放下情緒，不如放下「產生情緒的認知」Letting Go of Emotion Starts with Letting Go of the Perception That Creates It

你被你的認知蒙蔽

我過去一直主張：要用正念直面情緒。I used to believe that mindfulness was about facing emotions directly.

的確，當我們正念地感受情緒時，它會慢慢下降，而認知會隨之上升。And yes — when you stay present with your emotions, they eventually soften, and your awareness expands.

但老實說，這個過程並不輕鬆。But let’s be honest — this process isn’t easy.

後來我才逐漸意識到，情緒的根源並不是情緒本身，而是「我們的認知」。Eventually, I realized: the source of emotion is not emotion itself — it’s perception.

我們之所以會感到氣憤、委屈，往往是因為我們的認知告訴自己：「這件事不公平」、「這樣的評論對我不公」、「這個情境傷害了我。」We feel anger or injustice because our mind says:“This is unfair.” “This comment shouldn’t be made.” “I don’t deserve this situation.”

如果，我們不只是直面情緒，而是直面這個認知本身，甚至選擇放下它，就等於切斷了情緒的根源。If, instead of only facing the emotion, we face and release the perception itself, we cut off the root that fuels the emotion.

這聽起來確實違反人性。因為認知是基於我們所看到、聽到、感受到的「事實」。This sounds counterintuitive — after all, perception is based on what we see, hear, and feel as “facts.”

但事實上，我們所感知到的，真的等於事實嗎？But here’s the truth: are our perceptions really reality? Not necessarily.

佛家稱之為「放下我執」：當我們執著於「我的判斷才是對的」、「我的感受就是事實」，我們便會被認知牽著走。In Buddhism, this is called letting go of the self-view — when we cling to “my judgment is correct” or “my feelings are the truth,” we become enslaved by perception.

而如果這份認知本身不一定正確，那麼它所衍生出的所有負面情緒，也就變得沒有意義。And if that perception isn’t necessarily true, then the negative emotions it generates are meaningless suffering.

有人會問：「那放棄認知，我是不是就失去自我了？」Some might ask: “If I let go of my perception, won’t I lose myself?”

恰恰相反，你會得到更多自由。On the contrary, you gain more freedom.

首先，當你透過正念切斷那個會產生負面情緒的認知，你就直接切除了情緒的來源，內心自然平靜。First, by using mindfulness to release the perception that feeds negative emotion, you directly remove its source — and peace follows.

其次，在這種平靜下，你的言行會更客觀、更成熟，讓人感受到你的雅量與可靠。Second, from that peace, your actions become more balanced and wise — people see you as grounded and trustworthy.

最後，你會更容易「讓事件過去」。因為事件總會過去，而過不去的，其實是心情。Finally, you learn to let things go — because events always pass, but unprocessed feelings do not.

當你學會這樣「切除」，你就不再只是管理情緒，而是從根本上解放自己。When you learn to “cut” this way, you’re no longer just managing emotions — you’re liberating yourself from them.

Emotion is not the problem. Your attachment to perception is.問題從來不是情緒，而是你對「認知」的執著。