This Week’s Quotation:
The mind is everything. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world. There is nothing so disobedient as an undisciplined mind, and there is nothing so obedient as a disciplined mind.
~ Buddha
Mind Matters
Soul Care Facilitator
Years ago, I read a book by Jill Bolte Taylor, My Stroke of Insight. A respected brain scientist before suffering a near-fatal stroke when she was 37, Jill knew the importance of what the Buddha expressed. Jill shared that she approached her mind as a “sacred patch of cosmic real estate” that the universe entrusted her to tend. She understood her responsibility to nurture those circuits she desired to grow and prune away those that did not support a high-quality life experience.
Jill’s healing journey gifted her with deeper insights into the workings of the two hemispheres of the human brain. The stroke Jill suffered completely deteriorated the ability of her left brain to process any information. With her left brain off-line, she was in Nirvana and lost all sense of herself as separate.
The right brain is holistic and all about right here, right now. It creatively and intuitively processes the energy and vibrations we receive through our body’s senses. In contrast, the left brain processes logically, linearly, and methodically, focusing on the past or future. So while our right brain knows we are infinity creatively expressing itself, our left brain is immersed in separateness.
We are expressing the creative force of life with two cognitive minds! We get to choose what consciousness serves the needs of the moment. Yet, life has taught many of us to rely primarily on the left brain. Through Jill’s experience, I learned the importance of being aware of the state of mind triggered by the different circumstances in my life.
May Jill’s courageous journey inspire you as it inspired me to be mindful of where I put the precious resource of my attention. When my monkey mind creates mental mayhem, I envision moving those debilitating thoughts to the recycle bin. One of the sweetest things I discovered is that freedom from something comes the moment I stop thinking about it. I'll bet you have discovered that treasure too!
About Open Windows
We, the authors of this blog, dedicate it to the transparent exploration of the world’s sacred scripture and enlightened spiritual thought. We believe that the original inspiration of all faiths comes from a common source, named and revered in a myriad of ways. With that understanding, the innumerable symbols, beliefs, and practices of faith cease to divide. They become open windows to a common reality that inspires and unifies us. We find deeper insight and nourishment in our own faith and from the expression of faith from others.
We hope these weekly quotations and meditations speak to your heart and soul.
What an amazing journey for Jill! I am thankful to hear her story and your wise words in connection with our brains and the matter of consciousness. Thank you!
Yes, I agree with Shareen. Here’s to the mind so well disciplined, it can hear the sound of one hand clapping. THANKS, David and Terri. Love Tom
Jill is absolutely amazing – her story was part of the expansion of our understanding of the (in my opinion) higher value of the right brain functions. It shows us our truer reality. She has a new book by the way…..Whole Brain Living. Thank you Terri for reminding us…..
I was virtually nothing but a left brain automaton until, at the age of 27, I experienced an LSD trip that blasted open my right brain, and life has never been the same. However, I wouldn’t recommend this approach. You’ve effectively described other ways of opening the right brain without psychedelic side-effects.