iPod Classic
We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
– Opening lines of the Dhammapada
Side effects from SoyJoy may include pleasant music playing in head. Eating SoyJoy can cause abnormally rosy vision and difficulty sulking.
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This minster’s column was written back in 2009 when I had just purchased my first iPod. I was amazed by its capacity (120 gigs) to hold my entire digital music collection and have access to it literally at my fingertips. The design was sleek and the click wheel mesmerized me. Of course it wasn’t too many years later that iPhones made the iPod redundant and touch-screen technology was the norm. I still remember one of our teenage staff members at the cafe trying to operate my iPod classic by touching the screen (to no avail). Now for the original column.
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With the ever-increasing popularity of iPods, people literally are walking around with music playing in their head. Depending on the gigabytes of memory on their device, they could have hundreds of songs catalogued on a personal play-list. While the human brain is advanced in its own way over an iPod, we have the same capacity to play and re-play thoughts and tunes in our head over and over. So what’s on your play-list? This question is a good way to review the content of your thoughts and observe the manner that your own consciousness shifts from one track to the next. Various states of negative and positive, loud and quiet, boredom and excitement all arise from the same source. Connecting to this source and grounding ourselves in this most human experience creates an open space for thoughts and emotion to exhibit a free quality. If you are stuck in an unproductive way of thinking and being, then its time to change the track.
What you program into your device is what you get. Don’t expect to hear Carly Simon if all you’ve downloaded is the Marshall Tucker Band. As the opening line of the Dhammapada says, “You are what you think.” Our interior thoughts are directly correlated to how we feel and how we act. Wherever and whatever we place attention on is where the consciousness-energy goes. How you feel right now is a good indicator of what your mind is doing right now. You may notice abnormally rosy vision or notice difficulty sulking.
Your mind leads the way,
Dave