Living In The Moment {A guide to recreating your reality}

Originally posted by bringthelight
He is talking about the roles we play everyday and going beyond that and being ourselves, Many people have forgotten how to be themselves and just end up playing another role in doing so.
"If you can be absolutely comfortable with not knowing who you are, then whats left is who you are---the Being behind the human, a field of pure potentiality rather than something that is already defined."

I neither think I know who I am, nor am I comfortable with that unknown. I feel as if I don't know myself, I can't know others, or others can't know me. My problem is not that no one understands "me", it's that I don't know "myself". Labels don't justify or represent who I am, and I don't use them very often.

Now, we are constantly defining ourselves with the car we drive, the clothes we wear, our job, religion, belief system, etc. We buy things that agree with the image we have of ourselves. I studied marketing in college and thats how it all works. Marketers sell an image that agrees with you so you buy their product.

I both agree and disagree with this statement. I agree that we (somewhat) conform to what we think we are, yet I do not think advertising works very well on me.

When you define yourself, you lock yourself in, leaving no room for growth.

Wait, what? I'm sure this is true of other people, yet I am not convinced it works that way for me. I'd like to think I am open, but I am also very judging.

We are here to grow and evolve spiritually, once you can admit that you know nothing you are ready to learn. Less cleverness leaves room for bewilderment and who dosent want to be amazed in life?

I know I know nothing (lolwut?). (I don't claim to know many things. That would be dishonest. I try quite hard in my life to be as honest as possible.)

In other words:

Originally said by Timothy Leary
Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening,
terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are going in
this ocean of chaos, it has been the authorities, the political, the
religious, the educational authorities who attempted to comfort us by
giving us order, rules, regulations, informing, forming in our minds their
view of reality. To think for yourself you must question authority and
learn how to put yourself in a state of vulnerable, open-mindedness;
chaotic, confused, vulnerability to inform yourself.

I neither think I know who I am, nor am I comfortable with that unknown. I feel as if I don't know myself, I can't know others, or others can't know me. My problem is not that no one understands "me", it's that I don't know "myself". Labels don't justify or represent who I am, and I don't use them very often.

This is all a good thing. People who tend to think they know themselves, base that knowing on false labels. Its ok that you dont know yourself, as admitting that is the first step. The second is being comfortable with that. When I say self im not talking about what most think is the "self". I am talking about the higher self that resides above the everyday voice in your head. There is a higher self hat transcends the death of the physical body. That is who you are trying to get to know. Your soul essence or your connection to the conscious whole.

Your right, you cant really know others until you are comfortable with your self. Devote sometime to appreciating yourself. Send yourself some love, it is not a selfish act because in order to know others and affect them positively, you have to be in love with yourself. If you are not sure and think of yourself in a negative manner , people can sense that.

I both agree and disagree with this statement. I agree that we (somewhat) conform to what we think we are, yet I do not think advertising works very well on me.

I was speaking for people in general, that's how the game works, but that's good that you dont succumb to their tricks.

Wait, what? I'm sure this is true of other people, yet I am not convinced it works that way for me. I'd like to think I am open, but I am also very judging.

Dont think that you are judging. Judging clouds your mind and hides the beauty of this world. I find myself doing it sometimes and once I become aware of it I no longer take part in it. Look for that divine essence in all people no matter how terrible or different you think they are. When it all comes down to it they are no different from you. They have just locked themselves in by judging themselves and others. We are all one and the same, made from the same stuff, and that stuff is the light of consciousness. Look for that spark or twinkle in everyone's eye and you will start seeing a whole new world.

To think for yourself you must question authority and learn how to put yourself in a state of vulnerable, open-mindedness; chaotic, confused, vulnerability to inform yourself.

A great quote, I am also a Leary, i like to think I may be related in some strange way, but thins rings true for me. If you think you have it all figured out and you are not vulnerable and open, the world becomes a very dull place. Being open to new things, will lead to some amazing, transforming experiences.

