Inner dialogue

Analytic thinking, discursive thinking, examination, investigation, and inner back-and-forth discussion that occur in the mind, often in an automatic manner.

One meditation technique uses inner talk of a single simple topic such as “Breathing in, I am aware that I am breathing in, breathing out, I am aware that I am breathing out” to eliminate the habit of inner dialogue.

The second stage of samādhi achieved by the Buddha on his way to enlightenment is “samādhi without inner talk and inner dialogue”.

P & S: vicāra, V: tứ