiritual practice:
In Yoga meditation science one becomes a witness of the thought process, including all of the various types of inner activity. The practice of consciously labeling and witnessing the thought patterns is an extremely useful aspect of spiritual practice. Such self-training sets the stage for moving beyond the entire mental process to the Self, the Center of Consciousness.
Encounter, explore, train, and transcend mind: Between where we are and Self-Realization stands the mind. To attain the direct experience of the Self, which is beyond the mind, we must encounter and explore the mind itself, so as to transcend it. Even a cursory review of the Yoga Sutras reveals that it is an instruction manual on how to examine and train the mind, so as to go beyond.
Learning to use the simple tool:
When we learn to ride a bike, drive a car, or use a computer, there is a learning process of how to use the tools. Once the tools are understood and used for a while, the process becomes quite simple. Self-observation is also a tool that is quite simple, once it is used for a while, and some understanding comes. Then, by identifying or labeling our thought process, we can then witness the whole stream of mind.
Preparation is needed:
Patanjali describes the process of Yoga meditation in the Yoga Sutras, and the first word is Atha which means now, then, and therefore (sutra 1.1). It is a particular word for Now that implies prior preparation. It means that one is prepared to tread the path of self-exploration through Yoga meditation.
Are you willing to explore within?:
The first question about your state of mind is to ask yourself if you are willing to explore your own thoughts and thought process. It does not mean a perfect or absolute readiness and willingness, but it does mean having an attitude in which there is a sincere intent to move inward. The problem comes when we don't want to do this, saying to ourselves that such inner exploration is not needed for the spiritual journey. This is one of the main reasons that so many people practice so-called meditation for years and decades, yet privately complain of not making progress.
Following the preliminary steps:
We simply must be willing to encounter and explore the mind if we are to progress beyond it to the direct experience of the Self. If we are not prepared to do this, we are not truly ready to tread the path of Yoga meditation. One who is not presently willing to explore within and is not ready to do these practices, may find that more preliminary steps leading to Yoga meditation are more useful. Eventually these may lead one to the deeper aspects of Yoga science.
The mind is inescapable:
However, ultimately one must face his or her own thought process. There is no other way, as the mind stands between our surface reality and the deepest inner Truth. The methods may be somewhat different on different paths, but encountering and dealing with the mental process is inescapable.
Desire for truth swallows other desires: If the "Yes" to the willingness to explore the thoughts and thought process is even a small "Yes," then one can nurture that small flame of desire until it is a forest fire of desire to know the Self. That single-minded desire for Truth swallows up the smaller desires and opens the door for the grace which guides from within.
Developing burning desire, sankalpa shakti:
This burning desire to know, with conviction is called Sankalpa Shakti. Many people hear of and say they want the awakening of Kundalini Shakti, the spiritual energy within. However, the first form of Shakti, or energy, to cultivate is that of Sankalpa, or determination. It means cultivating a deep conviction to know oneself at all levels, so as to know the Self at the core. It means having an attitude that, "I can do it! I will do it! I have to do it!" (See Yoga Sutra 1.20 on efforts and commitments)
I am not my thoughts
Who I am, is beyond the mind: The fact that "I am not my thoughts" is one of the most fundamental and important of all principles of Yoga science. This is actually the way in which Patanjali introduces Yoga in the first four instructions of the Yoga Sutras. Paraphrasing, he says:
Now, after all the preparation of life and practices, begins the study and practice of Yoga.
Yoga is the nirrudah (mastery, control, regulation, transcendence, restraint) of the many levels of thought patterns in the field of mind.
Then, with that achievement, one rests in the awareness of their true nature as Self or pure Consciousness.
At other times, when not in this higher, truer state of awareness, one is falsely identified with those many levels of thought patterns contained in the mind field.
Not merely blind faith:
If we only believe this, or have blind faith in this principle, then we will miss the opportunity for the direct experience of this reality.
Find out for yourself: In the oral tradition of Yoga meditation, it is said that you should never just believe what you read or are told, but that you should also not reject these things either. Rather, take the principles, reflect on them, do the practices, and find out for yourself, in direct experience whether or not they are true.
Repeating the same discovery:
The means of doing this, in this case, is to systematically explore all of the levels of the thinking process, one at a time. Repeatedly you will discover, "Who I am, is different from this particular thought pattern that I am witnessing right now!" Over and over this insight will come, in direct experience, thought after thought, impression after impression.
Owning your own truth: Gradually, you come to see in your own opinion, observation, conclusion, and experience that, "I am not any of these thoughts!" Then you own it as your own experience and truth.
Direct experience is the goal:
Good or bad, happy or sad, clear or clouded, none of the thoughts are who we are. It is no longer a theory from some book, or the mere statement of some other person, however great that person may be. This kind of direct experience is the goal spoken of by the ancient Yogis, Sages and Masters of the Himalayas. It comes when the practices of meditation, contemplation, prayer, and mantra converge in one experience of pure witnessing.