Try reading The Power of Now and A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. He explains this stuff a little better than I do. I really think it would shed some light on what I am talking about.

Hey Bring The Light, amazing read! I've been putting it off for days as I have been really busy (not living in the moment regretably!), but I have had a catchup day today and read through about 5 full threads!

This isn't exactly what you're talking about, but I feel like it is related. I am currently reading about different types of meditation etc. and trying to learn more about myself spiritually. Here are a few titles I have read recently:

Dr. Joseph Murphy: The Power of The Subconcious Mind
Dr. Michael Newton: Journey of Souls
Silvia Browne: The Other Side and Back
Scott D. Rogo: Art and Practice of Astral Projection
Scott Cunningham: Guide To Wicca
Belzebuub: Astral Travel & Dreams

Now I started reading these as I found myself thinking alot and needind answers, and was curious about some of the topics they describe. I had never read anything on any of the topics before.

What I have found is that they all have a common theme. CONSCIOUSNESS!

That is where the link is (so i believe). All the books incorporate meditation and altering/ being aware to the consciousness in some way or another, and alot of them have methods for meditating.

These are mostly: BREATHING, VISUALISATION, CONCENTRATION (On one Thing), RELAXATION.

I am working on these and all I can say is, it works. I feel 'enlightened'. I can't believe I have gone so long without knowledge of this power, the power within oneself.

Before (and still am to some extent) I was very scientific and would shoot most 'new age' topics down in flames instantly, but now I feel ignorant for doing so.

I will leave my personal experiences and feelings at that for know (for fear of putting people to sleep!), But let me just say:

THE TECHNIQUES AND STATES OF MIND DESCRIBED IN THIS THREAD WILL GREATLY IMPROVE YOUR LIFESTYLE IF YOU ARE WILLING TO TRY THEM!

That is not me trying to force my ideas on you, just me trying to give advice to people which could potentialy change their life for the better.

Keep it going Bring The Light!

Peace & Love

reply to post by carlitomoore


Thank you for your post Carlitomoore...Starred.

I too once thought the newagers were cult-like people who were duped by good marketing. There are some who follow that path but not all. There is a deeper meaning behind all of the hype.

The more people I talk to about being mindful and realizing the voice in their head is not them, the more excited I get. People are hearing and learning about the shift in consciousness one way or another and I am amazed at all of the people I have been meeting and the people I have known for a long time that have stumbled across this great secret!!

It seems as soon as I started this thread, I have been bumping into more and more people who are interested in the very same topic. Some people have been reading about it and others have come to conclusions on their own. It has really reminded me of how connected we all truly are and that once the collective hits a certain point the rest will follow (100th monkey).

Like you said, It all starts with consciousness. Meditation was my first step and It allowed me to become the WATCHER. Instead of letting my subconscious run my life on autopilot based on past reactions, I can now step above and become aware. Its like taking a breath of fresh air and the more you do it the easier it is to remain aware throughout your day.

The other important change for me is not labeling situations, people, or events as good or bad. I just accept them as they are and when you can do this you start to see the mysterious way in which the universe works. There is meaning behind all events in your life no matter how small. Breaking your leg could end up saving your life a week down the road because you were not able to drive. Accept everything for what it is and return to the now.....you will start loving life a whole lot more!!

Thank you again for your post and I have a feeling my next read will be Dr. Joseph Murphy: The Power of The Subconscious Mind.

I want to share a great method for bringing your attention to your body and getting used to it. The trick is to feel the "aliveness" in your body throughout your day. You want to be aware of the energy field which will raise your frequency.

Turn off cell phones and make sure there are no distractions.

Sit in a chair back straight not leaning against anything, this will keep you alert and aware of your experience.

Place your awareness on your toes. If visualization helps you, picture a radiant white light shining on your toes. Start moving this light or awareness slowly up your legs, to your torso, chest, arms, shoulders neck then your head.

