The mind is always wanting, or lets say the 'heart'. Its a curious phenomenon. Ok, so whenever we stop wanting (say, some immense gratification, or pleasure) its a great temporary relief, you take a deep breath to acknowledge such times ;)
Another way to find relief from this ‘wanting’, our constant need to get somewhere, do something, is to learn to meditate. Yeah! instead of seeking the world’s best, greatest pleasures, you can simply learn to meditate, its better I bet. Meditation too gives you a break from the ‘habit’ of wanting, it’s a great wholesome relief to stop doing that. If you don’t believe me then read this law in the book “Physics of the Mind” accessible in the library of meditators, written in a script easily readable by regular practitioners, available to all for free.
Usually, we think ‘wanting’ is good for us, why get rid of it?. What happens as you progress in meditation is that you see your doing becomes much much more effective when there is little wanting. Lesser the better. Your intentions cleaner and wholesome … but I want to talk about something else today, how cessation of wanting (if it ever happens to you) leads to jahana or concentration. Jhana is not just meditative absorption, but also meditative action ;)
The mind is your car (yes mind is a great physical reality, if there is anything physical at all loll), you initially learn to take the steering, yoou discover brakes and all, with time and learning you beat all the convertibles, some advance to such level that they fly glide run with it:)
I am repeating in different ways what I have already said above, you may read if you like:
Meditators have many practices, all focused to enable wholesome awareness. As the mind is aware and more aware, it sees this--the wanting all the time. Now baby, now that you see this compulsive wanting that you can do something about it. Yeah ‘wanting’ is a compulsion, minds are fooled into thinking there is free will in wanting, we are compelled to want, try to stop wanting, even for a moment and you will know what I am saying here. Wanting is like breathing, its happening all the time, whether you are aware of it or not!
Have you noticed if you are driving and looking at the road you just can't turn to look at the moon if it is high up there :)(Our minds can so just one thing at a time, u know). Wanting keeps driving us like a devil. We keep doing things, never satisfied, till we die. Ahh what misery. We keep ‘wanting’ sometimes even in the meditative practice and behave similar to wantons, hence no progress Very few actually progress these days.
Vedana is an essential tool in the practice. You know 'craving' because there is vedana, you know 'aversion' is there through the vedana, you gotta get over both craving (and aversion) be aware and equanimous to make practice with meditative skills and acquire greater deeper concentration, that further helps build greater equanimity and insight, and so forth.
One mistake people do is to try to ‘think’ through it. Can you drive the car by ‘thinking’, thinking you are in control of things,—doesn’t help. Physical action, or corresponding physical action is required, directed thought accompanied by the proper action. Meditator seems to know this fact deeply, they know it through direct insight.
Meditators do not try to control the mind. They know the mind follows habit patterns, it is a great automation. It follows laws of nature, and these laws can be understood and applied, then you see results. Just wanting the results doesn’t help.
When you stop wanting/craving (most people can not do it, they try controlling), you can actually direct the mind towards powerful concentration 'jhana'. Understand vedana and learn equanimity to stall ‘wanting’/craving. This is essential block to get over if you want to progress with concentration that will give you fruits f meditation. Understand things instead of controlling things. Trying to control can be only an extension of wanting, at times, i becomes misleading. Trying to control without understanding is trying to control flood waters with a spoon. Learning to meditate (skills of the mind) is also learning to ’undertand/acknowledge things as they are’ i.e. seeing with purity/clarity, when you see this you will be able to know what to ‘do’.
When you stop wanting/craving, mind is now free from the occupation, now free to be directed to jahana, if u can steer it. Steering the mind needs practice, it is something like learning to drive (learn to steer, do not try to take control of things, you will fall flat in your face, just learn to steer in the traffic).
