Are we the author of our thoughts?

Do we manufacture our thoughts?

If you have done any meditation on the breath, you might be all too aware of the overwhelming flood of thoughts that arise when all you are trying to do is concentrate on the sensations of breathing. “You” are witnessing these thoughts, and may have felt frustrated by them, but if they are just arising in your consciousness without deliberate effort, are we really the author of these thoughts?

Sure, they are the product of our brains, but there are other things that our brains are tasked with (autonomic nervous system, for example), which are also largely involuntary. We don’t seem to take pride in having powered through another day by beating our hearts and breathing. But we do seem to take pride in or feel in some that we are the author of thoughts that just pop into consciousness.