" Communication with yourself has to STOP" ~ UG

 Threats of the cultural kind 

    Constantly communicating with oneself or talking to oneself is the way we spend our waking hours. Apparently, there is more to this self-talk. After all, it could be part of a survival instinct, a tactic to navigate or negotiate the complex, conflict-ridden 'cultural environment', 

"Culture is the superimposed reality, that is the 'only reality' we have" ~UG. 

    Physical hazards galore in the natural environment. Thankfully, nature has endowed us with a biological 'survival kit' that is efficient and sufficient to handle the myriad physical threats.

    But the fact is we also face serious existential threats from an unlikely source, the cultural environment. The deadly demons of race, region (nationalism or tribalism), religion, colour, language etc., do pose a serious challenge to our survival. 

    The question is, are we equipped to handle these cultural threats? 

Culture as 'the force of good' 

    Culture, as we know, has a brief history of only a few thousand years. It is of the order of a few microseconds on the planetary timescale of around five billion years. Nevertheless, culture is a dominant force that impacts the lives and fates of billions of people.

    Culture, in its simplest form, is considered 'the force of good'. Culture assimilates local folklore, tradition or religion. It also appropriates the sayings and doings of wise men and women (UG called them 'human flowers') from the bygone ages. Culture, in its true sense, is universal and catholic (with a small 'c') in scope and approach with 'unity of life' and 'humanity' as its core values.

    History tells us that in every region, every geography where humanity appeared, there appeared some fine human flowers. These worthies led simple, natural and benevolent lives leaving behind a vast body of beneficial knowledge and ethos that has been passed on to us from generation to generation.

    The human potential is infinite, and it flowers or blooms when one gets tethered to the source of life. How it happens, is still a mystery. But it has happened to individuals in the past, and the possibility of such happening lurks in each and every one of us. This is the same Natural State (Sahaja Sthiti) that UG described as his own way of functioning after the 'calamity' (his death and resurrection on his 49th birthday). 

    "Go back' (to the source)" ~ UG

    Simple, natural living is 'life expressing itself'. It is the unleashing of human potential, the blooming of human possibility and creativity. 

     No wonder, the ancient cultures of the world, all the way from Greece to Egypt, Middle East to India and China were rich and vibrant civilizations. They gave us all the major religions of the world. Also, they introduced humanities and sciences, medicine and agriculture, astronomy and metallurgy, prose and poetry, music and dance, art and theatre etc. 

    The awe-inspiring architecture and monuments of the ancient past stand as relics to this day and give us a glimpse into the lofty levels of enlightenment, refinement and creativity of these ancient worthies.

    But what about culture today?  

'Culture' has calcified into a 'cult' 

    Yes, we could wax eloquent about the great human heritage, but where are we today? 

    Culture seems to have taken an about-turn, going back to the dark, pre-culture days of animalism and barbarism. Today's cultural environment, to say the least, is toxic. Culture is now a misnomer. 

    The dehumanizing cry of 'us versus them' is the cultish outgrowth of the bygone culture. It has turned into a handy tool for ambitious leaders, politicians and profit seekers eager to divide communities, to grab power and plunder.

    Culture has calcified into a cult due to narrow or parochial ways of 'thinking'. 

    All social or cultural evils are rooted in thought. 

  " Thought is your enemy."~ UG 

   Thought is a powerful double-edged sword. It can cut both ways. When employed for technical or functional or transactional purposes, thought is a boon, a highly beneficial instrument.

    But when driven by profit or motive, thinking turns into a self-centered activity. The thought of 'me' and 'mine'; 'us' and 'them' harbours the deadly evils of division and conflict, hatred and enmity. Such thinking is a clear path to danger and self-destruction. 

    Here is a deep dive by UG about the psychology of threat resolution and its possible fallout,

 " The demand to be prepared for 'all future actions and all situations' is the cause of our problems. Every situation is so different; and our attempt to be prepared for all those situations is the one that is responsible for our not being able to deal with situations as they arise. " 

                                                                                            ~ UG (Thought Is Your Enemy)

    This is the reason why we keep talking to ourselves all the time. We keep strategizing and planning for the non-existent threat or situation in the future. This is typical of 'crossing the bridge before reaching there', a tremendous drain on energy, a wasteful form of daydreaming.

    When one encounters a physical threat, say, a deadly cobra, the biology responds with a pre-programmed 'fight or flight or freeze' response. There is no thinking, only immediate action to avoid the danger, thought elopes!