Personality is a perfect expression:
Resting in this realization, we also come to see that the habit patterns which define our personality are perfect expressions of this individual person. The beauty of our personality uniqueness is seen, ever more clearly, as we remember our True Self that is beyond, yet always there. (Yoga Sutra 1.3)
Like a building with ten doors:
The human being is like a building with ten doors. Five are entrance doors, and five are exit doors. Witnessing these ten senses is an important part of meditation, and meditation in action.
Ten senses:
The ten indriyas or active and cognitive senses are:
Karmendriyas: The five exit doors are five means of expression, which are called active senses or Karmendriyas (Karma means action: Indriyas are the means or senses).
Jnanendriyas: The five entrance doors are the five cognitive senses, which are called cognitive senses or Jnanendriyas (Jnana means knowing; Indriyas are the means or senses).
See also the separate article entitled Training the Ten Senses or Indriyas, which includes three sections on witnessing the ten senses in daily life and at meditation time:
From Yoga Sutra 1.1:
The first Sutra of the Yoga Sutras says, "Now, after having done prior preparation through life and other practices, the study and practice of Yoga begins" (atha yoga anushasanam). The word atha is used for now, and this particular word implies a process of preparation, or stages, which one needs to move through before being able to practice yoga meditation at its fullest level. The sage Vyasa describes five states of mind, which range from the severely troubled mind to the completely mastered mind. It is very useful to be aware of these stages, both in the moment, and as a general day-to-day level at which one is functioning. It reveals the depth of practice that one might be able to currently practice. Some aspect of yoga meditation applies to every human being, though we need to be mindful of which is most fitting and effective for a person with this or that state of mind.
Two of the states are desirable:
Of the five states of mind (below), the later two of which are desirable for the deeper practice of yoga meditation. For most people, our minds are usually in one of the first three states.
Stabilize the mind in one-pointedness: By knowing this, we can deal with our minds so as to gradually stabilize the mind in the fourth state, the state of one-pointedness. This is the state of mind which prepares us for the fifth state, in which there is mastery of mind. (The first two states might also be dominant or intense enough that they manifest as what psychologists call mental illness.)
1. Kshipta/disturbed:
The ksihipta mind is disturbed, restless, troubled, wandering. This is the least desirable of the states of mind, in which the mind is troubled. It might be severely disturbed, moderately disturbed, or mildly disturbed. It might be worried, troubled, or chaotic. It is not merely the distracted mind (Vikshipta), but has the additional feature of a more intense, negative, emotional involvement.
2. Mudha/dull:
The mudha mind is stupefied, dull, heavy, forgetful. With this state of mind, there is less of a running here and there of the thought process. It is a dull or sleepy state, somewhat like one experiences when depressed, though we are not here intending to mean only clinical depression. It is that heavy frame of mind we can get into, when we want to do nothing, to be lethargic, to be a couch potato.
The Mudha mind is barely beyond the Kshipta, disturbed mind, only in that the active disturbance has settled down, and the mind might be somewhat more easily trained from this place. Gradually the mind can be taught to be a little bit steady in a positive way, only occasionally distracted, which is the Vikshipta state. Then the mind can move on in training to the Ekagra and Nirrudah states.
3. Vikshipta/distracted:
The vikshipta mind is distracted, occasionally steady or focused. This is the state of mind often reported by students of meditation when they are wide awake and alert, neither noticeably disturbed nor dull and lethargic. Yet, in this state of mind, one's attention is easily drawn here and there. This is the monkey mind or noisy mind that people often talk about as disturbing meditation. The mind can concentrate for short periods of time, and is then distracted into some attraction or aversion. Then, the mind is brought back, only to again be distracted.
The Vikshipta mind in daily life can concentrate on this or that project, though it might wander here and there, or be pulled off course by some other person or outside influence, or by a rising memory. This Vikshipta mind is the stance one wants to attain through the foundation yoga practices, so that one can then pursue the one-pointedness of Ekagra, and the mastery that comes with the state of Nirrudah.
4. Ekagra/one-pointed:
The ekagra mind is one-pointed, focused, concentrated (Yoga Sutra 1.32). When the mind has attained the ability to be one-pointed, the real practice of Yoga meditation begins. It means that one can focus on tasks at hand in daily life, practicing karma yoga, the yoga of action, by being mindful of the mental process and consciously serving others. When the mind is one-pointed, other internal and external activities are simply not a distraction.
The person with a one-pointed mind just carries on with the matters at hand, undisturbed, unaffected, and uninvolved with those other stimuli. It is important to note that this is meant in a positive way, not the negative way of not attending to other people or other internal priorities. The one-pointed mind is fully present in the moment and able to attend to people, thoughts, and emotions at will.
The one-pointed mind is able to do the practices of concentration and meditation, leading one onward towards samadhi. This ability to focus attention is a primary skill that the student wants to develop for meditation and samadhi.
