The mind is like tofu. It tastes like whatever you marinate it in. -  Sylvia Boorstein

Have you tasted your mind lately? What flavor(s) can you detect? If you’ve been marinating in fear and anger, the feeling tone will be quite different than if you’ve been swimming around in a sea of joy and hope. It is true that the mind takes us into many dark places as well as buoyant, happy realms, but much of the time the mind is occupied with trivialities and neutral details. Still, when you find yourself continually worried about a situation, or caught up in rage against the corrupt regime in power, or daydreaming about that perfect vacation you wish you could take, the whole thinking self takes on the flavor of angst or bitterness or longing.

These mind states become unnoticeable the more they are driven by habit patterns, and it can be a challenge just to recognize that they are operating. It’s like the sound of a refrigerator or air conditioner running in the background which we don’t hear until it turns off and suddenly there is a new silence. I’m reminded of the old commercial with Madge the Manicurist (the delightful Jan Miner), who shocked her clients by pointing out that they were resting their hands in dish detergent: “You’re soaking in it!”

We are, indeed, soaking in it. Whatever we think infuses the physical senses. Repetitive thought patterns tend to reinforce themselves, and this always shows up in the body somehow. This is good news, because it means we always have an immediate tangible way to know what’s going on in any given moment. We don’t have to unconsciously absorb the pool of greed, hatred, or delusion that may have become the mental background of everyday living. My qigong teacher, Franz Moeckl, says, “where the mind is, that’s where the qi will be.” The life energy naturally follows wherever the mind is focused.

The Buddha gave great advice about why it is crucial to observe our thoughts not just for their content but also for the way in which they set the tone for everything else in our lives:

The thought manifests as the word;

The word manifests as the deed;

The deed develops into habit;

And habit hardens into character;

So watch the thought and its way with care,

And let it spring from love

Born out of concern for all beings.

We can begin to notice what kinds of thought habits we are cultivating, and choose whether to let that be the mental sea we swim in, or perhaps look for a kinder, clearer, more spacious pool to paddle around in. Because honestly? It’s not a great idea to soak your cuticles in dish detergent, no matter how charming the sales pitch might be.