    Upon encountering threats of a social or cultural or psychological kind, there is no such biological or pre-programmed instantaneous response. To resolve a psychological threat, say fear or loss, born of thinking or imagination, ironically, we fall back upon more thinking or imagination. The one casting the shadow is also the one trying to catch the shadow.

    Talking to oneself is such a defensive manoeuvre we indulge in when we are confronted with a cultural or social threat. 

Mental 'Cud chewing ' or 'clarification of thoughts' 

    Remember the 'cud chewing' phenomenon in cattle? Cows or bovines are either grazing or lazing. While lazing, they spend a lot of time re-chewing or regurgitating their 'cud'. Cud refers to the semi-digested form of food or hay. 

    When we are talking to ourselves, we too indulge in mental 'cud chewing.' We engage in rumination or mulling over of thoughts. 

    We keep chewing on thoughts of fear, loss, competition, comparison that haunt us. We keep hashing and rehashing, ordering and reordering thoughts till we get some clarity on the situation. We are trying to 'understand' the problem.

    UG explained that 'understanding is nothing but clarification of thoughts'. Understanding is our kind of 'cud chewing' wherein we look for patterns, meanings and desperately seek the 'familiar'. 

    Talking to ourselves is a form of our battle-readiness, a way of reassuring ourselves or insuring ourselves against future threats or situations. Observing this maniacal obsession with future or security, UG quips,

     " You are nothing but fear".

 'There is no need for us to talk "~UG    

    In this audio clip, UG clears the air by explaining to us the mechanics of self-communication,

" You communicate with yourself and then you use those words and try to communicate with me. But the communication with yourself has to stop there."                                                                                                                                         ~UG

    Unfortunately, self-communication doesn't stop there. We do not see the utter futility or the danger of self-talk or rumination. Not only it is an extravagant activity that burns up our psychic energy, but it is also one of the most distracting forms of preoccupation. It completely hijacks natural awareness and blindsides us to any current threats.  

    A person busy pushing the thread through the eye of the needle does not see a huge elephant passing by.

     "Stop thinking and start living" ~UG 

     Intelligence is to see the many dangers and limitations of thought. This is to junk wants and stick to needs. This unleashes the life energy otherwise bound or shackled by needless thinking. 

    Unleashed energy can handle a myriad affairs or deal with a myriad threats. This is the energy (mojo) behind all successful human undertakings, all great accomplishments and achievements. 

    Intelligent way of living is to drop all needless wants, goals and pursuits, to rid oneself of all forms of futile activities, relationships and engagements, to junk all psychological dependencies or crutches. This takes the oxygen out of the room, putting the brakes on neurotic forms of overthinking or self-communication,  

"Then there is no need for us to talk (to ourselves) or for you to talk to me, or to anybody." ~UG

    Living at ease, attending to things as they come, neither seeking nor rejecting affairs, nor abandoning the din and dust of society, one lives naturally.  

Here is a takeaway from the great Tao Master Guangcheng Zi on effortless living,

"Being a busybody will destroy you..."

~~~~~

Audio Clip

( Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoALZJDD_Rw )

Audio Transcript:

UG: Why I do what I'm doing is, to make you see that, it is not really necessary to talk.

It's not necessary for me to say anything, it's not necessary for you to say anything.

Not that there is another level of communication, or a mysterious way of communicating something, but this we know.

We are trying to tell something to somebody, and that gives you a feeling that you have said whatever you want to say.

It is not in your saying or in my saying that the solution is. The answer to the question is.

Q: Yes, you're right.

UG: I know that many people are hurt because, first of all, I can't follow, you see.

We are making statements. You are making a statement, I am making a counter statement, you see. Then it goes on and on and on and on.

Q: Oh no, I didn't want to. I was coming here, and I was ringing to ask if I may come, because I had two questions.

And I want to know your meaning about that, because there are two problems, by me and I want to ask.

I don't want to debunk your arguments; I don't want to draw a whole evening between them.

No, no, no.

UG: You know, you see, no, no, you don't have to say anything, just stop there, that's all.

Yes, it's not that I am blocking, or I don't want to listen, you see.

You see, the flow of that has to stop there in you.

You don't have to tell me or tell yourself, first of all, you see.

You communicate with yourself and then you use those words and try to communicate with me.

But the communication with yourself has to stop there.

Then there is no need for us to talk or for you to talk to me or to anybody.

