Saturday, November 9, 2013

254. Are Old Habits Hard to Break????????????

http://www.speakingtree.in/public/spiritual-blogs/seekers/self-improvement/are-old-habits-hard-to-break



Habits are vital in helping us do everything in a habitual process.Habit has two faces one being the Vasanas (Impressions) and the other Samskara (Tendencies). The impressions are the groove that is created in the plane of consciousness with the needle of past repetitive thought. Vasanas tempts the individual to repeat a particular event over and over again. Vasanas that are ingrained in our unconscious mind eliminate the need of a conscious thinking about steps of action that is involved in a routine job.

Our mind gets the pattern in the memory and makes the thought and behavior habitual so that the conscious mind can deal with it without much complication. These become Samskara which are behavioral attitudes of action or non-action that in fact label our habit. This is an amazing virtue of mind, but the drawback is that Samskaras can also have a negative hold on the same mind and make them hard to break. This is the major problem which makes additions hard to die. 

Is it possible to erase the Vasanas completely and have only good Samskaras???
 
Yes, says the brain researchers. Vasanas can be ripped up if we gradually and wholeheartedly working against it. If the habit is formed by mechanically doing the same task again and again then there are possibilities that by performing an opposite task again and again it eliminates the habit. Is it that simple then??? No, the mind always forces us towards the old habit. If that is the case then abstinence is the medicine. Amazingly mind gets back to old habits very quickly than being interested in the formation of a new habit. However if one is sure to get rid of the unwanted habit mentally then with repeated performance, there are chances that the Vasanas can be rooted out. 

Modification of stubborn tendencies in an individual’s attitude or bad manners in his conduct is possible only by a strong determination and continuous unwavering practice. The individual has to be self-confident in the first place; he should not be the servant of his wishes. His mind has to listen to the intellect not his senses.


By having good Samskaras (fair tendencies) we can live meaningful living and have solace. By wiping out both the good or bad Vasanas (impressions) one is likely to be liberated as scriptures say “VASANA KSHAYA MOKSHA

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