In this article, I would like to offer a method on how to simplify your life. Please keep in mind that this is only a method. I am not offering a belief system, only a simple way to live life.
In order to apply this method, one has to drop all common knowledge, logic, and assumptions about life. Once all these are dropped (which is easier to do then you might imagine), it allows a way of being that is simple, wondrous, curious, new, and fresh.
Leaving all common knowledge, logic, and assumptions about life behind: what do you have left? What can you know for sure without a doubt? That you exist in this moment now, right?
Of course you can have all kinds of theories, but all those are just concept about what this moment is and what it's about. Let's drop all those concepts too. Let's apply this method by realizing that this moment right now is your experience... period. You are consciously aware of this moment and that's all you can know without bringing up any other concepts about it.
There could be all kinds of things arising in this moment: ideas, thoughts, emotions, forms, etc.. without labeling what these things mean, lets just be aware of them happening. Let's see them arise and fade away, as other things arise in there place. Simply just be aware of all the things happening in this moment.
For example, you may be having thoughts like "I have to get that done before I head back to work."... just be aware of that thought and observe it happening. Remind yourself that it's just a thought in this moment. Thoughts are just ideas happening in this moment.
For most people, they are not aware of witnessing their thoughts because they get lost inside the thoughts and follow the thoughts as they arise. In this way, they are not being the observer of their thoughts, they are being carried away by their thoughts. Using this method, you allow yourself to stay in the moment of being the observer of thoughts and everything around you.
Why is This Important
Now let me explain how being the observer of the moment as it arises, can serve you:
►1. It allows you to be 100% with anything and everything that arises. This is important because without noticing what is arising now, you may be repressing something that is causing you to suffer. In this article: "What In Your Life is Truly Real? Understanding the 'Spiritual Loop'" I offered a method on how this happens:
You can begin to get out of the trap of the 'spiritual loop' by using this method, but it's only a method.
Adding a Story to the Dream
Your dream (reality) is what it is. In other words, when you dream at night, then you are having a dream and there is nothing in that dream that is not the dream. It's just a dream that you are having, there is nothing to it, it's just a dream.
The dream only becomes complicated and you start to experience suffering, when you decide to add meaning to the dream itself. For example, let's say in your dream, you start feeling disappointed, well disappointment happens in dreams because that is part of the dream world. Disappointment is just happening, however, when you add a story to the disappointment, then the dream becomes more real.
For example, you might say "I am disappointed because of this character in my dream". Now, because you added a story and through this story it gave the dream the ability to be experienced as something real. Now instead of just having a dream, you empowered the dream. Yet not only did you empower the dream but you empowered the character in your dream and disempowered yourself by allowing that dream character to be the position/identity of your disappointment.
All of this dream (reality) is being produced in the manner described above.
How Positions/Identities Are Formed
The only way to put someone else in a position of identifying them as being the source of your experience, is by repressing the position/identity in yourself.
For example, disappointment happens, but when you feel that the disappointment is bad and shouldn't be experienced, then you can't fully be with the disappointment. Disappointment arises then it falls away. It will never fall way if you don't allow yourself to experience it, in fact it will keep showing up as everybody else in your dream.
In other words, when you don't allow disappointment to exist, then you suppress it and now because it's suppressed, it appears as if everybody in your experience is the cause of disappointment. All the dream is showing you, is that the story you added to the dream characters is false, it's about your dream, what are you suppressing? What are you hiding from experiencing?
When the dream is seen through, this becomes a very simple way of living and staying in the moment of now becomes the base of everything because only in the now is when you can catch the stories before they are played out.
Adding a Story to the Dream
Your dream (reality) is what it is. In other words, when you dream at night, then you are having a dream and there is nothing in that dream that is not the dream. It's just a dream that you are having, there is nothing to it, it's just a dream.
The dream only becomes complicated and you start to experience suffering, when you decide to add meaning to the dream itself. For example, let's say in your dream, you start feeling disappointed, well disappointment happens in dreams because that is part of the dream world. Disappointment is just happening, however, when you add a story to the disappointment, then the dream becomes more real.
For example, you might say "I am disappointed because of this character in my dream". Now, because you added a story and through this story it gave the dream the ability to be experienced as something real. Now instead of just having a dream, you empowered the dream. Yet not only did you empower the dream but you empowered the character in your dream and disempowered yourself by allowing that dream character to be the position/identity of your disappointment.
All of this dream (reality) is being produced in the manner described above.
How Positions/Identities Are Formed
The only way to put someone else in a position of identifying them as being the source of your experience, is by repressing the position/identity in yourself.
For example, disappointment happens, but when you feel that the disappointment is bad and shouldn't be experienced, then you can't fully be with the disappointment. Disappointment arises then it falls away. It will never fall way if you don't allow yourself to experience it, in fact it will keep showing up as everybody else in your dream.
In other words, when you don't allow disappointment to exist, then you suppress it and now because it's suppressed, it appears as if everybody in your experience is the cause of disappointment. All the dream is showing you, is that the story you added to the dream characters is false, it's about your dream, what are you suppressing? What are you hiding from experiencing?
When the dream is seen through, this becomes a very simple way of living and staying in the moment of now becomes the base of everything because only in the now is when you can catch the stories before they are played out.
►2. When you allow whatever is happening to happen, then you can fully embrace whatever it is. In other words, the reason people don't desire to experience sadness, is because they have an idea of the memory related to happiness and would rather experience that.
When you are experiencing sadness, a thought comes in and says "Happiness is better, don't experience this sadness.". When you are the observer of this moment, then you notice that thought, but you realize it's only an idea arising in the moment. You don't follow that idea because it's just an idea, just the imagination of a thought.
