LAW OF THREE (4) Three modes of attention

LAW OF THREE (4)

THREE MODES OF ATTENTION

The law of 3 is a practical tool to discern habitual patterns of behaviour:

This morning while I was driving,  I heard a suspicious noise in the car.  I thought that one of the windows was not completely closed,  but it was. Was it the exhaust pipe? Suddenly I thought the noise might be coming from the radio.  The radio was on. I switched it off and the noise stopped. This is a simple example of the working of the law of three. The noise was the negative force. The desire to find the cause the active force. The entering information "it's the radio" the reconciling force. New knowledge is often the reconciling force . However the switching off of the radio is an act of will.  We may call the decision or act of will the 4th force,  which can only enter when the understanding manifests.

ATTENTION AND DECISION

Decision is an act of the will. The decisions we can take depends on how conscious (or awake )we are and the state of our attention

 

We can distinguish three states of our attention:

Attention lost: As when we watch TV, daydream, or are absorbed in circling thoughts. 

Attention directed: Giving intentional attention. Like in mantric meditation. Focused attention on a job, an object, etc. Attention under our directional control.

Open attention: Fully receptive attention. Open to receive. Attention detached and free from clinging. Awake. Active receptivity. (Mark 14:37 ...you could not stay awake for one hour..)