You Are Not Your Thoughts 

You Are Not Your Thoughts: An Exploration of Consciousness and Free Will

One of the most intriguing realizations during meditation is the apparent lack of control we have over our thoughts. Thoughts seem to pop into our heads out of nowhere, without our conscious effort. This raises the question: Are we really in control of our thoughts, or are we merely observers of our mental processes?

The Conscious Mind as a Narrator

Some neuroscientists and philosophers argue that our conscious mind—the "self" we identify with—is not the true decision-maker but rather a narrator or storyteller of events happening within us. Our brain may act first, and our conscious mind tries to explain why we acted after the fact.

Research by psychologist Daniel Wegner supports this notion. In his book The Illusion of Conscious Will, Wegner discusses how we often attribute our actions to conscious decisions, but many of these decisions were made unconsciously . This suggests that our "conscious will" may simply be a narrative we tell ourselves after the action has already been initiated.

Split-Brain Studies: Evidence of Confabulation

One of the most compelling pieces of evidence for this theory comes from studies involving split-brain patients. These individuals have had the connection between their brain hemispheres severed to treat epilepsy, leading to fascinating insights into how consciousness works.

In these experiments, researchers showed one hemisphere (which controls language) a word or image, and the other hemisphere a different one. When asked to explain why they performed certain actions (e.g., drawing a cowboy hat after seeing the word "Texas"), patients often couldn't articulate a logical reason and instead confabulated explanations, making up stories to justify their actions. This suggests that our conscious mind may not always know why we do what we do—it simply tries to create a cohesive story .

The Darwinian Perspective: Consciousness as a Survival Mechanism

From an evolutionary standpoint, it makes sense why humans might have developed this retroactive explaining behavior. In prehistoric societies, survival depended on trust and cooperation. If an individual seemed irrational or impulsive, they might have been ostracized from the group, reducing their chances of survival.

Thus, having a consciousness that can explain behavior in rational terms—whether or not those explanations are accurate—would help cultivate trust and maintain social bonds. This idea aligns with the work of evolutionary psychologists, who suggest that much of human behavior is shaped by the need for social cooperation and survival .

Lack of Free Will? Neuroscientific Evidence

The question of free will is deeply tied to the idea that we are not fully in control of our actions. Neuroscientist Benjamin Libet conducted experiments in the 1980s that found brain activity related to movement began before participants were consciously aware of their intention to move. This "readiness potential" suggests that the brain initiates actions before the conscious mind becomes aware of them .

These findings challenge the traditional view of free will as the conscious decision-making process we believe it to be. If the brain has already decided on a course of action before we become aware of it, our sense of control may be more of an illusion than we think.

Can People Change?

If our actions are largely determined by unconscious brain processes, what does this mean for personal change and growth? While the idea of free will might be questioned, it doesn't necessarily mean we are powerless to change. Instead, it highlights the importance of shaping our environments and habits to influence our unconscious behaviors.

Psychologists suggest that creating positive habits, engaging in mindfulness, and exposing oneself to new experiences can help rewire the brain over time. Neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to form new connections—shows that, while we may not have complete free will, we do have the capacity to influence our future selves through conscious efforts .

Sources:

1. Wegner, Daniel. The Illusion of Conscious Will. MIT Press, 2002. link

2. Gazzaniga, M. S. (2015). Tales from both sides of the brain: A life in neuroscience. Ecco/HarperCollins Publishers. 

3. Libet, Benjamin. “Unconscious Cerebral Initiative and the Role of Conscious Will in Voluntary Action.” Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 1985.

4. Gopnik, Alison. “How Humans Evolved Supersize Brains.” Scientific American, June 2021. link

5. “The Science of Neuroplasticity: How We Can Change Our Brains.” Psychology Today, 2021. link

By understanding how our brain works—sometimes without our conscious awareness—we can cultivate compassion for ourselves and others, recognizing that our actions are often the result of deeper processes beyond our immediate control. This knowledge can help guide us toward self-awareness, personal growth, and better decision-making.