Welcome to the Alan Watts Audio Experience; an Alan Watts Podcast for fans of one of the greatest philosophical geniuses of all time.  Todays Watts Wisdom Classic is titled 'The Mind' - one of Alan's most listened to and adored clips ever.

TRANSCRIPT:

is a mind in the grip of vicious circles

well one of the most obvious instances

that we all know is the phenomenon of

worry the doctor tells you that you have

to have an operation and that has been

set up so that automatically everybody

worries about it but since worrying

takes away your appetite and your sleep

it's not good for you but you can't stop

worrying and therefore you get

additionally worried that you are

worrying and then furthermore because

that is quite absurd and you're mad at

yourself because you do it you are

worried because you worry because you

work that is a vicious circle

[Music]

so now can you allow your mind to be

quiet isn't it difficult because the

mind seems to be like a monkey jumping

up and down and jabbering all the time

once you've learned to think you can't

stop and an enormous number of people

devote their lives to keeping their

minds busy and feel extremely

uncomfortable with silence when you're

alone nobody's saying anything there's

nothing to do there's this there's worry

this lack of distraction I'm left alone

with myself and I want to get away from

myself I'm always wanting to get away

from myself is why I go to the movies is

why I read mystery stories that's why I

go after the girls or anything that you

do or get drunk or whatever I don't want

to be with myself I feel queer

so well why do you want to run away from

yourself what's so bad about why do you

want to forget it is why do you want to

become because you are addicted to

thoughts

it's a drug we'll take it

positive thinking that on and on and on

it's a habit so there's a difficulty

about stopping that activity and you

really have to stop it if you want to be

seen because if I talk all the time I

don't hear what anyone else has to say

and I'll end up in the situation of

having nothing to talk about but my own

daughter

was there an exactly the same way if I

think older I won't have anything to

think about except thoughts so in order

to have something to think about there

are times when you simply must stop

thinking well how do you do that

the first rule is don't try to

because if you do you will be like

someone trying to make rough water

smooth with a flat iron and all that

will do will stir it up so in the same

way as a muddy turbulent pool quiets

itself when left alone you have to know

how to leave your mind alone it will

quiet itself