What controls the mind and thoughts?

[Onkara]

Hi Atanu
I see; you mean jIva takes herself to be the actor whilst mAyA is present.
The Gita here is referring directly to the Self - Atman, in post 15, as if the doer is the Self.

 

[Onkara]

I would say that it isn't the mind that is angry. The anger is just an obscuration clouding the mind. The mind remains at the center of the cloud, and it is the mind that sees through the obscuration.

I don't think any one thing controls it, but situational factors are important.

What and who you associate with.

Thanks Yeshe, Stephen, Rsd
From the observer it does seem to be the environement, whilst we looking on. It seems to be another person or animal which makes us react and when that person moves or changes, we appear to change. Similar to Ymir's illustration.

Chemicals.

When you get right down to it: Chemicals are what control the mind. Neurotransmitters like Serotonin, Dopamine, and Norepinephrine are a few of the common ones that control how you react to specific stimuli.
a little tid-bit for you: If your body stopped producing or absorbing serotonin, you would go insane and kill everyone in sight.

I considered this too. It can be chemical. Could we limit chemicals to "negative" "positive" and "neutral" in respect to how they make us feel or act?

Itself.

I like "itself" as it is a non-dual answer

 

[atanu]

Hi Atanu
I see; you mean jIva takes herself to be the actor whilst mAyA is present.
The Gita here is referring directly to the Self - Atman, in post 15, as if the doer is the Self.

That I think is correct assessment. However, we must then remember inaction in action.

 

[Onkara]

Well put, that's interesting. Atanu.

 

[PolyHedral]

Hmmm. First there was some angry chemical. Then came the peaceful chemicals. Indeed.

You remember how frustrated you were that I didn't understand what you were talking about in the afterlife threads?

Mood is not a thing that can be found just by looking at the brain. It is an emergent consequence of an emergent consequence of an emergent consequence, etc. Chemicals affect the way the brain operates, but not in a way that corresponds to anything obvious. In the same way, electromagnetic interactions eventually cause "wetness," but not in any way that's obvious without incredibly in-depth analysis.

I considered this too. It can be chemical. Could we limit chemicals to "negative" "positive" and "neutral" in respect to how they make us feel or act?

Not in general, no. The brain is far more complex than that.

 

[Azekual]

Then, how in this case, the anger gets transformed. I think that was the question?

Serotonin and Dopamine are your Chill-the-****-out chemicals (mainly, they do a lot of other things), serotonin is better at this than dopamine.
Basically your brain reduces your serotonin (or in direct threats, initiates fight or flight). As time elapses and no other stimuli triggers your response, your brain releases more Serotonin into itself than it had at the beginning to quickly calm you down (though it may do it in small bursts if it was triggered multiple times in a short time period), and then slowly reduces the amount to its normal level

make any sense?

 

[otokage007]

Take any scenario, for example you see an injustice (anything, like an animal cruelly beaten), and you become angry and think angry thoughts.

You then realise your mind is angry and you stop being angry and instead become more neutral or peaceful.

What influenced this change in behaviour, what controls the mind?

Subconscious and conscious very often fight and control each other. Reflexiveness and impulsiveness too.

Mind auto regulates itself due to the physiological situation in that moment (for example, if you are stressed, you are more likely to be impulsive than reflexive) and to the memories of similar past experiencies (if you saw something that bothered you and because of impulsiveness you got beaten, you are less likely to repeat that in the future).

 

[Azekual]

Subconscious and conscious very often fight and control each other.

Subconscious often wins out

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Subconscious often wins out

Kind of like trying to fight an enemy when stranded on the top of a tower.

 

[atanu]

You remember how frustrated you were that I didn't understand what you were talking about in the afterlife threads?

Mood is not a thing that can be found just by looking at the brain. It is an emergent consequence of an emergent consequence of an emergent consequence, etc. Chemicals affect the way the brain operates, but not in a way that corresponds to anything obvious. In the same way, electromagnetic interactions eventually cause "wetness," but not in any way that's obvious without incredibly in-depth analysis.