Once this has been done so a quick scan of your whole body like a wave of energy or awareness washing over you. Do this 5 times.

Now the goal is to feel your ENTIRE body. Feel the life inside of you. Your entire body. Stop the visualizations and just concentrate on the feeling. The feeling will place you in the NOW and raise your frequency.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Once you practice feeling your body you can begin to do it throughout your day. Try and feel your entire body and it will bring you into the now. You will be at peace and become non-reactive. I am truly amazed at how much this simple method has improved my life. Good luck to all!

reply to post by bringthelight
Great thread! I have been working on this exact thing lately. After reading your thread, I rented The Peaceful Warrior. It is a super movie and hits the nail on the head. Mr. Nolte really does a good job. Thanks for the suggestion.

I have a book called BE HERE NOW by Ram Dass. It was written in the '70's and it is wonderful. It's a bit odd in the way it is laid out, but I find it soothing to read over and over.

Funny how we have to study so hard to just BE!

At work right now, but I'll be coming back to this thread often!

Interesting quote from a A New Earth that I thought was worth sharing.

"Not what you do, but how you do what you do determines whether you are fulfilling your destiny. And how you do what you do is determined by your state of consciousness."

We tend to think that we are not following our paths or that we chose the wrong one. Instead of worrying about this and creating a complex for yourself, simply become conscious. When you are conscious, you ARE on your path. The more you become present throughout your day, the more your higher self can shine through and guide you.

Stay conscious my friends

Originally posted by bringthelight
"If you can be absolutely comfortable with not knowing who you are, then whats left is who you are---the Being behind the human, a field of pure potentiality rather than something that is already defined."

I think this has just become one of my favourite ever quotes! One of my biggest problems in life has always been to wonder how on earth anyone could ever love me for who I am, when I myself have no idea who I am!

I've always felt like I had no idea who I am, or what I'm supposed to be. There is something inately beautiful in the paradoxical realisation that only when one realises that they have no idea who they are, does one's true self actually emerge.

Originally posted by spartacus mills
I've always felt like I had no idea who I am, or what I'm supposed to be. There is something inately beautiful in the paradoxical realisation that only when one realises that they have no idea who they are, does one's true self actually emerge.

That truly is an amazing realization. Once you can drop all of the labels; 25, christian, republican, etc, you are truly free to find out who you really are. When you can say I have no idea who I am it becomes fun to find yourself again.

We don't choose anything for ourselves growing up. We follow the religion our parents do, political ideas, and they even pick our name! So much of what we consider our personality is derived from other people. Once we take on all of these traits and beliefs from other people, our world becomes set in stone. We then know it all and the world becomes a very bland and boring place.

I say question everything and admit to your self that you have no idea who you are and nothing is set in stone. Thats when the real fun begins.

[edit on 8-5-2009 by bringthelight]

[edit on 8-5-2009 by bringthelight]

Great video on what meditation is. I found my self giggling a few times too.

OK i figured I would give everyone who was interested in this thread a little update.

Since writing this thread, I have had some amazing experiences with living in the now. It really is true that if you put some effort in, it becomes easier and easier to remain present throughout your day. Try writing your experiences down in this thread, because just getting it on paper has done some great things for me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At certain periods throughout my day I will be brought into the present moment with out any effort or thinking involved. Usually I will have to catch myself and say, "ok take a conscious breath and feel your body", but in the past week or so my body forces me into the now out of nowhere. I will be in the middle of something and all of the sudden my body is over taken by presence. No effort at all, I am transported into a peaceful state of being that reminds me of my connection with everything in this universe. It is a beautiful experience that has changed me forever. I know that i am on the right path and there is nothing more important to me than remaining in the present moment.

Another cool effect of conscious living is the people you will start to run into and the conversations you will start to have. "Like attracts like" I'm finding out to be more and more true. Like the Jeep analogy I used earlier in the thread, the more conscious I become, the more people I find that are awakening to the same subjects. I had an amazing conversation sat. night with someone who I believed to be on the opposite end of the scale when it came to these issues. I am actually making him a meditation CD because he has felt drawn to it in the past few weeks!

