Tuning in to Our Thoughts: The Work of Byron Katie

The Work of Byron Katie is a remarkable way of working with the mind to identify, question and undo the repetitive, stressful patterns that cause suffering in our lives.

It’s just four simple questions…

1. Is it true?

2. Can you absolutely know it’s true?

3. How do you react, what happens when you believe that thought?

4. Who would you be without that thought?

Plus a turnaround, which is a way of experiencing the opposite of what you believe to be true.

Many of us believe that it’s our emotions that cause us to suffer so we try to control, eradicate or medicate them. Byron Katie found that the emotions are merely an alarm bell to show us that we’re believing something that isn’t true for us.

Katie talks about the order of creation. First comes the belief or thought, then the emotions, then action and then the result. So if we want to change the result we have to go back to the thought.   Finding stressful thoughts is not always easy and The Work has a tool to help identify thoughts, a Judge Your Neighbour Worksheet, available to download free at www.thework.com.

The Work is a radically simple process where we get to see reality as it is, not as we think it is. It is democratic – the answers you get when you’re new to it can be just as profound as when you’ve been doing The Work for years. And it’s a practical, how-to, living meditation that’s easy to implement in daily life.  Anyone can do The Work. There is just one prerequisite… an open mind.

You can find out more about The Work at www.thework.com, including everything you need to do The Work yourself.

For details of Certified Facilitators, free events and workshops in Ireland go to www.theworkireland.ie

Guest blog post by Brid Ni Chionaola and Ursula Carlin, Certified Facilitators in The Work of Byron Katie