"Monkey mind", in case you haven't heard that phrase, is an idea used in Buhddism referring to the over-analyzing, ruminating, basically unquiet state we thinkers often feel trapped in. It's the idea that when one is feeling chaotic,unable to quiet the mind, it is as if you (your mind) are a crazy zany monkey who is running around, up and down trees, swinging from vines, pointlessly scratching yourself, flinging your feces, shrieking and ooohging and uaaaghing, recklessly peeling banana after banana,wolfing down some and tossing others on the ground... Just hyper and in the basest way, an animal. Monkey mind. I love that term.
Why, WHY am I so chaotic? Just one example: I often find myself racing back and forth through the house scribbling words down on Post-Its and dry erase boards and regular old paper in an attempt to catch all my ideas as they tumble out of my head. I am driven by the idea that if I can corral them I will become more organized, not only in my everyday task-driven life, but in my creative life as well, and therefore more serene. But just exactly how helpful or calming is it to have various scraps of paper lodged everywhere- in the house, in the car, inside my day planner; I mean, the day planner is actually stuffed with lists of lists-when I, Hyper McSpazzy, am spinning all around,tripping over piles of paper, spilling my juice, and banging my head on open cupboard doors in my attempts to jot the ideas down? I woke up the other morning with a crumpled Post-It note stuck to my face. Silly monkey mind- that is what meditation is for! And perhaps blogging as well...
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i often wake up with detritis in my bed-a pen lodged in the folds of my pillow or the outline of a spiral notebook engraved in my stomach. how do i sleep like that? have you ever found cryptic notes scribbled almost illegibly on a bedside magazine? a recent one read "hull of boat thru roofline of house heading out to sea" i think.....
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