I am more frustrated now.

 

[atanu]

Subconscious often wins out

What chemical is that?)(

 

[atanu]

Serotonin and Dopamine are your Chill-the-****-out chemicals (mainly, they do a lot of other things), serotonin is better at this than dopamine.
Basically your brain reduces your serotonin (or in direct threats, initiates fight or flight). As time elapses and no other stimuli triggers your response, your brain releases more Serotonin into itself than it had at the beginning to quickly calm you down (though it may do it in small bursts if it was triggered multiple times in a short time period), and then slowly reduces the amount to its normal level

make any sense?

A lot, notwithstanding that these chemicals do not show their magic in a dead body.

For two three days before death, my father was extremely restless with fear and agony. But just before passing away, the restlessness changed into tranquility and a glorious face.

A doctor told me that there is no mystery since it is well known that a drug DMT, which naturally occurs in the body, is released into the brain at the time of death, making it euphoric.

When I asked him "Why the chemical is released at all?", he did not have an answer. I further asked him, whether these chemicals will still play their supposed roles in a dead body or not?

IMO, there is difference between correlation and causation.

http://www.religiousforums.com/foru...ore-less-same-thing-oxytocin.html#post2380936

...

 

[PolyHedral]

I am more frustrated now.

Now you know how I feel.

But surely you'd agree that wetness is abstract, compared to electromagnetism?

 

[atanu]

Now you know how I feel.

A chemical reaction saying "I" and talking about its feelings.

 

[sniper762]

there are two things going on in the mind KNOWLEDGE (instinctive and learned) and just plain THOUGHTS. those thoughts are influenced by one of two, either GOOD (the spirit of god) or EVIL (satanic influence).

 

[PolyHedral]

A chemical reaction saying "I" and talking about its feelings.

Yes. Makes perfect sense to me. What's the problem?

 

[Renji]

I might be a bit literalistic here. Well, the brain has 3 major divisions (as we know it), namely the hindbrain, midbrain and the forebrain. In the midbrain, we have there the limbic system, which is (if stimulated appears to be) responsible for the expression of emotion, may lead to anger, pleasure, motivation, stress, etc., hence making it responsible for the "human aspect" of brain function. And we also have the hypothalamus, aka the seat of emotion. Therefore, to answer your question, it is the mind (brain) itself who is responsible for expressing emotions like anger, as well as controlling it (specifically, it's in between the limbic system, hypothalamus or both). That or the release of certain body/brain chemicals and/or neurotransmitters (as mentioned in earlier posts).

 

[atanu]

Therefore, to answer your question, it is the mind (brain) itself who is responsible for expressing emotions like anger, as well as controlling it (specifically, it's in between the limbic system, hypothalamus or both). That or the release of certain body/brain chemicals and/or neurotransmitters (as mentioned in earlier posts).

Will that not mean that one has no control at all? Whatever the brain does it does?

Hinduism, and probably all religions, view the person as distinct from the material manifestation.

Gita

3. 42. They say that the senses are superior (to the body); superior to the senses is the mind; superior to the mind is the intellect; and one who is superior even to the intellect is He—the Self.

3.43. Thus, knowing Him who is superior to the intellect and restraining the self by the Self, slay thou, O mighty-armed Arjuna, the enemy in the form of desire, hard to conquer!

Man has come to know about the brain. The brain does not know the person.

 

[PolyHedral]

Will that not mean that one has no control at all? Whatever the brain does it does?

Only if the person is distinct from the brain, which has yet to be demonstrated.

 

[atanu]

Only if the person is distinct from the brain, which has yet to be demonstrated.

Obviously. The brain is different from your limbs, which the person can see as it sees the brain. LImbs do not say that they see the person, just as brain does not say. Man sees the brain.