Sitting at the Water Hole

Photo by ActionVance on Unsplash

I sit at the water hole and let my thoughts come to me.

Sometimes, I feel like my thoughts are chasing me and they keep finding me. Gayathri Narayanan, my meditation teacher, encouraged us to ‘sit at the water hole’ and wait for our thoughts to come to us. She said that her teacher, Gil Fronsdal, talked about it in terms of being a wildlife photographer. You could either follow the footprints and chase the wildlife around their territory or you could simply sit at the water hole knowing all animals will eventually need to drink. The first helpful step for me is to stop chasing my thoughts and stop letting them chase me. I sit at the water hole and let them come to me.

As my thoughts come to me, I label them. Is it useful? Is it pleasant? Unpleasant? Neutral? These questions have been helpful to me as I navigate times in my life that consume my thoughts. These are often times of transition or uncertainty. My mind seems to take over and my thoughts will consume me. No matter what task I am doing in the moment, My thoughts keep pulling me back to this all consuming issue. It might even be the middle of the night and I awaken to ruminations. It feels seemingly out of my control and overwhelming.

Once I visualize myself seated at the water hole, I ask myself a question: “Is this thought useful?” Sometimes my ruminations will lead to an innovative solution, or an idea for my next writing piece and other times these unending thoughts lead to distraction and anxiety. When I ask, Is it useful?, I make a determination about the type of thoughts I am having and if they are serving me any purpose. I can label them as they come and go: useful, unuseful or even pleasant or unpleasant.

I am slowing down, building awareness about my thinking. My thoughts are thoughts and nothing else. I am producing them. If I determine they are not useful maybe I can decide to do something different and maybe not hold onto them. Sitting at the watering hole of my thoughts allows me to approach with more acceptance and less resistance. When I resist less, my thoughts seem to persist less.

Some Strategies for Sitting at the Water Hole:

• Notice when you are in a pattern of rumination. (thoughts swirling in your mind)
• Observe the thoughts. Sit at the watering hole. Let the thoughts come to you freely.
• Label them. (useful, unuseful, pleasant, unpleasant, neutral)
• Refrain from judgement of yourself and your thoughts.

Once I go through this process, the thoughts don’t just disappear. This is not magic. However, I do find myself more able to move forward, focus on the present, and the thoughts feel less powerful. My resistance and attachment are reduced and I can let go a bit. I find this process to be an effective path forward in times of transition and uncertainty. This process takes time and practice and keeps me from being stuck. I find a feeling of more spaciousness. Next time you are in a state of rumination, try sitting at the water hole and let your thoughts come to you.