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Just as important are books that can teach you how to relate to thoughts, AKA proprioception of thought. Thinking is a hugely important function, but it should

Just as important are books that can teach you how to relate to thoughts, AKA proprioception of thought. Thinking is a hugely important function, but it should not be considered as the only one, nor the most important in every case.

joflicu 4y ago
Can you say more? What do you mean by "how to relate to thoughts?" Seems similar to mindfulness, but I am not sure.
- marc_io 4y ago
  Yes, mindfulness is helpful in practicing this. When we have a thought – any thought – there is an inherent relationship with it, whether acceptance, resistance, fear, estrangement, desire, and so on. The quality of this relationship is informed by various signals in your body/mind system (emotions, impressions, other thoughts and even skin reactions, in the case of persistent patterns). It is crucial to be aware of this relationship, as your actions – and therefore what happens as a result of them – are strongly informed by it.
Nomentatus 4y ago
Meditation for example (vipassana in particular) helps you tune into information coming at you through feelings in various parts of your body. An ancient text said that good monks "always keep their attention on their bodies," for this reason. Antonio Domasio is the leading researcher on how taking the body out of the equation hamstrings humans in making decisions, whether about poker hands or what house to buy. His former students are doing some great work, too.
- andrei_says_ 4y ago
  All decision making is based on emotion. George Lakoff mentioned in one of his lectures that people with a specific brain injury involving access to emotion, lose their ability to make decisions. Any kind of preference is based on emotion. All decisions stem from having a preference for one outcome over another. The thought processes claim to make the decisions, and to be “rational, but they always serve preferences. The ability to expand one’s awareness beyond thinking gives access to a universe of phenomenae in a space larger and containing the thinking activity.
greymalik 4y ago
Examples?
- marc_io 4y ago
  I wouldn't recommend a specific book for this, as reading can only help with technicalities that are better understood in other ways, IMO. If you're scientifically inclined, joining any Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program near you will be a good start.

joflicu 4y ago

Can you say more? What do you mean by "how to relate to thoughts?" Seems similar to mindfulness, but I am not sure.

marc_io 4y ago
Yes, mindfulness is helpful in practicing this. When we have a thought – any thought – there is an inherent relationship with it, whether acceptance, resistance, fear, estrangement, desire, and so on. The quality of this relationship is informed by various signals in your body/mind system (emotions, impressions, other thoughts and even skin reactions, in the case of persistent patterns). It is crucial to be aware of this relationship, as your actions – and therefore what happens as a result of them – are strongly informed by it.

Nomentatus 4y ago

Meditation for example (vipassana in particular) helps you tune into information coming at you through feelings in various parts of your body. An ancient text said that good monks "always keep their attention on their bodies," for this reason. Antonio Domasio is the leading researcher on how taking the body out of the equation hamstrings humans in making decisions, whether about poker hands or what house to buy. His former students are doing some great work, too.

andrei_says_ 4y ago
All decision making is based on emotion. George Lakoff mentioned in one of his lectures that people with a specific brain injury involving access to emotion, lose their ability to make decisions. Any kind of preference is based on emotion. All decisions stem from having a preference for one outcome over another. The thought processes claim to make the decisions, and to be “rational, but they always serve preferences. The ability to expand one’s awareness beyond thinking gives access to a universe of phenomenae in a space larger and containing the thinking activity.

greymalik 4y ago

Examples?

marc_io 4y ago
I wouldn't recommend a specific book for this, as reading can only help with technicalities that are better understood in other ways, IMO. If you're scientifically inclined, joining any Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program near you will be a good start.