This email is a continuation from The Mind’s Library - Part 1. If you haven't read it yet, you can do so [here].
In my previous email, I left off with the question: What should we do if we are constantly cluttering our mental library, which is our subconscious? To answer this, let’s consider the library example. Imagine that every day, I add ten books to the library without categorizing them. The result would be clutter and dysfunction. The first logical step to address this would be to stop adding books to the library.
By halting the addition of new books, I can then focus on organizing the clutter that has already accumulated. Once everything is organized, I can begin adding books again, but this time with a system in place to prevent the library from becoming a jumble of books.
The same approach applies to the mind’s library—the subconscious. Stop overwhelming it with new information and experiences. Simply pause. Go on a mental fast.
Here’s another analogy to help clarify this. Imagine water is pouring into your living room through a hole in a pipe. Would it be better to patch the hole first or simply start emptying the water with a bucket? Naturally, you would patch the hole first, then begin emptying the water.
Similarly, the first step is to stop flooding your subconscious with "stuff"—meaning information, experiences, and so on. By establishing a period of mental fasting, you can start reviewing what’s already in your subconscious without having to manage additional input at the same time.
What’s needed to review the subconscious? Observation. If we can’t be observant, how can we identify what needs to be sorted, restructured, or eliminated? How do we become observant? By practicing focus. Observation is a natural outcome of a focused mind. You can’t be observant if you can’t focus, so the second step is to learn to focus.
My online course, Unwavering Focus, is an excellent resource to help you develop this skill. You can gain lifetime access with the purchase of the course. Learn more about it [here].
Once you’ve become observant of your subconscious, the next step is to choose the area of your life that is most important to you at this moment. For each person, this will be different. For some, it may be relationships; for others, it might be their career or spiritual path. Whatever it is, pick one category and begin the process of sorting it.
Let’s return to the library example. My library is a jumble of books. Tackling the entire library at once is a daunting task. But if I choose just one shelf to start with, it becomes much more manageable.
In the same way, picking one area of your life that is most important to you right now is the most effective approach. If your focus is on gaining clarity in your spiritual life, then Step 1 is to stop consuming more books, podcasts, and other materials on spirituality. Step 2 is to concentrate on what’s already in your subconscious regarding spirituality. Be observant of your thoughts and beliefs about it. Start by assessing them, writing them down, discarding those that no longer align, and clarifying those that resonate with where you are in your spiritual journey today.
This process will take time. It’s challenging to do this work if you continue filling your subconscious with new perspectives, thoughts, and insights on spirituality. In traditional Hindu monasteries, monks are often only allowed to read the teachings of their guru. This isn’t because other teachers have nothing valuable to say, but rather because it helps organize the student’s thoughts in a structured way around what they are learning, creating an organized subconscious that allows intuition from the superconscious to flow through.
By working with your subconscious systematically and being wisely discerning about what you allow into it (and when), you begin the critical and rarely taught process of structuring your subconscious. When you achieve this, the subconscious becomes an incredible asset on its own, and when it collaborates with the superconscious, you gain an incredibly powerful asset that can help you lead a truly rewarding life.
