Hi there,

In the chapter on practical instructions, there is a section on distracting thoughts. When you find yourself thinking, the guidance is to note it as "thinking, thinking" etc.

I might have missed something but dont understand the significance (if any) of double noting in this case (and in any other scenarios)?

​​​​​​​Many thanks

I don't have the book, but it may be simply a convention based on how many distracting thoughts we normally have.  I.e. you would have a distracting thought and note thinking, have another thought and note thinking (again), etc.  There's no practical reason to actually note the same thought twice.  ;)

Yeah saying the word twice is optional, but it sort of conveys "oh, that's thinking, and it is just an experience of thinking". In other words, you're sort of noticing it and then confirming what you noticed. I found saying it twice, slowly, was helpful. "Thinking... thinking."

The point of noting distractions is a) to notice that you got distracted and b) to return to the primary object (the breath) as quickly as possible. So you should note each distraction as many times as is necessary for it to pass and your attention to return to the breath. The text makes this clear, e.g. 'A mental vision must be noted on each occurrence of its appearance until it passes away.' You should be aiming to get to a place where all sensations pass away as soon as they arise (A&P) ...

It's just to be more thorough.

The noting/labeling hack is used to stay on target and not wander off into lala land. The way it works is to keep up a tempo as sensations happen such that if the tempo stops you will notice that and get back to work noticing and then labeling. This hack is training wheels until you can just notice without wandering into stories. Use the hack as needed but use it well and then drop it if your in a spot where you dont need it
Good luck,
​​​​​​​~D