songs stuck in my head

Anyone else find that their concentration in zazen gets derailed by having a song stuck in your head? It happens to me all the time! I even stopped listening to my iPod for a month to see if that would help.

It didn't.

I have noticed though, that my personal soundtrack isn't so much influenced by the songs I've heard most recently. It seems to be an expression of my mood and current distractions (ie "Career Opportunities" when I was mad at my job, "Missing Words" when I was mad at my ex, etc). Which is a nice insight but it won't make it stop!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by paige

Anyone else find that their concentration in zazen gets derailed by having a song stuck in your head? It happens to me all the time! I even stopped listening to my iPod for a month to see if that would help.

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Hi Paige,

Yep, I've had that problem before from time to time as well. In general, though, I don't listen to music nearly as much as I used to, so it's not a real issue for me. Previously, if a musician/group which I was interested in released a new CD or if I got it in my head that I wanted to have a particular album I wouldn't be satisfied until I got it, now I can just take it or leave it, and mostly I just leave it. Not sure if that's related to my Zazen practice or if it just means I'm getting older. :)

Gassho

Kenneth

ugh, I keep forgetting to log in..lol

That last post was mine, sorry..


-Murah

I'm getting the hang of things here, so I don't know if this will post with the 'music in my head' topic...
So Paige, I like this topic! My thought on this is to regard it as a spontaneous mantra or, like other thoughts not set to music, just allow it to arise unobstructed and play itself out so to speak--not trying to make it stay, not trying to make it go away, just let it be. (ooops....did I just put another song into your head?)
Unbidden music comes into my life from a neighbor with brand new giant speaker systems and my son who practices some pieces over and over and over...When I am meditating and the neighbor's music starts up I have had fantasies of running outside and shouting up at his window "TURN IT DOWN, NOW"!!, but I don't, I just let this fantasy go, too. I feel the tensions in the muscles of my body and correct my posture and return to breathing and sitting. When my son starts to play (he is 17), I am aware the time to have him in my life is very short and these sounds will leave--just as the sounds he made as a baby have left-- and it turns out I find these bits of music do not disturb me. However, the bands he listens to.....different story!

Teletubbies :shock: *shudder* Those things give me the heebie-jeebies something serious. My condolences, HezB!

Murah, I think you might be onto something... when I was a teenager I very much identified with my musical 'scene' and I think I got used to using music as an outlet for my emotions. Or maybe even a substitute for showing emotion - I'd put on tracks that seemed to express my moods, putting my headphones on was a bit of a sanctuary when I was angry, depressed, hurt, etc. Especially angry.

So having an internal soundtrack for my old tunes makes sense if I'm confronting emotions in zazen too. Except that when I'm sitting zazen I can't scream along with the chorus and pogo around the room anymore. :?

Also, another thing which I would like to mention is ( like what kelshin said) to let the thoughts be. However, its a fine line between letting the thoughts be and labeling them. A particular issue I'm having with my thoughts is that every time I'm not busy and I'm hanging out by myself I'll usually start having unwanted thoughts which make me feel guilty. Now, the thoughts have since passed ( thanks to my zazen practice) and I'm stuck with the guilt. During my zazen practice I feel the guilt and I just let it be. The real trick I believe though is for me not to label it "good" or "bad". The second I label it is the moment in which the guilt becomes a problem again.

So back to your issue, see the thought, but do not label it.

8)

-Murah