Isn't it funny how sometimes you can be playing a game, or watching a show, and you get really wrapped up in it, and then suddenly hours have passed? And you think "Whoa, where did all that time go?" but really you were just completely immersed in whatever you were doing. Time flies when you're having fun, they say.

Why is that? If we look at life as a game, and a particular task as a mini-game, sometimes we get so caught up in mini-games that we forget to play the game! To the extent that we forget the main game even exists at all for hours at a time.

When we go through life, we form stories about what is going on, who we are, who others are, what we are doing, and so on. These stories can collectively be called "ego". Ego is the stories we tell ourselves, about ourselves. Whether we define our "self" as one human being or the human race or the universe, we still tell stories at each of these scales about who we are. Stories using spoken and written language, and pictures and imagery. Emotional and dramatic stories, repeated thousands of times to build a solid worldview. This forms the mental interface through which we interact with the world.

When a story becomes so accepted that it's no longer even questioned, it just becomes part of the background operating system of culture and mind, it is subconscious. We see ourselves making subconscious decisions all day long.

Have you ever had a moment where you mentally step back and go "Wait what am I actually doing?" and everything takes on a completely different context and appearance? A moment where your old story fell apart, and a new one had a chance to form? Or maybe the story fell apart so badly you no longer have any story at all. It's just you, staring right at the universe, unable to make any sense of what is right in front of your nose. These are the moments of questioning the stories accepted by the ego, the moments of self-revision. The self-change that can change subconscious behaviors of an individual by making them conscious so they can be seen clearly in the light. Just clearly seeing a pattern for what it is can make the pattern automatically change. Some stories and ways of thinking and acting depend on the fact they are unquestioned and unobserved by real consciousness, and are instead just tacitly accepted through social pressure or emotional means, and never truly revisited after that.

I have realized that when we get "swept away" by a concept or idea or stimulus in our own mind, we lose our conscious awareness in a lot of ways. It's happening constantly to all of us. We get emotional, we zone out while driving, we get caught up in narratives and rhetoric, we don't have time to really stop and think. I used to think it was the exception, but now I realize true clear-headedness is instead the exception. We are always making decisions and creating new thoughts by the seat of our pants, on the fly, not having any idea what we are really doing. Trying to bluff and front to convince others. What most people call "logic" is actually an emotion of "this feels correct", which can have a basis in logic but is exclusively logic-based. Everyone does this. It's the human condition, in a way.

All brains are built to take shortcuts because it was evolutionary advantageous. Evolution rewards survival, not understanding the universe as a whole. Ego is a useful tool, but it's just one tool to the mind. However this itself can be hard to see under a mind ruled by ego.

What I hope is that all people can come to recognize the state of getting emotionally "swept away" by something, which dampens the ability to think clearly and logically. When deciding ideology, or picking sides, be very careful that you don't get "swept away". Many ideologies are designed to do exactly this. Tribalism feeds on the egoism from getting emotionally swept away by certain narratives.

I think this is the essence of the purpose of meditation, to practice not being swept away by one's thoughts or emotions, and building a firm place to stand and observe the mind. Finding stable footing in that neutral mental space that remains, after thoughts and emotions are let go and don't arise as often. Seeing the quiet gaps between thoughts, after one has ended, and before the next one arises.

This is the same mental space that one must inhabit to make big decisions with clarity. This is why a lot of meditators say that the mindset cultivated through meditation is actually a 24/7 thing, and doesn't just happen when you're sitting in a special pose on a cushion.

Being able to notice when you yourself get "swept away" by a story or mini-game builds mental resiliency and strength, and helps you become more aware of the stillness when you're not being swept away by anything. And then when something comes along that does sweep you away, you can recognize it quickly, and gain your mental footing again and begin making clear decisions. Having this discerning ability can be very useful in times of crisis, but also useful in times of peace.

Every time you ignore something that isn't worth paying attention to, it's like doing 1 pushup. Imagine how powerful your mind would be if you honed it to only thought about the things that truly mattered to you. Imagine what your actions would be if your mind was that focused and clear, and unencumbered with narratives and rid of pointless emotions. And all you have to do, is not do something! Action through inaction. Can you imagine having a mind like this?

So don't get "swept away" by the thoughts and feelings that pass through your mind. They are like people walking by on the street. You don't have to talk to everyone you see. Just let them pass on by and pay them no mind.