DISCERN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AWARENESS AND THINKING

Swiss Retreat 2019 Interviews 3 (1:22:50-1:26:35) with Sayadaw U Tejaniya

Yogi: When my mind is quiet and thoughts arise, sometimes I feel them coming, just the energy that a thought is manifesting.

Sometimes, it unfolds and sometimes when I’m not mindful, it develops into a story which takes me away from mindfulness. And if I’m not careful, the story comes back again and again.

When I see and look at a tree and I’m not mindful, I think that the tree transforms and I transform and I feel that it’s a different level of seeing.

Sayadaw: About the thoughts, you see the intention to think, the energy that you see is the intention or desire to think. And sometimes when we’re aware of it, the thought can fade and sometimes it can manifest. And, yes, if you’re not mindful, you can get lost in thought.

When you see, you should notice the sight, not the tree. The tree is not the seeing; the seeing is only your ability to see. The things you see are what we think about and that’s concept.