There is a common idea in eastern thought that says “you are not the voice of the mind—you are the one who hears it.” as stated by Michael Singer. This wasn’t a new idea when he said it and is very common in mindfulness teachings, Zen Buddhism, Yoga, and other esoteric lessons toward enlightenment.
When you stop to think about it. When someone says, “You are not the thoughts racing through your mind, you are the one who observes those thoughts.” It’s kind of mind blowing. You dance around the idea, “Am I the voice?”, “Am I the hearer?” What the heck is happening?
Thoughts like these, and other koan-type-statements which are the focus of zen traditions, are designed just for that type of mental gymnastics. They create a sense of awe. The sound of one hand clapping sort of thought paths. The blankness of a statement or question that has no end.
However, in this case humans happen to have a full understanding of the actual answer.
The experience of hearing a voice in your head is known as “inner speech” or “self-talk.” It’s a normal part of human experience and is thought to be a way that we communicate with ourselves, organize our thoughts, and plan our actions.
When you hear the voice in your head, it’s not necessarily someone else who is listening. It’s more likely that you are both the speaker and the listener. In other words, you are the one generating the inner speech, and you are also the one perceiving it.
Some researchers have suggested that inner speech is a way that we simulate conversation with others, or that it’s a way that we use language to organize our thoughts and actions. Others have suggested that it’s a way that we regulate our emotions or focus our attention.
Overall, the experience of hearing a voice in your head is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon, and it likely involves multiple cognitive processes and brain regions. Are brain is that amazing!
Cognitive processes that are thought to be involved in generating the voice in your head. Here are a few:
- Language production: One of the key cognitive processes involved in generating the voice in your head is language production. This involves activating the neural networks that are responsible for producing and understanding language. When you generate inner speech, you are essentially using the same cognitive processes that you would use to speak out loud, but without actually moving your vocal cords.
- Working memory: Another important cognitive process involved in generating inner speech is working memory. Working memory is the system that allows us to temporarily hold and manipulate information in our minds. When you generate inner speech, you are using working memory to hold the words and phrases that you are thinking about.
- Attention: Attention is another important cognitive process involved in generating inner speech. When you focus your attention on a particular task or idea, you are more likely to generate inner speech related to that task or idea. Conversely, if your attention is distracted, your inner speech may be more scattered or unfocused.
- Self-awareness: Finally, self-awareness is an important cognitive process that is involved in generating the voice in your head. When you generate inner speech, you are essentially talking to yourself, and this requires a certain level of self-awareness. Self-awareness allows you to reflect on your own thoughts and feelings, and to monitor and regulate your own behavior.
These are just a few of the cognitive processes that are thought to be involved in generating the voice in your head. The experience of inner speech is likely to be a complex interplay of multiple cognitive processes, and researchers are still working to fully understand how these processes work together to produce this phenomenon.
So am I the observer and the observed? Yes, when you hear the voice in your head, you are both the observer and the perceiver. In other words, you are the one generating the inner speech, and you are also the one who is aware of and perceiving that speech.
This is because inner speech is a self-generated experience, meaning that it arises from within your own mind. Unlike external speech, which involves speaking out loud and perceiving the sounds that you produce, inner speech involves generating the sounds internally and perceiving them within your own mind.
As a result, when you generate inner speech, you are both the speaker and the listener. You are the one producing the words and phrases, and you are also the one who is perceiving and experiencing those words and phrases.
It’s worth noting, however, that the experience of inner speech can vary from person to person. Some people may experience their inner speech as more like a conversation with a separate “voice,” while others may experience it more as a kind of silent thinking. Regardless of how you experience your inner speech, though, you are likely both the observer and the perceiver of that experience.