~~~~~

"Thought has millions and millions of years of momentum, just passing through you." ~ UG

Neurotic levels of social engagement

 

    Today's insane levels of social engagement with round-the-clock connectivity through mobile and internet means endless whacking of senses from morning till evening. 

    Most of us live in a punch-drunk state pounded by a million reels, notifications, news, views, posts, vlogs-blogs etc. flooding the social media, streaming nonstop on our mobiles.  

    No, social media is not a fad anymore, rather it is a must-have 'survival kit' for businesses and self-employed individuals, and a channel for social commerce. Also, subscribing to some form of social media (WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook etc.) is now part of a larger group dynamic, an obligatory show of allegiance to a community or group. 

    All this means neurotic levels of cyber engagement, 24x7x365, making life highly stressful and burdensome. 

    Adding to this are the biting realities of life including extremes of climate - the fury of fires, storms or floods, the rising levels of racism, loss of incomes and jobs, inequality, hatred and growing number of regional and global conflicts, divisions, wars etc. 

    While the real world and the cyber world are vying with each other to kick up high levels of stress and paranoia, people are seeking alternate forms of reality as remedy for the malady. Many kinds of thought control, meditation, yoga, a myriad therapies and techniques, countless number of mobile apps (guided meditation) are readily available to pacify tormented souls, for a price of course. 

    The demand for peace and solace is an extremely profitable business run by self-proclaimed gurus, mentors, counsellors as well as professional therapists and psychiatrists. Not to forget the perennial demand for narcotics and antipsychotic drugs that bring about chemical changes in the body, lulling and dulling the mind. 

    The exponential growth of spiritual centres (ashrams), resorts, mental healthcare units, de-addiction or rehab centres, are all pointers to the rising levels of stresses and the ever-increasing demand for remedies or solutions. 

****

The dubious science(?) of 'thought control'

    Thought control is nothing new. It is proclaimed as an effective measure for taming inner demons of restlessness, anxiety, agitation, frustration, fear, uncertainty etc. with a goal to achieve inner tranquillity. Accordingly, there are several meditation or contemplation schools and practices, old and new, prevalent across many spiritual and religious traditions of the world. 

    But the mechanics or the science (?) of thought control, as it is actually applied or practised, remains questionable and dubious. Thought control is a grey area. Breath control (pranayama) as a means to control thought is a temporary measure and requires professional or expert guidance, else could prove dangerous. Practitioners of breath control report partial relief. Yes, it is just an icepack, a temporary relief, but not a permanent cure for living problems. 

    Any form of thought control is a sellout in the spiritual bazaar bringing windfall for profit-seekers - greedy gurus, charlatans, con artists who sell their own brand of 'thought control' as panacea for mental maladies. 

    UG snubs the exploitative gang of thugs who loot and con people promising them 'peace', 'happiness', 'tranquillity' etc., 

" What these guys offer you is shoddy piece of goods. A prostitute is much better, she is an honest person, she does not cheat. She offers you something tangible for your money. "   

    In this audio clip, UG gives us a glimpse of what we are up against, when we talk of thought control. For him, thought control is a doomed mission right from the word go. He explains that there is no way humans can escape the 'gravitational pull' of the powerful 'thought field' or the 'thought sphere' that has accrued over the ages. 

    In several of his talks, UG maintains that thought is not a mere human legacy. Thought, functioning as 'memory and recognition', is a common attribute of all living creatures. Birds, insects, animals build their nests, map out their living space, forage far and wide, and return again to the safety and comfort of their nests. All this is made possible thanks to 'thought' in some primitive form.

    Natural conditioning means adapting to nature. Thought as memory or 'the residue of experience' makes it possible for living creatures to function sanely and intelligently in the natural environment full of threats and traps. In a way thought acts as the 'primary medium of conditioning' or adaptation. 

    Like all other living creatures, we humans too undergo 'natural conditioning' for survival in the natural environment. This form of basic conditioning helps us only to survive and live naturally but it does not help for societal living. We might end up more like Mowgli in the Jungle Book (the Rudyard Kipling classic based on true life of Dina Sanichar; a feral boy raised by a pack of wolves).

   Therefore, in order to adapt and survive in the human jungle or the cultural environment, we need yet another round of conditioning - the 'cultural conditioning', over and above natural conditioning. UG explains that cultural environment is the 'superimposed reality' and the 'only reality' for all practical purposes. 

