Notes on Jan Cox Talk 3034 by Cfish
/Jan Cox Talk 3034 - 5 May 2003
Copyright Jan Cox, Jan’s Legacy 2015
Notes by Cfish November 2015
Suggested Title: Operationally Recognizing Feeling and Thinking are Two Different Things
Begin: Tonight I saw a church marquee “ten steps to build your faith.” I can’t remember if I ever mentioned the fact that church marquees, sermon topics, and sermons themselves, can be bought, and that some people “lose their religion” after being told of this.
People assume these clever, witty, and proverbial church marquees and sermons are written by the pastor. (Even though the pastor may appear to be barely literate in conversation.) Anyway, the church marquee I passed tonight barked at me.
“Ten steps to building your faith” with faith being the backbone of religion. You cannot talk about religion with a straight face, unless you have faith. And here is this brightly lit marquee, of the coming night’s sermon. (probably purchased thru a franchise)
05:00 Which leads me to a common phrase, related to the last few nights, “Mixed Emotions.” Being of mixed emotions, though it could be viewed as cliche, can also be viewed as reflective, insightful, less than a routine comment. (i.e. I like it, I hate it)
I can’t think of a situation in human existence that “mixed emotions” would not be an acceptable comment. (ex. health matters, death, politics, etc.) The basis of the “point” is that there is no such thing as “mixed emotions.” Emotions being the instinct to survive.
Lets say emotions are cellular and part of the silent nervous system, before they hit the frontal lobes.
10:00 Often times, even admittedly, if asked, emotions are being mixed up with thinking. Feelings/emotions in us and in animals are the instinct to survive. The neurons/thinking may ask “what about compassion?”
But if you look, the only emotions you have are survival related. Anything we call emotion/feeling is never questioned in animals. For example a deer that runs when it hears a noise is not confused with maybe, that it could have been, the deer’s upbringing, that made him run.
15:00 The only pure feelings you have, are survival related. Mixed emotions are having a feeling about a subject but the thoughts are at variance with the feeling. (Under some conditions some folks could see that.)
Yet the plain/working reality (pure feelings being survival related) no one’s mind deals with. The working reality is not conditional, not spiritual, and not limited to a specific situation. Anytime you have “mixed emotions” life is feeding you thoughts that do not fit the feeling.
The feelings could be no more than indifference. (side thought: that could be the most severe example of mixed emotions) One does not get the instinct to survive from anywhere. You did not pick up the desire for sex and food. (ex. eating too much picked up in my childhood)
20:00 People do not analyze emotions. Emotions are just there. If you can see it, two things are going on. Instinctive feelings drive human life, and if you look, fit within a very few instinctive emotions/feelings. And thoughts about feelings are going on.
Thoughts can go along with feelings but that is irrelevant. Thoughts only being relevant when using thoughts to handle abusive feelings. (ex eating too much) Mixed emotions could be the basis of early religious stories about the dark and the light.
25:00 Good and evil, dark and light, hormones and neurons, are examples of doing things I don’t want to do. For example having sex with anyone I want (hormones) but something tells me not to. (neurons) This back and forth does not go on in emotions.
So the punchline is you don’t have mixed emotions/feelings about anything. It is another way to look at why folks cannot change the way they feel. (ex. depression over a death, fatal disease diagnosis)
30:00 Feeling bad about a death in the family or a fatal disease diagnosis could be genetic. And if it is a real feeling, the feeling can’t be changed. And the human mind is not constructed to see or accept that. (ex. someone saying you need to snap out of it)
There is nothing you can do about real feeling, but if you operationally recognize (very few do) that feeling and thinking are two different things, (may or may not be fully connected, there is always some connection) this awareness separates the two.
Operationally recognizing feeling and thinking are two different things is based on a lifetime of doing it and the fact that I can talk about this two or three nights in a row and you folks keep showing up. Look at and listen to Life, the human mind is not wired to see this.
Neurons say things could change, ordinary people pray and hope conditions will change, but whatever you are feeling you are feeling. The whole idea of prayer, self hypnosis, etc. is right on the edge of seeing something.
35:00 If they were wired up for it, and if they turned just a little while praying, they may see something. When someone prays for help, understanding, acceptance, a miracle, the only treatment is to look at it internally. (ordinary people can’t do it)
Know for yourself - the energy of the nervous system (hormones/feelings) is driving the neurons. (what you were thinking about) If you understand that when you turn and look internally, then feeling and thought separate.
It is like a gear going into idle. Feeling and thought are within millimeters of each other and at any minute they can go right back to thoughts of worry and anger. You cannot stop actual instinctive feeling. But if you can get the gears to disengage what you are thinking becomes irrelevant.
Its like the fog floating a few inches above a field no longer oppressing the grass/field of consciousness. Whatever you are feeling you can stand. When feelings become unbearable you pass out. (awake or asleep, witness the sale of alcohol and drugs)
40:00 Nothing you feel, you can’t stand. But if thought gets in gear with the feeling there is no end to the suffering/stupidity you can enjoy. You never have stupid feelings. I will let you figure out the lead in to the "Ten Steps to Building Faith.”
