Ah, yes, the unconscious mind. This was the cornerstone of Sigmund's Freud's psychoanalytic theory. Formed in our childhood, this 'dark' side of the mind harbors a lot of repressed emotions and memories, negativity, and things we are simply not aware of. And people will unknowingly act on that negativity or the positivity that resides there.
And this could explain why a seemingly well-adjusted guy has trouble maintaining a job or has difficulty staying in a healthy relationships. If in his unconscious, he really believes he is a loser and unworthy of love, this is what he will keep attracting in to his life. The unconscious mind will be expressed!!
Now what? If I've had a lot of hard knocks in life, all these negative experiences are probably swimming in my unconscious mind, waiting to explode, or worse is actually bringing more negative experiences into my sphere. C'mon there was my emotionally abusive father, difficult incidences at school, and yo, there's constant negative messages about Blacks in the news, in the movies, there's misinformation about Jews, there's a lot of crap out there!!
I don't know about y'all, but I find this horrifying!!!
Ok, there are websites that go on and on about this, and they're all quite fascinating. And some suggest meditation and positive affirmations to re-program our unconscious mind. And that's all great. One website had the fascinating perspective that positive affirmations don't truly remove the painful feelings and might just be a lame whitewashing attempt over true pain. Interesting point!!
Well, in Jewish Breslov Chassidic thought, hitbodedut is stressed big time. Hitbodedut is basically talking to G-d. It's taught that in order to change ourselves, we must imagine the change and we must express this desire in words OUT LOUD.
The world was created with Ten Sayings. Hashem 'spoke' and the world was formed.
We, too, can create with our speech. But it begins in the mind.
The Jews were in Egypt for 210 years. That means they were enslaved for decades upon decades. They had surely adopted a slave mentality. Low self-esteem, depression, misery might have been as common as their daily staple. Yet, there was a glimmer of hope. In their minds, they believed that G-d/ Hashem would save them through a Deliverer. (Remember the Ten Commandments movie. I don't think Moses looked anything like Charlton Heston, but I do love that film!)
And because they believed, this truth became manifest. Not only that, but on the night of their great exodus from Egypt, G-d commanded them to do a sacrifice, a korban Pesach. They were to slaughter the sheep, the god of their enemy. Why was this celebratory act done while they were still in Egypt, still in the mire of that 'dark' place?? I heard a beautiful vort explaining that before a person can actually be free, they have to first imagine themselves free in their mind.
I call this the Emuna Mind.
The negativity in our unconscious is most likely going to take us away from that life, love and abundance. I don't need to analyze my unconscious to know that. My unconscious is my Egypt, where my enslaved mind hides. I know 'cuz I've had hard knocks!! And so have you.
Jews are commanded to remember the Exodus from Egypt every day. Egypt is a difficult place to leave. Most of the people chose to stay and did not leave with Moses. And once in the desert, even the brave that left often thought of returning to the familiar comfort of enslavement.
G-d took us out of Egypt. And He does so every day.
But He is looking for our desire to leave.
By speaking honestly to G-d, learning about the good He wants for us, imagining that good manifesting in our lives, and expressing that through our speech, we can revolutionize every cell in our minds, in our bodies and every cell in the whole world to create our Exodus from Egypt.
G-d bless!!
Check it out:
http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-the-difference-between-the-unconscious-and-the-subconscious.htm
http://www.lifetrainings.com/Your-unconscious-mind-is-running-you-life.html
