Life's Music
How the Music of Thought Awakens the Higher Self
Last post, we explored self-awareness and how the mind constantly runs trains of thoughts.
So why should we become aware of thoughts in the first place?
As we discovered, our self-awareness of thoughts is closely correlated with our level of consciousness. The higher our self-awareness, the higher our consciousness. Just as music needs a musician, consciousness requires the self to awaken to the Self. The levels of consciousness are like the notes in music. The notes we strike in the mind guide us either toward or away from the higher Self. Like the musician we can tune our own mind to play the thoughts we want to play to become closer to the Self. Each thought is a note; the melody they form either lifts us toward awareness or drowns us in distraction.
We have always known the mind left on autopilot will continue the play the tune of thoughts that it has unconsciously played over time. The tune of life can be changed consciously, by just becoming aware of the thoughts. Thoughts, when consciously chosen, become bridges back to the Self.
This awareness exists on many levels. The fluctuation of the mind goes through many strings. When the train of thought is aware is when we are fully conscious.
Have a noticed that when you were younger it was easier to grasp an idea or learn a skill. As children, our minds had space to remain present. Awareness flowed effortlessly, unburdened by distractions. When we are born and our brain is developing, the train of thought runs at pace that is generally in one direction. Space existed between thoughts. Thoughts remained uncluttered. Consciousness existed.
This consciousness gave us the ability to learn and acquire knowledge at its source. This source of ultimate consciousness, self-awareness mode, when the mind is alert, undistracted and fully present. The mode where the mind is aware and open to learning, performing at the peak of its capability. There are no other distractions in the mind, and each note is played by the Self to the tune that is desired. Learning, growth, development, transformation, transcendence all occurs in the self-awareness mode. The space of flow where time itself becomes timeless.
There is a strong correlation that when trying to learn a skill with a distracted mind, there is limited capacity to grasp the skill. Modern studies confirm what sages in India have long been teaching us. Awareness enhances absorption. Awareness increases self-reflection. Reflection increases the ability for thought to sink in. Research has shown that reflective learners don’t just learn faster, they learn deeper. Cognitive research completed by Mograbi et al. in 2024 confirms that the mind’s ability to reflect, regulate and redirect thought is linked to higher metacognitive function which is foundational to meaningful learning. The ability to not be distracted, is a skill that has to be learnt via self-reflection of the Self.
This is the purpose of becoming aware. Becoming aware of your thoughts. Being aware helps us to find, learn, grow and develop, transform and transcend the self. Consciously by practicing self-awareness this builds momentum in our unconscious actions. Our subconscious mind naturally becomes self-aware. The mind actively starts to perform actions that align with our deep principles. Just like a tennis player that spends years consciously practicing the forehand that gives him the ability unconsciously perform the forehand in the crucial moments of the match.
It’s the same with working towards self-awareness. The mode has to be learnt via practice. Just as a musician consciously learns each note of a tune by practicing repetition, to then perform unconsciously in full consciousness whilst on stage. There exists nothing but the Self, the mind, thoughts, body and guitar only an extension of the Self. Studies in transformative learning show that sustained self-awareness leads to long term changes in behavior and identity (Frontiers in Education, 2022).
As Carl Jung reminds us, our fate is merely unexamined patterns on repeat.
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” — Carl Jung
How do we develop this self-awareness?
Just sit in silence for 10 mins.
Many thoughts will come in that 10 mins. That’s the nature of the mind. It wanders. Instead of suppressing these thoughts just observe them. Ask the following questions about these thoughts:
Are these thoughts helping me know who I am?
Do these thoughts lead me closer to the Self, or away from it?
In the journey of becoming aware, is not about controlling every thought. It’s about being aware of the thought that arises. Remembering that conductor of the train of thoughts, the Self helps to realign the thoughts. Remembering that the mind is an instrument. An instrument that can play loud noises, or it can be tuned to play the music in a joyful conscious manner. Eventually, the conscious mind starts to behave unconsciously as we would like it too, controlled by our higher Self. Consciously these become unconscious habits.
The Self becomes a witness to the music. The mind.
The musician is able to shift the melody.
The noise seizes.
There is stillness in the train of thought.
Self-awareness mode.
Is your mind playing a melody, or its on autoplay?
Every thought is a string. The mind, an instrument. The Self, the silent musician. What we choose to play determines how far we travel toward consciousness.