7 Ways To Live In The Present Spiritual Way

When someone else’s or your own mind is mean to you and you feel hurt, notice that it’s not because of the words they said but due to automatic conditioned mental-emotional interpretation of those words and the extent to which you identify with it. Even if the words and/or actions were intended to hurt or reaction seems justified. “There’s nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so. " William Shakespeare. Deeply realize that you are not your conditioned mind (thoughts, reactions, emotions and mental patterns) or Ego or incessant ‘voice in the head’ but the sacred Knowing or awareness or observer that is aware of them[2] X Research source A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 152 . That’s when Ego, false self, begins to dissolve. It’s because when you recognize false as false, it dissolves. Read Dissolve the Ego (According to Eckhart Tolle’s Teachings) for more depth. It is true that words have great power to put hypnotic spells on you, but it’s only because you see yourself as no more than name, labels and form, which are ultimately thoughts in your mind. Unaware of your formless essence. [3] X Research source A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 67 . Often ask questions like “Who’s talking here? Me or the voice in head”, “Do I need to be lost in thoughts?”, “Who am I?”, “Am I these thoughts, reactions and emotions?” etc. Feel the inner body for answer. If you tried to understand intellectually or ask the mind, you will not find a true answer because thought (mind) by its very nature is limited, can at most show you the relative truth and point to the absolute truth.

If you look more deeply, on a fundamental level, it’s all identification with thoughts and emotions. [4] X Research source A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 38 As all outer forms, your perception of your body, your possessions, achievements, personality, life situations, conditions, culture, stories, beliefs and so on are ultimately thoughts or images in your mind that are attached to the ‘I’ thought and its other forms, contributing towards your illusory sense of self. This ‘I’ thought, which is Ego created, is what you equate yourself with. In other words, you see yourself as no more than an ‘I’ thought, which is a mental concept, and what it identifies with, and thus forget your essential nature that is the infinite awareness that you are beyond your ephemeral name and form (physical and psychological). For example: Your house becomes a thought form in your head and gets attached to primordial ‘I’ or ‘my’ thought forms and becomes part of Egoic self. This identification or attachment says ‘I have a house’ or ‘my house’. Remove the ‘house’ thought from primordial ‘I’ or ‘my’ or ‘mine’ thought forms or concepts and this would cause immense suffering. Even if the house is in a dire condition and better to get rid of. Another example: Your illness may become a story in your head that says something like “I have been suffering from migraines for last 2 years” and become part of your sense of self. When this happens, rather than taking action to remediate the illness or accept it, you would prefer to complain about it, run mental movies, feel self pity etc. because they strengthen your false ‘sense of self’ or label of being an ill person. Also, identification with the story or idea of illness actually make you suffer more than the actual illness. None of that comes and goes is you. Who are you then? The formless awareness, that is aware of what comes and goes (thoughts, emotions, conditions, sensations, objects, these words, people, situations etc. ) in the Now. Without that awareness there will be no perception or experience. “The Master gives himself up to whatever the moment brings. He knows that he is going to die, and he has nothing left to hold on to; no illusions in his mind, no resistances in his body. " Tao Te Ching.

Since Ego is based on identification with form, so it constantly feels like it’s under threat because deep down it knows that all forms are transient and fraught to collapse or dissolve at anytime. As a result fear and desire become primary motivating forces of the Ego. This is also one of the reasons why mind continuously covers up the Now with compulsive thinking and seeks sensory and sexual pleasures, psychological gratifications, experiences and things of this world, one after another, with an unconscious expectation that they will fulfill it. Only the space of consciousness or awareness, where all forms come and go, undergoes no change. You are that ‘space of awareness’ where all things and events come and go. For more depth read Know Your True Self and Become Mentally Flexible. “There was something formless and perfect before the universe was born. It is serene. Empty. Solitary. Unchanging. Infinite. Eternally present. It is the mother of the universe. " Tao Te Ching. Dis-identification or detachment from forms does not mean to relinquish possessions, relationships, job etc. and live in woods or something. Which, most likely, will not work because Ego, which is clever and is based on identification with forms, will quickly identify with the mental image of you as a “spiritual person” or “saint” who relinquished everything. Therefore it is not a surprise to see some “spiritual” people having bigger egos than some millionaires. Dis-identification, in this context, actually means to truly see and realize the fleeting and impermanent nature of all relationships and forms (including thoughts, emotions and experiences), and world cannot give you long lasting fulfillment or identity. That’s when things or forms naturally lose their seriousness and significance that they don’t have because you don’t seek yourself in them. Their passing nature is allowed to be. When craving or attachment with forms dissolves, you honor and enjoy them even more. Read Dissolve the Ego (According to Eckhart Tolle’s Teachings) for more depth.

