Here
Padmini42
Explorer
"Being in the here and the now without looking to the past or future for answers.."
This is what some Buddhist referring to meditation as, purely existing the the moment though both mind and heart, not attempting to shift or control anything but to experience. To do so, one is truly alive.
This can be difficult in western society to even think of, let alone actively participate in but its not impossible to master. Now I will not declare myself a complete master of meditation but I can tell you once to engage in it actively its an amazing experience, all the little bothers of the world almost melt away and let your stressed muscles loose. While this doesn't make any problems in the synthetic waking world go away it does put them into perspective, so we see them in ways that we think "okay I can handle this" or "These things happen"
You start observing and experiencing the beautiful moments of the now.
actively breathing, actively relaxing the body and actively living in the moment.
It you are hungry, eat. If you are sad, then cry. But do it as you are now, not as you were or will be.
This is freeing to both the stressed body and mind.
Experience your breath.
Comments
beautiful
The perfect companion after a mindfulness session:
_"Do not pursue the past.
Do not lose yourself in the future.
The past no longer is.
The future has not yet come.
Looking deeply at life as it is
in the very here and now,
the practitioner dwells
in stability and freedom.
We must be diligent today.
To wait until tomorrow is too late.
Death comes unexpectedly.
How can we bargain with it?
The sage calls a person who knows
how to dwell in mindfulness
night and day
'one who knows
the better way to live alone.'"_
(Excerpt from the "Bhaddekaratta Sutta" - Thich Nhat Hanh translation)
Where and when do you feel your breath or body sensations if not right here and right this moment (touching the floor).
All that is happening to your body is happening right here ....... notice that!
You can never go anywhere since wherever you are, it is always here. You can never get there!
And then one has to learn to take that 'mindful being here' off the cushion and out and about with you everywhere.
LA LA LA LA LA
Yep.
Your 'meditative' approach is explored here
http://www.thebuddhadharma.com/web-archive/2012/11/8/you-are-already-enlightened.html
Thanks @lobster for that - Iyou have given me a label: 'made in china'
Maybe, being in the now means we can look at the past and future from the present and still be able to recognise each of them.
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My personal opinion is that we have that choice; but more importantly, we also have the opportunity to evaluate whether such an exercise has value, or significance.
We all have memories; but they are distorted by the passing of time. The memories we have cannot be said, hand-on-heart, to be accurate depictions of what happened in the past.
We none of us have fore-vision, so the future is an unknown.
The best way to be in the 'now' - is to be in the Now.
That is in and of itself, a precious privilege all of its own.
We should relish it, and fully Realise its value.