My experience has been that emotions could be active reactions of thoughts. It is easy to fall into confusion, to understand when and why you might react to one thing, but not to the other, as the memories linger — episodes of statements, observations, declarations, and actions.
Personally, it stems mostly from experience and upbringing. If you were raised in an environment where verbal assaults and physical gestures were rampant, who is to say that you will not act the same way when raising your own child? Most of the time, human beings are easily led by their own experiences. While it is true that genetics affect human behavior, it is even more affected by how a child is raised; environment is the foundational need, which provides a blueprint to how a child should be raised.
Read more here:
https://medium.com/@leonbasin/active-reactions-of-thoughts-beb11ad6a514#.tco2idtvs
Comments
Well of course they are! You have a thought, and it raises emotions, which in turn provoke the direction of other thoughts.
But remember all actions - mental verbal AND physical - are choices.
Nothing is a result of itself.
We choose the emotion by choosing what to think.
"Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom." Viktor Frankl
Or, as the Buddha put it succinctly:
All actions are led by the mind. Mind is their master, mind is their maker. Act or speak with an impure state of mind and suffering follows as the cartwheel follows the foot of the ox.
All actions are led by the mind, mind is their master, mind is their maker. Act or speak with a pure state of mind and happiness follows as your shadow never departing."
My feeling is that an emotion usually comes from an interaction between a thought and an emotional tie of some sort... If you don't already have an emotional relationship with the object of your thought you generally won't get an emotional reaction.
But you have to first perceive that emotional tie. You first have to make it. The emotional tie has already existed because of your perception.
Your perception begins in your mind, when you evaluate.
I have to disagree - every individual is different - you can not say that the environment has a greater effect on every person than their genetics.
Actually, you can.
Genetics is one thing; but outside influences, conditioning, treatment and attitude of others, such as siblings, school friends, teachers and of course, parents, are hugely effective. The combined force of this conditioning CAN be far greater than genetics.
Good thread guys,
The importance of body and speech to effect mind and emotions is part of their interdependence, body of mind ...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mary-pritchard/yoga-nidra_b_1669005.html
https://greatmiddleway.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/mantrayana-the-vehicle-of-mantra/
TWO WORDS
Word Association
Thanks so much for reading everyone! I really appreciate it:)