Thinking analogies

[Mindsfull]

Just wanted to see what people's thoughts were regarding the watching of thoughts.

I've heard things like, observing and letting them pass by like 'the leaf drifting in the river'

Or

'Cloud passing across the sky'

Also not sure how the sounds and thoughts link works. I understand the concept but doesn't seem to translate in practice.

But I'm assuming we aren't needing to visualise this? As this would be visualisation and would be 'doing' rather than 'being'?

I'm wondering even though the FPIAFW books says this is 8 weeks. Is it better to focus on the breath or body scans before moving to the watching of thoughts?

[Matt Y]

These metaphors and concepts may or may not be useful for any given individual. If they don't work for you, just let them drift down the river or float by like clouds, or come up with your own.

Even the concepts of doing and being may just contribute to confusion, so I'd recommend not getting too concerned about such things.

And just as you can't will yourself to fall asleep or wake up, you can't will yourself to be mindful, or notice thoughts. It just happens sometimes when the conditions are right. From this perspective, whether you do it before or after focusing on the breath or body is largely irrelevant.

[Gareth]

Images flicking across a screen?