What to do when music gets played in the mind

Question

I get the idea of recognizing mind states .Knowing their existence separates them from self but sometimes .I get this addictive Music like a recording in my mind that constantly restarts diverting my concretion from work .I recognize that it may come from states but dealing with it isn't as easy .

• I tried

  1. Knowing that its just music

  2. knowing the reason why it came (maybe when I was listening I wasn't mindful.

  3. diverting my attention ardently away from it

All this didn't work maybe helps in understanding but it still doesn't stop it sometimes it gets even more energy.

Answer 1

Practice Satipaṭṭhānasutta, Mindfulness Meditation. As you proceed through the stages, you will encounter the following if the tune in your head was pleasant:

It’s when a mendicant who feels a pleasant feeling knows: ‘I feel a pleasant feeling.’

Or if the music is annoying:

When they feel a painful feeling, they know: ‘I feel a painful feeling.’

Just observing the breath, the body, the feelings, they all quiet down on their own. The progression is important. Start with the breath. Don't skip ahead.

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I play music. When I delight in the music it gets stuck in my head. Better to just play the music mindfully without tying one's self up in it. Oddly, music played mindfully is received better than when played lost in the delight of the music.

Answer 2

Music playing in the mind are mental formations. Approach in the same way as all other mental formations. Notice that it's there but try not to add feeling or thought to it. Doing so will create frustration. In the case of this happening, notice the thoughts you attach to the music in the same way and be with the feelings that occur.

You may say "this repetitive music is annoying me" then you may feel an unpleasant feeling. Notice this! Notice without judgement.

Alternatively, switch your attention to something that requires a high level of focus like creative writing. The music will stop. Become very curious about how it stopped being careful to note the change in mind state and degree of alertness. This will tell you something about your various states of mind namely lower levels and higher levels of functioning. In the lower levels mind has a tendency to do what it likes perhaps governed by the autonomics of conditioning. In the higher levels, conscious directed thought allows you to step out of this process where you can have more choice about how to use your mind.

Answer 3

According to the ancient therevāda buddhist tradition, the buddhist people recite > memorize > comprehend buddha's teaching. It is ears/mouth/mind-redirection from the nonsense story to the advantage story.

Actually, you can do the meditation, listening dhamma, or talking dhamma. But I think the reciting dhamma is proper to be the best enemy of singing/music-addiction.