What I have found to be one of the more valuable results of a daily Kundalini Yoga practice is gaining real time ability to switch modes from rest and relaxation to response-ability (action) back to rest and relaxation without much internal drama. Increasing mental agility, to me, was the flexibility that I needed to cultivate.
Similarly, I work to balance the switch between thinking and listening. To know when to switch from one to the other can be tricky, and it takes some practice and commitment. It’s simple enough to understand (in theory at least) that when someone else is talking, they are better served (and so are we) when we listen than think (or talk) over them.
But what about when we are alone?
There is a lot to listen for.
They say that thinking (like praying) is talking to God, and listening (like meditating) is letting God talk to you. If I am searching for answers or insight, then it seems worthy to listen for them rather than to give them.
So when I think or talk more than I need to, what am I really needing or doing?
My feeling is that when our gears are stuck in continuous action (thinking, talking, doing), and we have trouble shifting to relaxation mode (listening, digesting, restoring)… and when we finally think we are relaxing, we often really aren’t. Instead, we are distracting, self-medicating, or zoning out; none of which are digestive or restorative.
It takes doing to think and pray.
It takes being to listen and meditate.
They are both active in different ways.
But when action is born out of being and listening, those actions create more energy rather than deplete them.
Savitree Kaur 