****

Thought has millions of years of momentum

    So, as a primordial conditioning tool or adaptation tool, 'thought' has played a crucial role in our survival on the planet. Thought has subsisted for millions of years, preceding the birth of culture or society or religion that happened only a few thousand years ago. 

    Thought or 'conditioning', therefore, is a psychophysical phenomenon, biologically rooted or hardwired to ensure physical survival.

    Therefore, playing with thought, a powerful instrument of survival, could prove highly detrimental with serious ramifications,

" If you try to control your thought, you are not going to succeed, because it has a tremendous momentum, millions and millions of years of momentum. 

You have nothing to do with it, you see.

It's just passing through you, you know " ~UG

    To borrow from an old African proverb, thought control is like the foolhardy attempt 'to block river Nile'.  A mighty river, forcefully blocked, will inundate and drown the entire surrounding land resulting in large scale destruction. 

    UG uses the very same analogy in one of his talks:

“So, if you try to control or stop the flow of a river through all these artificial means like putting a dam, and all that, then it will inundate the whole thing.

That’s why every time you control your thoughts, to watch your thoughts, to observe your thoughts, to be aware of your thoughts, you find that the thoughts are welling (up) there all the time.” ~ UG

    Again, here in the audio clip:

" So, if you say they are good thoughts, they are pious thoughts, they are virtuous thoughts, and the other thoughts are bad, you see, sinful thoughts, they are what they are, you see.

So, what have you to do with them? You have nothing to do with them.

So, when you want to do something with them (achieving a goal, a thoughtless state) then you are creating a problem for yourself. " ~UG

    UG cautioned us against thought control saying it is unnatural, leading to serious chemical changes in the body, resulting in pathological disorders. 

    UG would often repeat (about any thought or experience), "Let it be, leave it alone!"

    An ancient Taoist saying echoes his wisdom, "It is not that the objects encroach, but simply I pay no mind ". 

    Rather than attempting thought control, abandoning needless engagements or pointless goals and simplifying our lives is a wiser approach to peaceful living.

****

 

Audio Clip

Audio Transcription:

UG: You do whatever you want to do.

I am not saying that you should not meditate, or you should meditate.

So whatever you want is already there, you see. You know.

If religiosity is what you are interested in, it's there, it's there in your Christianity.

You have never even looked at it, you see.

How can you be dissatisfied and brush it aside without testing that, you see.

So, try this.

All the fashionable things are coming. I am not saying that you should not meditate, that you should not do yoga, all that is nonsense.

I am not saying any one of those things, you know.

I am just pointing out what you are actually doing, you see. Your goal, you see, is altogether different.

He wants to stay awake, you know. So this puts you to sleep, that's all that I am saying, you know.

It makes it difficult for you to stay awake. 

If you try to control your thought, you are not going to succeed,

Because it has a tremendous momentum, millions and millions of years of momentum. 

You have nothing to do with it, you see.

It's just passing through you, you know.

So if you say they are good thoughts, they are pious thoughts, they are virtuous thoughts, and the other thoughts are bad, you see, sinful thoughts, they are what they are, you see.

So what have you to do with them? You have nothing to do with them.

So when you want to do something with them, then you are creating a problem for yourself. You cannot but do that. You cannot but do that, but you are doing that, you see.

So what do you want to control your thoughts for? No, not you, you see, that's what we were discussing all the time.

To achieve something, you see, some goal.

So the goal is here already, you see, not out there, not after your meditation,

Or ten years of meditation, but whatever you want, you see, it's already here, it is there.

You cannot look at it, you see, because you are looking there (elsewhere), there, you see, the goal is there.

****

 

"Those thousand ‘hows’ have not helped you, why do you want to add one more 'how' to that? " ~UG

Random vs Purposeful thoughts

    In our daily lives, ‘random thoughts’ or 'thought bubbles' keep popping up all the time. 

    Merely looking at some face or flower, or listening to some sound or music, or reading some snippet or news, is enough to push us into reverie or rumination or some form of preoccupation. This distracts or hijacks natural awareness. 

    “The only difference between you and me is that you are ‘preoccupied’ and I am not.” ~UG

    UG, in this audio clip further clarifies that while random thoughts are ever present, they stay 'disconnected and disjointed' and therefore, are not all that burdensome,  

" If you don't use that (thought) for any achievement, spiritual or otherwise, then it is not a burden. Then it becomes disconnected and disjointed. " ~UG

    Apart from the random thoughts that bombard us all the time, there are the goal-oriented or the achievement-oriented thoughts. 

