Lightdemon

Please fill out the poll accordingly and accurately.

Are you able to STOP the flow of your thoughts? If you wanted to stop thinking, meaning thinking of ABSOLUTELY nothing, can you?

By absolutely nothing, I mean just that. It does not mean trivial things, or things that does not matter, or things that make no sense, or imaginary things, etc.

Absolutely nothing means you are thinking of nothing at all. Like a total blank thought.

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Democrats are thieves
Republicans are thieves too,
Where's my liberty?
- by Ethereal

Korimyr the Rat

Not so much. It's something that people train for years to be capable of... and I have only been training for months.

Getting pretty good at thinking of only one simple object, though.

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bhkad

Only for moments at a time. I hear that this ability increases with practice.

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But, when all is said and done, Senator McCain has not spent decades aiding and abetting people who hate America. http://jewishworldreview.com/cols/sowell060508.php3

Billo_Really

Advocating people not to think, that explains a lot!

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"With neocons, it just goes to show, when the
bar is low enough, you can never be too wrong!"

Summerwind

I cannot even with years of trying. But I am ADHD boardering on autistic, so I don't even try anymore but instead embrace the amount of territory my mind covers on a daily basis. I had to finally adapt this stance because otherwise I would get up pizzed off because of lack of sleep, and that would lead to a miserable day, and then to more disconcerting crap to not be able to turn off the next night. This way at least my wakeful/thinking-ness is a pleasant experience leading to a happier day and so on.

Lightdemon

Just to clarify, judging by the types of responses above, my aim in this discussion wasn't so much based on "meditation" or practicing in doing a mental excersize. I didn't want to be that specific.

It should come as natural, is what I mean. An example is in order:


Coming home from a regular day at work or school or what have you, you sit down in your favorite seat, be it the couch, the bed, the rocking chair, the cusion on the floor, whatever. Undoubtedly, things are happening in your mind, all types of thoughts, which may or may not be relevant to your day.

In this setting, sitting in your favorite spot:

Have you ever stopped thinking completely? Can you stop it, even for just a moment? For a minute? Half a minute? As long as you can stop it, you should have answer yes to the poll, that you can control the flow of your thoughts.

Presumably, there is a gender difference in this type of mental control.

EDIT: Disclaimer* Not that either sex is mentally superior or inferior, but that a gender difference exist within that capacity.

CaptainCourtesy

Are you asking, 'does this happen spontaneously' or 'I can make this happen'?

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1069

Rarely.
At one point in my life, I was bothered by intrusive unwelcome thoughts- actually, more like images, violent ones- and I managed to block them out by physically hurting myself every time they popped into my head, until they didn't anymore.
I pretty much thought I was going nuts at the time, but later found out that it was some weird post-partum hormonal thing, not all that uncommon.

Anyway, so yes, I can stop my thinking, but only with terrible effort.
Generally, I find no reason to stop my thoughts; I let them lead me where they will.

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Jerry: "...yes, 10 is going to outerspace."

foundit66

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Lightdemon

As in a conscious effort to stop ones thinking.