James Wood Teachings

A major misconception about meditation is that it involves a suppression of thoughts. It’s unnatural to suppress thoughts. As the heart pumps blood, the mind pumps thoughts. They’re going to arise; the question is what is your relationship to those thoughts? The practice of meditation involves a conscious relationship with thoughts, seeing that they are ultimately false. Thoughts can be useful, but they’re not ultimately true. Prayer and inquiry are forms of meditation. Prayer involves surrendering your desire to Reality, whereas inquiry is investigating whether thoughts are true.