A Call to Presence

In Truth there is no life
outside this moment.
-Leonard Jacobson

A Call to Presence

By: Leonard Jacobson

To be fully awake and enlightened simply means to be fully present in the moment of now. To be present is the simplest thing. It is your natural state.

Every moment, you have a choice. Will you be present in the truth and reality of this moment or will you allow yourself to be seduced into the world of the mind? All thoughts take you out of the present moment. And then if you believe in those thoughts, which most of us do, you get lost in the world of the mind.

For most of us, we have become so habituated to thinking, that thoughts never end. They have a life of their own. We are not even choosing to think. Thinking is happening all by itself and we are simply pulled from one thought to another, never really experiencing the sacredness of this moment.

The present moment is free of memories of the past and imaginings into the future. And so the pain and limitations of the past magically disappear when you are present. Anxiety about the future also disappears. You are just here now, fully present in this moment. When you are fully present, your inner experience is one of peace, love, acceptance, power, truth and compassion. Separation and fear dissolve. You exist within Oneness.

When you bring yourself fully present, thoughts stop and your mind falls silent. But there is an even deeper level of silence waiting to emerge. As your mind becomes silent, an inner door is opened, allowing an infinite and eternal silence to emerge. This infinite and eternal silence is the very essence of your Being. It is your true nature. It is the essence of all existence. It is the eternal silent presence of pure consciousness. It is the "I AM" of you. It is that dimension of you that exists in Oneness with all that is. It is your Buddha nature. It is awakened man. It is awakened woman.

What is NOW?

Sunset over the Gulf of Mexico, December 2007


Quote of the month:
Make each moment
an occasion to live
deeply,
happily, 
in Peace.
- Thich Nhat Hanh

What is NOW?  What is the Present?

I looked up "now" in the dictionary.  It says, "the present time or moment"...... so I had that much already!

Think of every moment leading up to this moment in time..... your birth, your first day of school, followed by middle and high school, what you did on your vacation last summer, what you had for dinner last night.... all of that is past.


Every moment that has not yet happened, that is future.  What you will eat for lunch tomorrow, how you will celebrate the New Year for 2012, where you will live in the year 2020.  


Try to imagine, just for a moment, that both of these - your past and future - do not exist...... 


Can you imagine it? 


What we are left with is NOW. 


Let's take it a step further.  In reality the past is over and not here in this moment.  What you had for dinner last night is not here in front of you.  The only way to access the past is to go into our minds, our memory, and think about it... remember it.  


Further, in reality the future has not happened yet.  The weatherman may make a prediction as to what it will be like tomorrow, but it is only that - a prediction or a guess.  You may make plans for your upcoming holiday or vacation, but it is not here yet.  The only way to access the future is to go into our imaginations and think about what it might be like. 


So, I am going to suggest something that may initially sound somewhat shocking.... but try to sit with it for a moment.  The reality is that the past and future DON'T EXIST!  All we ever have is right NOW!  


If that is the case, why do so many of us (myself included) act as if we are in the past or future?  Some planning for the future is necessary.  To paraphrase Marianne Williamson.... don't just show up at the airport and expect there will be a seat for you, on the plane where you want to go!  But many of us get lost in the future, like living for the weekend or looking forward to a special event, such as a vacation, to the exclusion of where you are in the moment.  


Many of us often act from the past as well.  Have you ever had a heated exchange with someone only to recount it over and over in your head for the next hour, or day or week... or longer.... and all the lucky people in your life also usually get to re-live it again with you!  We've all done that at some time in our lives!


I'll share an example from my own life. In 11th grade, I was a passenger in the front seat of a car that was in an accident.  My head hit and broke the windshield (I can hear some of you saying - "Oh, that explains a lot!")  ; )  My point is that to this day, I am still a very nervous passenger because of that accident nearly 30 years ago!  How can something that happened so many years in the past have such an influence on me NOW?  If I could let it be in the past, it would be over, right? 


My simple suggestion this month is to see how often you can "catch" yourself in the past or in the future.  When you do, do not give yourself a hard time, simply remind yourself that all we really ever have is right HERE, right NOW.  


To quote from The Peaceful Warrior, 
Socrates:  Where are you? 
Dan Millman:  Here. 
Socrates: What time is it? 
Dan Millman:  Now. 


It is always that way! 


As always, I would love to hear your thoughts.  Feel free to leave them in the "comments" section below. 


In a few days, I'll post some related writings from Leonard Jacobson on being Present.  


To read last month's post called I Got a Worm for my Birthday.... click here. 


Until then.... 
Keep it simple! 
Penelope

Now I'd like to.....

Read the post on Are you Breathing?

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Read the post on Whole and Complete

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Do a mini - meditation click here.......


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Watch One Minute in the Waves at Sunset.... click here!