On one retreat a participant could not get his girlfriend off his mind. Thoughts of her kept rising up while he practiced, so he mumbled something about her being a devil. The more he tried to push her away, the more difficult his meditation became. In an interview I gave him the solution, a simple method: "Just repeat to yourself, 'I'm thinking of my girlfriend, I'm thinking of my girlfriend.'" The method worked and thoughts of his girlfriend abated.
— Master Sheng-yen, Complete Enlightenment