5. Niruddah/mastered:
The nirruddah mind is highly mastered, controlled, regulated, restrained (Yoga Sutra 1.2). It is very difficult for one to capture the meaning of the Nirrudah state of mind by reading written descriptions. The real understanding of this state of mind comes only through practices of meditation and contemplation. When the word Nirrudah is translated as controlled, regulated, or restrained, it can easily be misunderstood to mean suppression of thoughts and emotions.
To suppress thoughts and emotions is not healthy and this is not what is meant here. Rather, it has to do with that natural process when the mind is one-pointed and becomes progressively more still as meditation deepens. It is not that the thought patterns are not there, or are suppressed, but that attention moves inward, or beyond the stream of inner impressions. In that deep stillness, there is a mastery over the process of mind. It is that mastery that is meant by Nirrudah.
In the second sutra of the Yoga Sutras, Yoga is defined as "Yogash Chitta Vritti Nirrudah," which is roughly translated as "Yoga is the control [Nirrudah] of the thought patterns of the mind field". Thus, this Nirrudah state of mind is the goal and definition of Yoga. It is the doorway by which we go beyond the mind.
Be aware of your state of mind:
Be aware of your general state of mind. Which of the five is your typical state of mind in daily life? The single act of identifying your typical state of mind is very useful in moving that state of mind further along the path of Yoga meditation.
If mind is kshipta or mudha:
If your mind is mostly in the first two states (Kshipta or Mudha), how can you use the vast range of Yoga practices to bring the mind to the merely distracted (Vikshipta) state and then to one-pointedness (Ekagra)? How can you use other complementary practices or therapies to help in this process?
If mind is vikshipta:
If your mind is mostly in the distracted (Vikshipta) state, how can you work with your concentration practices to more fully bring the mind to the one-pointedness of the Ekagra mind?
If mind is ekagra:
If you are able to train your mind to be in the one-pointed (Ekagra) state, then how can you intensify your practices so as to attain glimpses of the mastery over mind called Nirrudah?
Three gunas or qualities:
The mind has one of three qualities (three gunas) that predominate. These three qualities are related to the mind in general, as well as to specific thought patterns:
Tamas, static, stable, inert: Negative aspects include heaviness, vice, ignorance, dullness, stagnation, or stupor. Positive aspects include stability and reliability.
Rajas, or active, stirring, moving: Impelled towards activity, which may be a negative, disturbing, distracted form of energy, or a positive activity to overcome inertia.
Sattvas, Illumined, light, spiritual: As the veil of the other two is gradually lifted, there comes virtue, higher wisdom, desirelessness, and mastery.
Cultivate sattvic mind:
We want to cultivate the Sattvic or Illuminated state of mind, rather than a mind filled with Inertia or Negative Activity. The three gunas are said to be the building blocks of the universe, and at the same time are qualities of grosser levels of reality. For example, one might eat more Sattvic food as an aid to meditation, or create a Sattvic environment. Here, we are talking about cultivating Sattvic thought patterns.
Notice which of the three is predominant:
Here, we want to simply notice the state of mind in a common sense sort of way. This is very straightforward. The mind and its thoughts might be filled with a heaviness (tamas), filled with distracting activity (rajas), or it might be filled with illumination or spiritual lightness (sattvas).
If heavy or inert:
If the mind is heavy or inert, we want to bring activity so that we can approach the illuminated, clear state of mind.
If overactive or noisy:
If the mind is overly active or noisy, in negative ways, then we want to allow that to pass, to transform into a clarity and illumination.
If clear or illumined: If the mind is in a clear, illumined, or Sattvic state, we want to gently maintain that state of mind.
Cultivate sattvic thoughts and emotions:
In any case, we want to cultivate individual thoughts and emotions that are Sattvic in nature, that are spiritual, clear, or illumined. To do that, it is useful to label the Tamasic and Rajasic thoughts so that these can be transformed into Sattvic thoughts. It is not a matter of repressing the Tamasic or Rajasic thoughts, but of positively emphasizing the Sattvic.
For example, if Tamas is predominant, then thoughts might be heavy or negative. However, when Sattvas is dominant, then Tamas provides stability, which is useful.
If Rajas is dominant, then thoughts might be anxious or racing. However, if Sattvas is dominant, Rajas is the force that brings the useful thoughts into positive action, while Tamas has a stabilizing effect.
It's not good or bad:
When considering which of the Gunas are strongest in a given thought or thought process, it can seem as if Sattvas is "good" and that Tamas and Rajas are "bad". This is not the case. What is important is that balance of the Gunas and which one is dominant. In addition to the possible negative aspects, Rajas is also the positive impelling force to take actions, and Tamas is a stabilizing force. Both are useful.
Allow sattvas to be dominant: For meditation, Sattvas is the Guna that the student wants to be dominant, allowing Rajas and Tamas to have little influence.
Klishta or aklishta:
Thought patterns are either Klishta or Aklishta.
Klishta means that they are not neutral, but are colored or afflicted in some way, such as with attraction or aversion. These lead to pain and suffering.
Aklishta means they are not colored, such as when not afflicted either with attraction or aversion. These do not lead to pain and suffering.