" Thought with motivation is the 'thought'." ~UG

    Thoughts backed by 'motivation' or 'intention' are purposeful and forceful and trigger all kinds of actions. But, chasing after some impossible, incompatible or non-existent (spiritual) goals could only lead one to misery or frustration,

" Using that thought - to achieve some goal that is not there, is misery." ~UG

    We primarily oscillate between the random or the 'chattering mode', and the purposeful or the 'thinking mode'.

    This dualistic nature of thought, 'random’ or ‘purposeful’, could be further unscrambled using the analogy of the common ‘clutch’ found in automobiles.

Intention acts the clutch of the mind.

    All of us are familiar with the mechanism of the clutch used in cars to engage or disengage the rotating engine shaft with the wheels of the car through a gear-train, aka 'transmission'.

    In the 'clutched mode', upon selection of a gear, the clutch 'engages' the engine shaft with the wheels of the car, putting them either in forward or reverse motion. 

    This 'clutched mode' could be compared to the workings of a purposeful, goal-oriented 'thinking mind'. 

    The 'clutched mode' of the mind is where 'ideas' are set into motion. UG describes this as the 'movement of knowledge'. Here, intention or motivation acts as the 'clutch of the mind' propelling thoughts or ideas into movement to achieve some goal or purpose.     

    As per UG, the side-effects of this 'movement of knowledge' are actually far-reaching, leading to stubborn illusions and delusions.

" The 'movement of knowledge' is the (illusory) 'I' or the 'self'. " ~UG

    We will leave it at that, and turn to the other mode, the 'declutched mode'.     

    Here, upon selection of the 'neutral', the clutch disengages the engine from the wheels, unloading the engine and putting the engine in the 'idle' or 'the freewheeling mode'. 

    Declutched mode is typical of our regular ‘chattering mind’. With no intention, purpose or motivation, thoughts are random, freewheeling, disconnected and disjointed. 

______________________________________________________

  An aside: 

   Interestingly, UG coined the word 'declutched' to describe his own way of functioning. He doesn't call it the 'declutched mode' but instead, calls it the 'declutched state'.

   By the way, 'state' denotes stability and permanence while 'mode' describes volatility and impermanence. 

    UG used 'declutched state' or 'natural state' synonymously to describe his way of functioning. He also explained that in this state, thoughts played only a functional role. 

    We could think of UG's natural state as a state where thoughts work only 'on demand', and only temporarily, and only for functional reasons - whenever he wanted to visit the post office or buy cream or purchase airline ticket.

    UG emphasized that his 'declutched state' was devoid of volition or intention or purpose and explained, "thoughts cannot stay there -- there is no continuity, no build-up."

    In his innumerable talks and discussions spanning over half a century, UG described many counterfactuals ('declutched state' etc.) that help us appreciate several unknown natural phenomena.  

______________________________________________________

    From all this, we can see that, thoughts by their very nature, are random. They do not last long, they do not build up, they do not take root unless backed by some wilful participation or intent or motive.

    The caveat therefore is clear. Any intention or motivation could easily blind us and bind us to the consequences of our actions.

    Perhaps this is the reason why, in the ancient wisdom texts of the Bhagavad Gita or Yoga Vāșișhta, the authors caution us about 'intention' ( सङ्कल्पं or sankalpam ) in no uncertain terms. 

    These classics mince no words and characterize the 'real human' or 'sage' as 'non-initiator of actions' (सर्वारम्भ परित्यागी - 'sarvaarambha parityagi'). 

    The Chinese Taoism too resonates with this truth, " Sage is purposeless, acts when he must." 

****

The burden of knowledge

    Those of us working for a livelihood or taking care of families need necessarily to engage with society and strive for material goals, there are no two ways about it. We can't be freeloaders or a burden to others or society.

    And for the likes of us, dealing with the daily stresses of societal affairs, UG offers great pointers that are of immense help,

“I get affected by everything around me, but I am not involved.” ~UG

    UG makes it clear that though we have no choice but to live in society, and no choice about external events or people or places, it is within our reach to either say 'no', or give consent, or get ‘involved’ in endless affairs of the world. 

    Indulgence or dalliance could be detrimental to our health, both mental and physical.

