We often procrastinate on tasks, especially the less important ones, putting them off until tomorrow. This is as if we are saying, "I'll do it if I have time." But what if we applied the same logic to our negative emotions? What if we told ourselves, "I don't have time for greed, anger, disgust, and jealousy today. I'll deal with them tomorrow."
Does our mind manipulate us, valuing negative emotions over positive ones? Does it derive more pleasure from bad feelings? It is true that the mind is always seeking pleasure, and it will repeat what it finds pleasurable. This is why our thoughts, or our minds, tend to dwell on negative things and painful memories, rather than happy ones.
Logically, we should give equal weight to both types of memories, but the mind chooses to focus on pain. On the other hand, when the mind envisions a future, it paints a rosy picture of ourselves in ideal circumstances, be it our careers, finances, health, families, or relationships. However, when reality clashes with our illusions, the mind reverts to its default mode, often reversing the process by creating a negative past and imagining that everyone has wronged us.
When our minds are stuck in the past or the future, we forget to be present. Is there a way to correct this tendency? Yes. Meditation is one way.
Meditation can help us autocorrect our minds' tendency to wander. But when we tell our minds to meditate, our minds often make excuses like "Let's do it tomorrow." Even if we do sit down to meditate, our minds may be bothered by things around us or by thoughts that keep popping up. Our minds may try to convince us to give up and do something else instead.
By observing our thoughts from a detached perspective in meditation, we can eventually break free from their hold and begin to think more positively. The mind finds pleasure in positive thoughts, so as we cultivate them, our thought process will naturally shift.
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