If in this moment you are experiencing sadness, it's because in this moment, that's what is arising. There is nothing else but sadness and everything else is only an idea, therefore you're liberated to allow whatever is happening. Nothing else could happen or something else would have arose. You can not experience happiness when sadness is happening. The only way to move on and allow something else to arise in the next moment, is to allow whatever is arising right now to happen.
►3. In the moment something arises and you allow it to happen, there is a release from everything else. In this release, whatever is happening right now feels good since it's the only thing there is.
In other words, when all the ideas about everything is dropped, then whatever is happening is fully allowed and fully experienced. When things are fully experience, it feels good, whatever it may be because it's all you know in the moment. There are no other concepts getting in the way to cloud whatever is happening to happen.
For example, let's imagine that you woke up on an island with no memory of anything. All you know for sure, is that you're aware. You have no memories of other people, what you look like, no concepts or ideas about anything. The feeling of being lonely may arise but you have no idea or concept to compare it to. You have no idea what it means to be lonely because you don't remember what it's like to be in the company of others. For all you know, you are all that exists and all that will ever exist.
Therefore loneliness is just a feeling that arises, but you don't know any opposite feeling to loneliness, so you let the feeling of being lonely, be what it is. You attach no meaning or ideas to being lonely because you don't know what the feeling means.
Living in the moment is very much like this since every opposite idea that appears, is seen as only an idea and nothing more. Just like the idea of loneliness when no opposite is known. Since there is no opposite being known, then what you are experiencing can't be known as something with meaning. What does it mean to be lonely, when that's all you know? You don't know what it means to be lonely if that's all you ever had. It's just something that arises in the moment.
►4. Everything becomes new, fresh, full of wonder, mysterious, and curiously there. Much like a child. To children everything is new and fresh in the moment. Nothing is ever old or routine, because they don't pretend like they know something. Everything is new and exciting because they don't claim and stick to ideas about anything.
Live in the moment and you will rediscover your childlike wonder, everything will be a mystery that doesn't need to be solved. Everything will be experienced as wonderful, even if something like sadness.
Children get over sadness rather quickly because they don't see it as a bad thing (until they are taught that it's bad and shouldn't be experienced). Every-time sadness arises, children allow themselves to experience it, then they are off experiencing something else. They don't care what is arising. Whatever is arising for children, it's acceptable and allowed (usually around age two, is when the conditioning starts to take place).
►5. When living in now, you can find contentment with whatever is arising. There is tremendous bliss (inner peacefulness) in every moment of now because nothing else exists. You don't have to search or seek for something better. There is no worry about the future or resentment to the past since those are seen as imaginative ideas that don't exist in the now.
You will understand the meaning of freedom, as meaning nothing except fully being present in whatever this moment brings. All tasks will be seen as fresh and new, chores become arts of existing as what is happening. All things no matter how mundane or boring the idea may be, arise as the only thing in the existence of now and therefore you are fully engaged and fully accepting.
For example, let's say you are washing dishes. While being in the present, you only have to wash one dish. There is no looking at the stack of dishes and seeing a big pile that you have to get through (that is the idea of the future). In every moment it's only one dish. You are only ever washing one dish.
Your focus is on your breathing, your heartbeat, the feel of the water and soap on your hands, the feel of the textured cloth as you glide it over the smoothness of the dish, the sight of the bubbles popping, the sound of the water rushing out into the sink as you rinse the dish, the squeaky clean feel as you dry it off, the view out the kitchen window, the lovely sight of everything you see. The gorgeous song the birds sing. The wonderful sense of being alive.
It all becomes the dance of life in the moment. It all becomes a meditation of all the things in the moment of now. A rhythm and harmony with all that is happening. A going with the flow of what is, as it arises. A deep gratitude with what is there now. An unspeakable beauty of being one with whatever is.
►6. When you fully embrace the moment, you will notice opportunities that can only been seen while fully engaged in the present. Opportunities that inspire new ways of being. Opportunities of creativity and inventions that could not be seen otherwise. Opportunities that seem so simple and obvious, but have the potential to change your world. Opportunities that invite you to things that can not be put into words. Opportunities that most would consider impossible. Life changing opportunities.
►7. When you are completely present, you will start to notice that all the things you labeled became non-important, the instant you labeled them. For example, take a look at the moon, a tree, your hand. Really look at it and observe it, see it as if you are looking at it for the first time. You will notice that it's not just a label, but it's much more. It's something that can't be defined by mere words (labels) alone.
When you truly are present, all things turn into a magical experience since all labels, ideas, thoughts, and concepts become less important. They are recognized as nothing more than a way of not fully seeing something. People want to find something else that can be label magnificent. Yet, everything is magnificent; the glory and mundane alike. This is seen once you fully accept things as they are, without giving it a meaning (a label). Labels cause the meaningful, to become meaningless.
Mindless
Being present is to become mindless, or as I like to say: I don't mind. Don't let the mind categorize things into a label. Just don't mind the mind. That is to say: don't mind what is happening.
This is actually a very natural and simple way of being. Once you give it a try, you will notice how easy it is to apply. The more you do it, the more you will notice the list above becoming part of your experience.
Being Aware
All it takes is a simple noticing of what is happening:
- Every-time you notice you are losing the moment by being lost in the moment of thoughts, that awareness brings you right back to the present.
- Every-time you have music playing and you observe that you are not really listening to it, that observing brings you right back to the now.
- Every-time you are having a conversation with someone and you see that you are not listening, that seeing brings you right back to the moment.
- Every-time you are doing a task and you witness that you are not fully engaging with what you are doing, that witnessing brings you back to what is happening.
- Every-time you are aware that you are not being completely here, that awareness brings you right back to whatever is arising.
You are a conscious being and it's just a natural thing to be conscious of this. This is all there is. This right now.
►Create A Link