    Intention or motivation is a very potent force. Also, it acts as the 'binding glue' for thoughts to coalesce or crystallize or solidify (as the fictitious 'I' or 'self') whenever there is intent or motive. Intention, therefore, sets the 'wheels of knowledge' (or ideas) into motion, till the goal is attained or reached.

    UG’s 'declutched state' offers a stark contrast to all this. His system was so finely tuned that the delinking or disengagement from 'engaged' thinking was total and complete, and natural,

“Sometimes the sensual memory of making love to my wife comes suddenly from nowhere. But when these thoughts try to take root there, everything in you tightens -- you don't have to do a thing. The thoughts cannot stay there -- there is no continuity, no build-up -- one knows what it is, and there it ends -- something else comes up.”                                 

                                                                                ~UG (The Mystique of Enlightenment)

  Occasionally we do witness something similar. There are rare moments in our daily lives when we suddenly or abruptly 'wake up' from daydreaming or rumination that is distracting us from the task at hand. But habits die hard and our neck-deep involvement in society doesn't help us either.

    No wonder UG cautions us again and again, “Thought is your enemy.”   

    Only when we clearly see the dangers of intentional or motivated thinking behind our actions can we refrain from getting involved or entangled in needless affairs of the world. Our intention or motivation holds serious consequences not only for ourselves but for others in the social world. 

    Thought is very potent, how it gets employed can make for fortune or calamity.  The many dangers and misfortunes associated with thought begs the question, 

    "How to be in a thoughtless state?", 

    UG answers the question in this audio clip with a resounding sound bite,

" So, you see, by demanding ‘how’ to be in a thoughtless state, you want to add more knowledge to that 'movement of knowledge', that is the trick it is playing. Through knowing more and more, more and more is burden, the movement of the known, or whatever you want to call it, is not going to come to an end, that is the reason why it is asking 'how'.

So, you have thousand ‘hows’ there, and those thousand ‘hows’ have not helped you, why do you want to add one more how to that, that is all that I am saying.

                                                                                                                                

****

Audio Clip

Audio Transcription

    UG: If you don't use that (thought) for any achievement, spiritual or otherwise, then it is not a burden. Then it becomes disconnected and disjointed. 

    The continuity, the demand to continue, through the repetition of that thought, is not there. You have to experience that again and again, and again, otherwise, 'you' are not there.

    Thought with motivation is the thought, you see there are no thoughts, that's all that I am saying.

    You cannot know anything about thought, what all is there is - ‘about thought’ but not thought. There is no thought there at any time. (Thoughts are only) about thought first, and then using that thought - to achieve some goal that is not there (some spiritual goal). So, that is why, it is misery. 

    So, it has created the goal of 'thoughtless state' (Q: which is not there).

    It has accepted from the statements of those people who say that they are in a ‘thoughtless state’, so it has accepted that there is such a thing as thoughtless state and wants to be in that thoughtless state, right?

    So, it is this thought that has created the ‘thoughtless state’. How can you be in a thoughtless state through the use of what you call thought, you can’t!

    Q: Thought eliminates itself when you are in that state. 

    UG: When you don't use this (thought) to put yourself into a 'thoughtless state' or 'timeless state' the thought is not there. So, why do you have to go through this laborious process, painful process, of frightening situation to put yourself into struggle, to be in a thoughtless state?

    Q: How do you get over this thoughtless state?

    UG: You are asking how - you want to know, this I repeat again and again, what is there is (only) the movement of knowledge, the knowledge that ‘it is a thought’ and that ‘it is going to be in a thoughtless state’ and all that kind of thing, you seem to know. You actually don't know.

    So, you see, you are asking me how to be in a thoughtless state.

    So, the answer I give (only) adds to the knowledge you have of that or contradicts that knowledge. That is all that I am saying. So that is why it throws this question ‘how’ to be in a thoughtless state. So, you want to know how to be in a thoughtless state, so what will you do with that knowledge, you will think. 

    "So, you see, by demanding ‘how’ to be in a thoughtless state, you want to add more knowledge to that 'movement of knowledge', that is the trick it is playing. Through knowing more and more, more and more is burden, the movement of the known, or whatever you want to call it, is not going to come to an end, that is the reason why it is asking 'how'.

    So, you have thousand ‘hows’ there, and those thousand ‘hows’ have not helped you, why do you want to add one more how to that, that is all that I am saying.

    At least to this extent, you can be free from adding one more to that and settle for the thousand you already have and try your luck." ~UG

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