how dare he complain about mi!!

my fren told mi that XXX complained about mi... how fast i jumped into the "defensive mode" and reacted with a emotional charged "counter-complaining"! how can XXX say that about mi, its unfair! to think that i did blah blah for him, and that i blah blah how can he blah blah...

anger creeped up on mi... totally identified with the angry thoughts

then sometime later awareness arise n i notice my reactions and ramblings in my head...

remembered to practice... labelled the complaining n angry thoughts... label "complaining about XXX complaining about mi"... seeing the thoughts for what they are, just thoughts...

returned to the present moment by residing in the physical sensations of the body... ooo... feeling e uncomfortable sensations in the chest n tension all over...

slowly e energy of anger pass... whew...
i realised i was not so different from XXX actualli haha =P
(well i ended up complaining about him as well!)

the above process consisted of (1) labeling - thought labelling (my complaining and angry thoughts) and then (2) experiencing - returning to the phyiscal reality of the present moment (one way is by residing in the physical sensations of the body)

i hav found this 2 step technique of labeling and experiencing
veri useful in everyday practice...
this technique is carefully spelt out, explained and clarified in
Ezra Bayda's book~ Being Zen: Bring Meditation to Life
i am realli grateful for this technique as many a times it helped mi break identification with my thinking which i usually hold on so tightly to, as if they are the absolute truth haha =P


...the most important thing is, whatever is past, just let it go. your mind should be like a mirror, not a camera. whatever goes into a camera is recorded there; the reflection in a mirror vanishes when the object moves away...

~Master Sheng Yen