Having a Quiet Mind

Lao Tzu said, “ Man was meant to sit quietly and discover the truth within” and  Pascal, the great French mathematician of the 17^th century wrote, “ All of man’s problems could be solved if he could just learn to sit alone in a room with himself for an hour”

The mind is a chatter machine. There are about 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts that goes through it everyday. No wonder inner peace seems so elusive.

There are several benefits to be gained from having a quiet mind.

• ·         There will be less stress in your life.
• ·         Mental clarity. This means you will be able to concentrate and solve problems better.
• ·         Increase your creativity.
• ·         Freedom from unwanted thoughts and  habits
• ·         Inner peace. Of course.

There are several ways you can achieve a quiet mind. Here are a few:

• Meditation. 
• Writing things out. Take it out of your mind and put in on paper. Do reflective thinking.
• Intensive exercise. Exercise releases natural hormones that make you calmer and this helps to control the inner chattering.
• Lowering your gaze. Yes this actually helps. If you limit what you see, you will not think about what you don’t see.
• Do not watch news or read newspaper. Most of it are useless and if there is something important you need to know, you will hear it anyway.
• Avoid alcohol.  Alcohol, even in small quantities causes havoc to your mind in the long term.
• Focus on the now. One day at a time. That it. That is all we have anyway.