PatAnjali witnessing 1

In which state is my mind currently? 

Kshipta, disturbed, troubled

Mudha, dull, heavy 

Vikshipta, distracted, partly focused

Ekagra, one-pointed, focused 

Nirrudah, highly mastered, regulated 

Which of the qualities or gunas is dominant with this thought?

Sattvas, illumined, light, spiritual 

Rajas, active, stirring, moving  

Tamas, static, stable, inertia 

Which type of thought is this? 

Pramana, clear, correct, valid 

Viparyaya, misconceived, unclear 

Vikalpa, conceptualization, fantasy 

Nidra, sleep, focus on non-being 

Smriti, memory, recalling 

How do I know this is true? 

Pratyaksha, perception or experience 

Anumana, inference or thinking 

Agamah, written or oral testimony 

How do the four functions of mind interact with this thought? 

Manas: driving actions and senses 

Chitta: storehouse  

Ahamkara: I-maker 

Buddhi: decides, judges, discriminates 

Is this thought colored or not colored? 

Klishta, colored, afflicted 

Aklishta, not colored, not afflicted  

Is this thought useful or not useful?

Useful to growth 

Not useful  to growth 

If the thought is colored, which colorings are dominant?

Avidya, spiritual forgetting, veiling 

Asmita, associated with I-ness 

Raga, attraction or drawing to

Dvesha, aversion or pushing away

Abhinivesha, resistance to loss, fear 

What is the current stage of the coloring of this thought?

Udaram, active, aroused 

Vicchinna, distanced, separated 

Tanu, attenuated, weakened 

Prasupta, dormant, latent, seed 

How is this thought operating at the four levels of consciousness? 

Vaishvanara, waking, conscious 

Taijasa, dreaming, unconscious 

Prajna, deep sleep, subconscious 

Turiya, fourth, witness, consciousness  

Is this thought pattern who I am? 

Yes, it is who I am.  

No, it is not who I am.  

What does labeling and witnessing mean?

Simply observe: Labeling your thoughts is an extremely simple process of observing the nature of your thought process in a given moment. (The basic principle is so simple that it is easy to make the mistake of not doing it!)

What's useful and not useful: A simple and obvious example will help. If you have a negative thought about yourself or some other person, a thought that is not useful to your growth, you simply notice it and note that, "This is Not Useful" silently saying the words internally. Or, you may internally say only the single phrase, "Not Useful". Negative thoughts can continue to control us only when we are not aware of them. When we notice them, and label them as "Not Useful" thoughts, we can deal with those thoughts in positive, useful ways. (See Yoga Sutras, particularly the notes on discrimination)

See your thoughts honestly: This is not being negative about yourself, passing judgment on yourself, or calling yourself negative. Rather, it is a process of honestly naming the thought pattern for what it is, a negative thought. Such observation is not a guilt-ridden passing judgment, but rather, a healthy form of adjudging a situation, in this case, that the thought is negative.

Promote the positive, useful thoughts. Do nothing with negative, not-useful thoughts.

Remind yourself what is useful or not useful: What about the positive thoughts? Similarly, when positive, helpful thoughts arise that lead us in the direction of growth and spiritual truths or enlightenment, we can remind ourselves, "This is Useful," or simply, "Useful". Then we can allow those useful thoughts move into actions.