Where do thoughts come from?

Think about it. Ok, where did that thought come from? It pops into your head, right? But from where?

Some people probably believe we can control our thoughts, but how can we do that if we don’t know where they come from. How do they come into existence? Why is it so sudden?

My experience of the process is that think along, and I have no idea what I’m going to say next, but there’s always another word or another thought that follows on, without even thinking about it. I might struggle for a word, but the thought is always there, and I know not from where.

It doesn’t feel like I’m doing any work. The thoughts are just there. Gratis. Like pretzels in the bar during happy hour.

I’m sure we could go into some scientific explanation, and that’s fine, but I want to go into other places—like what does thinking feel like? How do you experience it? Is it an effort? Do you feel like you are doing something? Or is it nothing—like received wisdom from God?