• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer

Sources of Insight

Better Insights, Better Results

  • About
  • Articles
  • Books
  • Courses
  • Topics
    • Productivity
    • Leadership
    • Emotional Intelligence
    • Happiness
    • Personal Development
    • All Topics
  • Resources
    • Books I Recommend
    • Book Summaries
    • Great Lessons
    • Great Quotes
    • Products I Recommend
    • All Resources
  • Contact

How To Visualize Non-Attachment

by JD

Cropped shot of a young woman closing her eyes

“Detachment means letting go and nonattachment means simply letting be.” — Stephen Levine

Letting go of thoughts or letting them “float by” is a useful skill for life.

Some thoughts aren’t worth dwelling on, and some thoughts do more harm when you hold on to them.

Practicing non-attachment can help you quiet your mind.

Non-attachment can also help you respond vs. react.  You can use non-attachment to help you create a gap between the stimulus and your response.

In the book … And I Breathed: My Journey from a Life of Matter to a Life That Matters, Jason Garner shares a technique he uses to practice non-attachment and master meditation.

A Fork in the River of Non-Attachment

Imagine a free-flowing river, where your thoughts float by.

Notice your thoughts, but don’t react to them.

Garner writes:

“To help myself, I developed an image with which I would start my meditation. 

I would close my eyes, envision a wise-looking Chinese man, like Confucius, sitting on the bank in between a fork in the river, with the river running on either side of him.

Instead of water, the river was made up of thoughts. 

My thoughts. 

This wise Chinese man (my mind) simply looked at each thought as it floated by and said gently ‘hmm.’ 

A thought floated by … ‘hmmm’ … another … ‘hmm.’  Never engaging or resisting. 

Calmly observing the presence and letting it pass by with a simple ‘hmmm.’”

A Visual Representation of Non-Attachment and Surrender

It might sound silly, but sometimes silly works.  What’s important is finding what works for you.

Garner writes:

“As silly as it sounds, this imagery worked for me. 

It was a visual representation of non-attachment and surrender I could clearly understand. 

After a few moments of doing this, I would settle into a peaceful state and enjoy a magnificent meditation. 

Over time those moments went from seconds to a minute, and, with more practice, to more and more minutes.”

Let Your Thoughts Float on By

Don’t hold on to your negative thoughts.  Let them float on by.

Garner writes:

“What I asked Guru Singh how to deal with a thought I didn’t like, he would say: ‘

What do you do when you see a billboard you don’t like? Do you take a picture and carry it around with you?

No. 

You see it and then you drive on by.’”

Sometimes the right metaphor or imagery can be just what you need for your own, personal breakthrough.

Enjoy your river of thoughts, and enjoy a new level of non-attachment.

You Might Also Like

How To Use the Relaxation Response to Melt Away Stress
Pono: The State of Unwavering Congruence
Stretch Into Your Body Glove

Category: Book Nuggets, Life Hacks, Mental Health

About JD

Previous Post:stretch into your body gloveStretch Into Your Body Glove
Next Post:The Integrating Generalist and the Art of Connecting the DotsIntegrating Generalist

Sidebar

About the Author

JDI am J.D. Meier. Join me on a quest for the world's best insights and actions for work and life. Learn more...

My Best-Selling Book

This is the book that changes lives ...

Become a Better You with Skill!

Learn better skills for work and life. Stand on the shoulders of giants and awaken your greatness. Realize your human potential through the world’s best insights and actions for mind, body, emotions, career, finance, relationships, and fun.

Features

  • Book Summaries
  • Books I Recommend
  • Great Lessons Learned
  • Great Quotes
  • How Tos
  • Lists
  • Best Products

My Other Sites

JD Meier.com
Getting Results.com

Copyright © 2023 · Sources of Insight · All Rights Reserved