(Photo above by Spencerlee / Pexels)
Maybe you’ve spent months wondering if you should stay in your relationship, find a new job or whether you’ve missed out on pursuing your dream. Your thoughts can easily start to overwhelm you. So, in those moments of overthinking, what can you do?
Here are ways you can conquer the noise in your head.
First, overthinking isn’t always bad
Thinking is a normal part of life. According to experts, young adults average about 6,000 thoughts per day. Even while reading this article, you may be thinking about the grocery shopping you need to get done or if you have enough time to study before your next exam.
It’s when your thoughts overwhelm you to the point of analysis paralysis and give you a sense of powerlessness that you may want to confront them.
If these thoughts feel endless and without a solution, that’s where Buddhist practice can help.
Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo provides clarity
One benefit of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is that it gives us clarity on what we are feeling or what we’d like to achieve. Even better, it doesn’t require us to think a certain way or clear our minds of all distractions to gain insight.
If anything, Buddhist practice encourages us to focus on whatever we’d like as we chant. Buddhist philosopher Daisaku Ikeda shares his thoughts on what and how to keep focus during your daily chanting routine.
Because we are human, it’s natural for our minds to wander, for all sorts of thoughts and memories to surface. You can just share all those thoughts with the Gohonzon. There is no set form or pattern for how we should pray. Buddhism speaks of being “uncreated” and “unadorned.” In other words, it emphasizes being natural. Therefore, simply chant earnestly and without pretense, just as you are. In time, as your faith develops, you’ll find it easier to focus your mind when you chant.
Discussions on Youth, p. 224
To decide, chant and take action is the formula for overcoming any challenge
When you chant, you can give free expression to your honest feelings and be yourself. When you chant, you are manifesting the Buddha nature that already exists in your life, characterized as limitless courage, wisdom and compassion. The “clarity” that people describe is just that, your Buddha nature manifesting.
Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo can also inspire us to determine to move our lives in a certain direction. Ikeda writes:
The human brain has been called a microcosm. Some believe that billions of nerve cells can be found in the brain. When all their interrelated combinations are taken into account, the number becomes astronomical. The potential of the human brain remains unknown. We do not know what powers it holds. But one thing is certain: The power of belief, the power of thought, will move reality in the direction of what we believe and how we conceive it. If you really believe you can do something, you can. That is a fact. When you clearly envision a victorious outcome, engrave it in your heart and are firmly convinced that you will attain it, your brain makes every effort to realize the mental image you have created. Then, through your unceasing efforts, that victory is finally made a reality.
My Dear Friends in America, fourth edition, p. 259
Instead of obsessing over what is or isn’t possible, when we prioritize chanting, we come to envision what our “victorious outcome” looks like and decide we will make it happen because we have Buddhability within. We stop overthinking and instead, just make up our minds.
So, if you think a lot, don’t worry. Try chanting about those feelings or thoughts and you will manifest the wisdom that’s needed to get the answers you are looking for. Why? Because they already exist in your life.
If you’ve never chanted before, you can learn by trying out our chanting playlist and feel free to reach out to us to find a Buddhist center near you.