In a series of six posts, I explain how early Buddhist teachings can help us break free from social media addiction. These teachings come from the Vitakkasanthana Sutta, which outlines five strategies to overcome compelling thoughts and urges.
One important point is that the Buddha suggested working through these tools in a specific order. If redirecting the mind to positive thoughts doesn’t work, then we should consider the drawbacks of addiction. If that also fails, we can try the method of “ignore and forget,” which we discuss today.
The advice is simple: if harmful thoughts tied to desire, hate, and delusion keep coming up, we should ignore and forget them. Although it sounds easier said than done, this method focuses on reducing temptation.
We’ll explore this concept in two areas: external activities and internal ones. Externally, we can change our habits to avoid social media, such as moving apps off the main screen of your phone and turning off notifications. Also, try charging your phone outside the bedroom to prevent checking it first thing in the morning. Use an alarm clock instead.
Internally, there’s a method of attention known as having a “soft focus.” Normally, we concentrate on a focal point like a screen or a person’s face. But we can also relax our gaze to be aware of our entire visual field, almost like using a lamp instead of a flashlight. This soft focus helps the body relax and the mind to calm, making it easier to ignore distracting thoughts.
In meditation, a narrow focus can limit our awareness and make thoughts more intrusive. By adopting a softer focus, we can maintain a broader awareness of bodily sensations, making it easier to let thoughts pass through without engaging with them.
This approach is similar to “urge surfing,” where we acknowledge urges without acting on them, allowing them to peak and then diminish naturally. Using a soft gaze helps facilitate this process.
Practically, we can reduce our social media distraction by changing our environment and habits. We can also adopt a broader focus in our attention, making it easier to ignore compulsive thoughts and urges.
In summary, by creating addiction-free zones and practicing a soft gaze, we can move past the thoughts and impulses that keep us tied to social media, learning to let these urges come and go without getting caught up in them.