To evolve into the next stage of conscious evolution and ensure our survival, ego must be dissolved. Which does not require any doing but an alert seeing. It’s because seeing is freeing yourself from the dysfunction of Ego. “Recognizing your own insanity is the arising of sanity. This is also the greatest discovery of humanity. " Eckhart Tolle. That’s also what Nisargadatta Maharaj pointed to when he said “Meditation means recognizing the false as false. This must go on all the time. " The ‘false’ in this context is the Ego (conditioned thoughts, patterns, reactions and emotions) in you.

There is a saying in Zen: All that arises, passes away. This means that you cannot stop the flow of life. So practice to accept whatever arises in the Now, as if you have chosen it, without any judgment or labels. [7] X Research source Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 67 . In case the judgment, labels or resistance arise, allow them to be because they are all ultimately conditioned thoughts, reactions and emotions. This doesn’t mean you can’t take action or use words, if needed. As you will read later. If you can’t accept the outer form of the moment then bring inner acceptance to incessant and compulsive thoughts, reactions, mental patterns and emotions that arise in the Now in response to anything (situations, conditions, people, mental patterns, thoughts etc. ). That’s surrender. As you will read later. There’s great strength in surrender because in that state, you live in oneness with life and outer circumstances and inner conditions lose their power over you. That’s what J. Krishnamurti meant when he said “Do you want to know my secret? I don’t mind what happens. " See if you can detect these resistive patterns (unconscious or conscious) within yourself. Content could be different but the underlying energy and mechanism is of the Ego which is based on [[Dissolve the Ego (According to Eckhart Tolle’s Teachings)|resistance to ‘what is’. This is because Egos differ only on the surface, deep down they are all the same. [8] X Research source Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 82 “Why did I get a bad grade?” It’s not going to change the grade and more likely to make you suffer. It’s because you are resisting what is; the fact of the moment. As an experiment, why not accept ‘what is’ and/or have fun with it? Since resistance has not worked for you so far. For example: You can say something like “My teacher returned my test paper with a McDonald’s job application stapled to it” in a fun manner. Having fun with what life throws at you is also a form of acceptance. Of course, you cannot have fun with everything in life because things go wrong often. That’s when Surrender or inner acceptance needs to be practiced. “I don’t have to suffer” or “I don’t want to be where I am. May be my resentment will dissolve this life situation”. Which is actually delusional and mad because resentment or resistance or arguing with ‘what-is’ keep the undesirable thoughts and situation in place, and makes you and others unhappy. Resistive negative thoughts (unconscious or conscious) offer justification for your unhappiness but in reality cause it. “Why are there so many ups and downs in my life?” Do you think resistance is going to change the situation? In fact, resistance makes you suffer even more than the original cause[9] X Research source Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 67 , strengthens the ego and sense of separation with others, when there is none. True acceptance comes when you don’t ask “Why is this happening to me?” because you live in alignment with the totality where all conditions, forms and events are interconnected[10] X Research source Stillness Speaks, Eckhart Tolle, Pg 25 . “Behind every seemingly bad situation, person or condition lies concealed a deeper good, which reveals itself to you only through inner acceptance of what is. " Eckhart Tolle.

This pointer can also be misinterpreted as your mind may ask “So how can I bring inner acceptance?” or “What does ‘become one with ‘what is’ means?” etc. and come up with mental interpretations or concepts or answers on the basis of its past conditioning and knowledge. These would become your definition of mentioned pointers. That is to say clever mind will create more constructs to identify with, to ensure its survival. Even suppressing content or using will power or trying or concept of ’negating all concepts’ etc. , in an attempt to dissolve the Ego are Ego’s strategies to keep you trapped in the prison of thoughts and emotions. Its because problems of the mind cannot be solved at the level of mind. Only recognizing yourself as the awareness behind content can free you from Ego created suffering and dream of form. Awareness is true intelligence that is inseparable from universal intelligence. Although, if you are stuck in concepts then allow it to be, as being stuck can also become part of your spiritual journey. It’s because ‘flourishing’ of ‘being stuck’ has potential to eventually force you to disidentify from your mind and go beyond it. “If you want to get rid of something, allow it to flourish. " Tao Te Ching However, deeply realize that words or concepts or practices are no more than stepping stones to be left as quickly as possible. Again, Truth is beyond any words or forms. You are the Truth. Read Inhabit Your Inner Body More Deeply and Stay Rooted in Being for more depth.

