Void Helps

Watching an interview with a young man who writes code for a living. He is self taught. And he said something interesting: if you want to be successful at coding, you must cultivate the ability to focus very long and very deeply, be a self starter (because when you code, you are coding alone) and be able to work on your own for long periods of time.

I found this interesting because this young man was describing void meditation.

North american culture (Europe too) is geared toward a soundbite mentality. Everything is a soundbite and quick satisfaction. Quick fixes. Pop a pill and its all solved in minutes. It's a goldfish mentality. Each idea can only be entertained for a few minutes and then it's forgotten. There is no focus. Meanwhile reality is that anything worth doing or achieving takes time, dedication, and perseverance. It's an investment.

“By investing in yourself you are creating opportunities for a better life and a happier future. By serving yourself in this way you are contributing to society by increasing your value and setting a positive example.”
 Chapter 7 True Philosophy of Satan.

So, you want to invest in yourself. And its hard to focus. Every time you try to get going on a project, its like the universe conspires to distract you. This is where void meditation will come in handy.

Void is not about turning off your brain, in the sense of sitting in one posture for long periods of time striving not to move or think at all.

It's rather, a simple act of quieting ones thoughts. This is accomplished through focussing on the task at hand before you. Being totally IN the present moment. You don't have to sit in lotus. Void is a moving meditation.

Artists call this the zone. I'm sure dancers or coders or whoever think of it in a similar way. It's when the inner chatter completely shuts off. This brings with it a feeling of total calm, relaxation, contentment and inner peace.

You'll know when you hit the zone because when you're in it, hours pass like minutes. It's astonishing the plasticity of time in this state. You can be totally focussed on something, come out of it and discover wow! It's 5 hours later! It felt like no time!

What happened was you made the shift from L brain (logic) into R brain (intuition).

This is very good for you, as this consume and produce dog eat dog slave society we currently labour under is almost exclusively L brain focussed. This is because people are expected to work. produce. Follow orders. Which is L brain activity. R brain and intuition is poo poohed, discounted. There is no place for that here! Be practical! Get to work! We are therefore, most of us, very much out of balance. It's stressful to be always in L brain mode. When we switch over, it's a very different feeling.

In void R brain is dominant. It's quiet and focussed. Internal chatter turns off, 'ego' mind silent as the knower within comes to the fore.

Void is not a grinding, laborious process. It's a very pleasant state to be in and its easier than you might think to achieve.

All you have to do is concentrate on whatever job is at hand. Every time the L brain and ego mind present a distraction, say sure...in a second. Just let me finish this little bit here.....then mentally refocus your point of attention|awareness back to your task.

The R brain is very powerful. It always knows what to do. It's the one that's generally in the background silently observing.

For example, something abrupt and immediate is happening (like a near death experience). The part busily observing......paying no mind to this is a near death thing.....no. Instead perhaps, it may be observing how magnificent the clouds look in this moment....it's always there taking notes. Calmly and dispassionately observing. It's The Watcher. That's the R brain.

This inner watcher also makes suggestions. These will be non verbal cues that come as a form of 'knowing'. The L brain is a voice telling you to try this or do that. The R brain is deeper. You'll simply know. And you'll find yourself doing it before you have time to start an internal debate. It's silent. This is because talk isn't necessary. It (you) already knows what to do.

I experience this when I'm deep into painting, editing, writing. I don't have to think: what to do next? The inner knower is already taking action. In void one can relax and enjoy as the painting almost seems to paint itself.

What happens is as you move deeper into R brain you forget about distractions and find yourself focussing totally on the moment|task before you. The ego mind and L brain will stop their yammering....for a while.

It may be for 5 minutes...or 30 minutes...or 5 hours. When they pipe up again don't offer resistance. Say sure...in one minute. Then refocus. Say I just want to finish this bit, then return to what you're doing. As this R brain state deepens, mental noise ceases. And so does the awareness of time.

When you give in to the distractions being thrown at you by L brain and ego mind, it's like picking up the other end of a tug of war rope. Let it lie there instead.

Distractions could be: you should check your e-mail....check your twitter....did you get any likes? Lets go see whats in the fridge.....whats for supper?....Don't you think you should call so and so......fuck I want a cigarette......it could be literally anything.

Anything that can and will throw you off.

Void as a moving meditation doesn't require ego mind and L brain. This operating frequency is perceived as unusual and therefore uncomfortable to L brain who's been in the driver seat for a long time. L brain and ego mind want their comfort zone. Which is when they're driving you from one thing to the next.

In this other state, they're in the back seat. It's not what they're used to, initially they'll make noise. Assure them. Say: I hear ya. Soon as I finish (x y z).
Then carry on with what you were doing.

This totally works. For example, you're trying to quit smoking. Every time the craving comes, don't focus on how much you want it or the fact that you want to never smoke again (which will send your addicted self into a panic). Say instead: Sure, you can have that smoke. Just let me finish this (chore task whatever) first. The craving will abate, thinking its going to be satisfied soon. And it'll be forgotten for a time.

Suddenly that part of your brain will be like: Hey! What the heck? That was an hour ago! How about that smoke? Tell it sure! Just as soon as I finish (whatever you're doing). It'll subside again. You can go on like this for the entire day. Then, at the end of the day, reward yourself. Enjoy a smoke. Even two. It's better than the half pack you normally would have consumed! Keep this up. The stretches of time between cravings and between use will get longer and longer. It gets easier over time till eventually, you can give it up easily.

Void will provide assistance to gain control of wandering attention, not giving in to distractions, honing awareness and therefore where you're putting your energy, so you can utilize it constructively.

All that said, L brain is a good problem solver, it has its uses. This isn't about shutting L brain out, just looking to find balance. Once R brain is getting its fair share of time, L brain can participate without taking over. The two brains are meant to work together, not riding roughshod over one another. Void helps allow you to focus and put energy into where you choose, for your best interests. Which is what the young coder was talking about.

After all, where you put your energy is what you manifest.

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