How Thoughts Impact Our Experience Of Life

For the last couple of years, I’ve developed a genuine interest in psychology and psychotherapy, mostly because of the need to heal. After a few traumatic experiences, I’ve had to dive deep into my psyche to learn to return to a healthy state of mind. And there have been many lessons that have thus been revealed to me in the process. In this short essay, I’ll pinpoint a few key insights on the topic of thoughts, and how they influence our life experience:

The Inner and The Outer Are Always Connected

Firstly, that the internal and the external are deeply connected, to the point where there is no real separation. Much like the individual is deeply connected to the environment where he lives, so is our mind connected to our body and our life experience. Both have an influence on each other. An unhealthy social environment that is inundated with fear cannot be conducive to a healthy individual experience. Just as an individual who thinks unhealthy thoughts most of the time cannot expect his body to exist in a healthy state. And vice-versa. A healthy mind brings a healthy body and a healthy environment.

Thoughts are the core of our experience. The mental creates physical. Before anything was created in the realm of the physical, it was first created mentally. For instance, before I created this website, I first thought of it. Before I wrote my book, I first thought of it. And, before my mother brought me into human existence, she first thought of it.

It All Starts With Our Thoughts

The mind is truly powerful. I believe we have a responsibility towards creating our world on this planet, and it all starts with our thinking. Thoughts not only impact our experience of Life, they create it. As A Course In Miracles teaches,

Few appreciate the real power of the mind, and no one remains fully aware of it all the time. However, if you hope to spare yourself from fear there are some things you must realize, and realize fully. The mind is very powerful, and never loses its creative force. It never sleeps. Every instant it is creating.

It is hard to recognize that thought and belief combine into a power surge that can literally move mountains. It appears at first glance that to believe such power about yourself is arrogant, but that is not the real reason you do not believe it. You prefer to believe that your thoughts cannot exert real influence because you are actually afraid of them. This may allay awareness of the guilt, but at the cost of perceiving the mind as impotent. If you believe that what you think is ineffectual you may cease to be afraid of it, but you are hardly likely to respect it.

There are no idle thoughts. All thinking produces form at some level.

A Personal Example

This being said, I’d like to end this article with a personal story that illustrated for me the undeniable power of my thoughts. I was on the Camino de Santiago, and I’d never felt freer. Or more connected to myself, Humanity, the Earth and the Cosmos. Life felt miraculous daily. And, sometimes things came to me just as I thought of them – literally.

For example, one day, as I had just checked in after a whole day of walking, I bought myself dinner. As I was eating, I noticed I had also gotten thirsty, and I thought of water. I thought I’d go ask for a glass, but I didn’t even get to get up to ask for it – the lady who had served me dinner came to me and brought me a carafe of water and a glass, and she told me that it’s on the house. Wow! I was overjoyed and honestly, my mind was blown away. I had just thought of it. It might have been a small thing — some water. Nonetheless, it felt like a powerful lesson.

Thank you for reading my thoughts on thoughts, dear Friend. I hope you’ve enjoyed it. Stay well, and may your mind be on your side.