If acceptance is not possible, then take action immediately to bring about a positive change to the situation. [13] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 151 . Or remove yourself from it, if possible. Either way no resistance. Take responsibility of your inner state now.

In essence you are formless consciousness and your primary purpose is to re-connect with it, and bring it into this world. Every other purpose, even if it is to create heaven on earth, is of the Ego. Read Know Your True Self for more depth.

Tao Te Ching pointed to this truth simply “Can you step back from your own mind and thus understand all things”. The word ‘orange’ isn’t orange. You can write essays or articles about orange but you won’t really know it until you taste it. In the same way, you conceptualize or label yourselves and others as no more than a finite body and name. Thus missing your essence entirely. This is no different than covering up the mystery with a label, which is a thought, to get a false sense of ‘I know’. Unaware of the divine sacredness within. “Everything, a bird, a tree, even a simple stone, and certainly a human being, is ultimately unknowable. This is because it has unfathomable depth. All we can perceive, experience, think about, is the surface layer of reality, less than the tip of an iceberg. " Eckhart Tolle. Just like when you taste orange, the word becomes less important, similarly once you had few or several experiences of awakening, realization of “one life” within and without, the world and pointers that point to the formless dimension become less important. It’s because you would have glimpsed a reality within that is not of this world (i. e beyond form, thoughts and words) and is infinitely more than anything that this world has to offer. Abiding in that state of ‘feeling realization’ or One Life is enlightenment. Which is your natural state of felt connectedness with Being and not some superhuman accomplishment that you need to work hard to attain. Here’s another sign post: Do you think combination of a few letters and words of a language can define the timeless and eternal Stillness that you are? On the level of form, it’s necessary to use beauty of language for easier verbalization and communication, but deeply realize that words at most can be pointers or signposts to the formless truth and never the Truth. [16] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 108 . Truth is beyond any words, belief systems and mythologies. Truth is within you. It’d be more accurate to say that you are the Truth. Jesus’s saying “I am the way and the truth and the life. " points to this. If you look elsewhere, that is to say in world, teachers, texts (words), experiences, you will not find it. Even if you feel the emanation of formless presence from a spiritual teacher or book or text, its the presence or Truth within you that recognizes that.

Feel your body from within. Can you feel the inner energy field of your body? Your arms, shoulders, face, head, neck, heart, chest, belly, pelvic region, legs, feet etc. ? This is your ever present being or life energy that animates your body and runs its incredibly complex functions in a synchronous manner[17] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 195, 173 . Never lose touch with it. It’s the stream to your true home. Focusing your attention on the inner energy field or space not only anchors you to the Now, but rapidly deepens and transforms your life, as through inner body you are forever one with Being; One consciousness underneath all forms. This practice also strengthens your immune system and slows down the ageing process. It’s because timeless presence dissolves the accumulated psychological time in you. [18] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 87 Watch or allow or accept the thoughts, reactions (verbal or non-verbal) and emotions to be. We have talked about this already. Become aware of sense perceptions and breathing. Give complete attention to anything you are doing in the Now. Read Stay Rooted in Being for more insight on these meditation practices.

This also helps you to be more non-reactive because when you are in the Now [20] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment. Vancouver, BC: Namaste Publishing, 1999. Page 64 , attention is withdrawn from reactive Egoic mind and remains in its unmanifested state. Which means more wisdom and intelligence during challenging situations, as you are connected to Being or inner space or unconditioned consciousness that is infinitely more powerful than mind. Plus, when situations go wrong, you don’t react to them but remain calm and at peace. Being is the ‘mind of God’ as Einstein pointed when he said “I want to know the mind of God, rest are details”. Read Stay Rooted in Being for more depth. Again, be very aware as the pointers like ‘Keep some attention within’ or ‘Accept what is’ etc. may become mental constructs or concepts. We spoke about this earlier.

