Anxiety? Call yourself!

The English word ‘anxiety’ comes from a Latin root which means narrowing down, to constrict, to strangle. The experience of anxiety is a condition known to mankind from time immemorial. In modern times it presents a major challenge to the urban population around the globe.

When you are bogged down by anxiety, what do you do? Try to repress it, take a pill, drown it in drink, smoke it away or, worse, get some anxiety-related disorder? The more you try alternatives, the more you get caught up in anxiety. Anxiety cannot be removed by the mind, because it is the mind that creates it.

Zen monks have unusual ways of solving problems. They look at the problem from the enlightened space of the no-mind. This Zen story will provide insight, which could be a
cure as well: Bokuju, a Zen master, lived alone in a cave. He would sometimes say his own name out loud: “Bokuju” and then answer: “Yes, I am here.” His disciples asked him why he did that and he replied, “Whenever I get into thinking, I have to remember to be alert, and so I call my own name: Bokuju. The moment I do that, and say, ‘Yes, I am here’, the thinking disappears.”

Relating this story, Osho says that this can be a wonderful cure to anxiety. Just as Bokuju tried to wake himself by calling his own name, you can try calling yourself. When you feel deep anxiety, just say your name out loud and then reply, “Yes, I am here”. Feel the difference - the moment you call yourself, there is a jerk. The continuous flow of thinking is interrupted. Anxiety will vanish. At least for a moment, you will have a glimpse beyond the clouds.

Once you know that if you become alert, anxiety disappears; you have come to a deep understanding of your own self and the mechanism of your inner working. Make anxiety a step to meditation.