What is a habit? Why and how are old habits formed? How can we get rid of our bad habits? You will see something extraordinary if you go slowly and really get into this very deeply. It is really quit interesting.
First what is a habit and why and how are habits formed?
- A habit is repetition of a movement, or action,
- We all do things because someone or everyone else is doing them. So we imitate others,
- Then we say all of those that aren’t doing it, are wrong, bad, or not cool,
- We identify with this new action and will likely continue to do it.
Let’s look at a specific example, say smoking, to see how this might function in real life.
First you are presented with a new situation that many of your friends, or family members etc. are doing. It seems like a cool thing to do to you. So you imitate the others, trying to be like them. You want to belong to this group, this group of smokers, so you imitate them. Then this imitation is likely repeated over and over again. You are now forming a habit.
It is satisfying, you are now like them. And when confronted by a non-smoker, there is tension, a certain level of discomfort. Conflict will likely ensue. Non-smokers are annoyed by your smoke. You are annoyed by their imposition of will upon your actions.
You are no longer like the others. You are part of a new group. They are different from you. You are good, so then they must not be good. They must be bad. You have identified with this new action of smoking, and in turn, with this new group. You will likely continue to smoke because it brings you satisfaction on many different levels.
Why does the mind fall into this groove? Why do you form habits?
- The mind functions in habit for various reasons, like a machine, a computer,
- Habit make it easier, and it implies a certain order to things,
- Habit is a way to be secure. The mind finds security in repetition,
- Habit is a way to avoid loneliness by becoming part of a group,
- Habit is a way to avoid the unknown. The mind finds comfort in the known and is very uncomfortable with the unknown.
Are you aware that you are always operating by habit? You get up a 6 o’clock every day, have a cup of coffee or tea, go to work, to smoke, to not smoke, to take drugs, to not take drugs, to believe in something, to not believe, to go to the movies on Saturday night, to go on vacation in the summer, to eat that fattening desert or not to eat it. Everything can be reduced to habits.
Most of our actions are imitation or repetition of what others have said or done. As a consequence, most of us live second hand, and very dull lives. Always imitating and following others. It could be parents, siblings, friends, political leaders, religious leaders, etc, they have conditioned your mind.
You don’t know anything really! You have not tasted anything, this all is borrowed. Someone else has tasted, the taste is not your own. Someone else has seen, but you have your eyes and have not used them. Someone else has experienced, a Jesus has experienced, a Buddha has experienced, and you just go on borrowing their knowledge. It is better to be ignorant at least the ignorance is yours. It is authentic, real, sincere, and honest.
When you get angry, is it your anger or is it the anger of your mother or father. Is it coming from you, or is it their anger that resonates through you. When you form an opinion of something, is it your opinion, or is someone else influencing, and tainting the direction of your thoughts. Are you functioning from a fresh, new and alive perspective, or from the learned, old, and imitated perspective.
Can the mind live and function without habits?
Breaking old habits is very difficult. It requires a lot of effort and is never easy because our lives are formed and based upon old habits, actions learned and imitated from our past.
To break old habits, the psychological, as well as the physical you need to radically change your way of thinking. You need to stop experiencing life through the words and actions of others, and start knowing and understanding things for yourself, with a new fresh perspective.
Try the following technique: For the next 7 days, make every action your own action. Don’t do anything that is an imitation of someone else, what someone else said or did. Don’t take any action that is not truly your own. Live and experience everything for the next 7 days, without the memories from your past, without the habits formed by imitating or observing and listening to others. Know your own actions. Live with these actions for the next 7 days. Stop living a second hand existence. From the moment you wake in the morning, and open your eyes, try to be authentic and real. Don’t do anything that is false. Whatever you lose, let it be lost. Remain real for 7 days. You will feel alive again for the first time, you will be transformed.
While you may not develop a novel approach to solving the worlds problems, I can assure you of one thing. You will no longer be a second hand imitation of someone else. You will no longer be a carbon copy. You will begin to think for yourself. You will begin to experience life from your own righteous perspective. You will be a first hand, new and improved you.
There are so many secrets that Yoga and Meditation will reveal to you. There are so many ways that Yoga and Meditation can make your life easier and more fulfilling. Come and explore these secrets with me now by Clicking Here!
To a stress free and abundant life,
Anthony D’Agostino, CEO and founder YogaAwakening
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