Take action. Have you noticed, when you replace your worries, underlying unease or incessant thinking with a productive and/or constructive and/or a joyful task, their magnitude reduces drastically? It’s because this practice helps withdraw attention from the mind (psychological time) and brings you into present moment. And there’s no suffering in the Now because suffering needs time and a mind made story. On the other hand, when attention gets off from the task at hand, that is to say when you get lost in mind or psychological time, you feel uncertain and discontentment. It’s because by implication you are denying ‘what is’, the reality, which is always ‘Here and Now’. Read Watch the Mind (Meditation) for more on this. Deeply realize that you have never escaped and will never escape from the present moment. Since there is no escape from the Now, why not become friendly towards it? And the miracle is when you make peace or accept the Now or when Now is the primary focus of your life, people become helpful, conditions and outer circumstances tend to improve greatly without any doing on your part, life becomes friendly, synchronistic and chance encounters happen more frequently. [22] X Research source Tolle, Eckhart. Power of Now. Vancouver, BC: Penguin, 1997. Page 124 . It’s because you are connected to emptiness beneath all forms that sustains and runs the universe. We spoke about this earlier. Simply observe. Just observe things, people, the environment around you, thoughts, emotions, reactions etc. , without adding any mental labeling or commentary. When the automatic mental and emotional interpretations, reactions and labels arise, observe and allow them to be, because they are no more than thoughts or Egoic patterns and you are not your mind. We spoke about this earlier. When you simply observe, you allow the suchness and simplicity of the moment, without seeing it through the screen of limited conditioned mind. This practice withdraws attention from the mind to the Now. That’s how you reclaim trapped consciousness from mind and realize yourself as the still awareness behind it. Awareness is a new dimension of consciousness that is not part of thinking. Become aware of awareness. Have you ever asked yourself that who is observing the thoughts? Who is aware of sensations, reactions and emotions as they come and go? What is it that enables seeing, listening, smelling, touching and tasting? It’s the ever-present ‘I am’ or pure awareness or consciousness prior to incarnating into a thought or emotion. You are that. Only in the Now can you come out of that cycle of reincarnation that’s happening every moment. It’s because when thought arises, it’s the consciousness or formless attention that incarnates into a thought. When thought subsides, attention returns to its formless state then quickly reincarnates into another thought. That is to say attention gets identified with the mind (thought and emotion forms). There needs to be some degree of presence or awareness in you to recognize this cycle that’s taking place every moment and realize yourself as the knower or the witness behind mental content to go beyond this cycle. Read Surrender to the Present Moment and Know Your True Self for more depth.

Experiment: To see the power of “no judgement” or “no mental interpretation”, try this: Stand under a cold shower and focus only on the sensation of stream of water touching your body. Go deeper into the sensation. If conditioned thoughts, reactions and emotions arise, allow them to be. Notice that the water touching your body is just a sensation. It’s the conditioned mental-emotional reaction and interpretation that labels it as good or bad, dictates your response and magnitude of your reaction. For example: Some people may react to cold water more strongly as compared to others because of their conditioning and tolerance level to cold water. You don’t need conditioned mind to tell you what’s good or bad for you. Minimum of intelligence, knowledge and common sense is enough. For example: You don’t need fear (conditioned reaction and not the primordial emotion) to tell you to not put your hand in fire because you already ‘know’ that you will get burned.

Although, it’s not an effective practice, in the long run, to use or wait for only a negative situation or condition to smile or become present because you will unconsciously attract more negative situations and people. However, as long as the pain and negativity are there, use them as a reminder to become present and alert. “Enter the Now from there” Eckhart Tolle.

So pointers in the article are not saying to ’try to not indulge in unconscious behavior’ or ’try to watch your thoughts and emotions’ or ‘control or suppress your thoughts’ etc. but simply become aware and accept the compulsive, impersonal and insane nature of mind, to dis-identify from it’. This also implies to recognize yourself as the still awareness behind the mental content to free yourself from the egoic dysfunction. Which is not a doing but an alert seeing or recognition. “Recognizing the false as false is meditation. This must go on all the time. " Nisargadatta Maharaj. Although if you are trying then allow yourself to ‘keep trying’. We talked about this earlier.

You can also immediately shift attention from mind to present moment anchors and/or take constructive action, when a reaction arises. Shifting attention to the Now becomes easier when you truly realize that you are not your mind but the formless presence or awareness behind it. Light of awareness or presence is more than enough to shine away or dissolve the unnecessary psychological baggage of time (past and future) you are carrying in your body and mind. But again, if you are stuck or trapped in concepts, resistance, controlling mode, etc. which are aspects of mind, then accept and allow yourself to be stuck. As it can also become part of your spiritual journey. It’s because allowing yourself to be stuck deepens ‘’presence’’ and has the potential to eventually force you to surrender and go beyond them. To be more precise, you detect and allow the resistive thoughts, emotions and reactions (physical and mental) that arise in the Now. It’s because being stuck is ultimately a mental-emotional state i. e it’s psychological.