Anyone who is not currently happy with there lives, please give this a shot. It has really transformed my life and I am starting to see my efforts to remain conscious really pay off. I live every day not expecting anything, so when amazing things happen to me, I appreciate them so much more.

To anyone who has questions or feels they need some help or a kick start, please respond or U2U me, and I would be happy to help.

Stay present and and forget what you think you know, and you can LITERALLY change your reality.
[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/533574aaeef6.jpg[/atsimg]

reply to post by bringthelight


The problem for me is work. Since the economy tanked my workplace, along with others I am sure, is running on a skeleton crew which means massive amounts of extra work. I feel like I am not living my purpose at times because I really do despise this. I go home and meditate, but to get to the centered place takes soooo long .. sometimes I just give up and go to sleep. But when I can meditate and center, it's all good... until the next morning ... it all goes to heck in a hand basket when I arrive at work.

What are your clues to become present in a hectic, paperwork ridden, scan, email, fax, phone, angry people oriented place? I've come up empty so far!

I think I can help. My gf is in the exact same situation you described.

First thing i would suggest is doing a quick morning mediation to get you started. Wake up a little bit earlier and I promise you, it will be worth it. My gf started doing this and says it really helps to ease her into her work day. She also notices people pick up on her calmness and start to settle down.

Secondly, try to keep something by your desk that brings you to a peaceful place. Whether its a statue of Buddha or a beautiful picture of a sunset. It can be your reminder to bring you back into the present moment. We all need that little spark or reminder to bring you back. Think of it as a tool.

Thirdly, bodyscan meditations really help. One of the things that helps me really feel the present moment is becoming aware of my entire body. Doing a bodyscan every now and then is like practice so when you are talking with people you can still be feeling the "aliveness" of your entire body. What you say will be more insightful and less reactive.

Try these three things and you WILL notice a positive change. I am still working on this every day. Practice whenever you can. When you are walking, talking to people, making your lunch, take deep breaths from your diaphragm and feel the energy emanating from your body.

There is hope, my gf wanted to quit but now feels A LOT better about her workplace. Good Luck

PS i can try and find you a guided bodyscan if you have never tried it, it really does help

I get up real early, and I do yoga. But when I get up early enough to chill before the yoga, I do actually notice my calmess and others reacting to it as well. Funny to hear it come from someone else, makes me feel I am not so alone!

I tried the bodyscan as I was reading your post, and it is amazing! I could feel the energies racing up and down. That will be great to do at work. I bet I will react soooo differently to situations!!

And I had a picture at my desk, like a goddess painting type of thing. I took it home, but I'm going to take it back because I did come back to center whenever I gazed at it.

Thanks a ton for your suggestions, maybe I won't quit now either!

reply to post by blujay


Glad I could help! Balancing meditation/awareness with modern day stresses has to be one of the most challenging things out there. Its easy to do if you live in a monastery, but bringing it back to a corporate setting takes some effort. Use any tools you can to remind you of staying present and be happy with any success at all. Even if you are present for 15 seconds a day its more than most can say. Complement yourself for any successes at all and your everyday awareness will continue to increase.

Good luck and be sure to share your successes as im sure many others are working on the same thing.

A great quote from the Tao Te Ching that really hit me when I read it today.

Ever desireless, one can see the mystery
Ever desiring, one sees the manifestations

Once I began to dive into meditation and all things metaphysical, I began to see the veil being lifted. Instead of a world set in stone, I began to see the mystery in all things.

There was something beyond my everyday perceptions and I had a burning desire within to know what it was.

I traded in some of my cleverness for bewilderment and WOW!

Hello, I have been a lurker here at ATS for years now and this thread inspired me to finally sign up just so I could thank you for posting this information.

My life has been a really hectic one so far (I am currently 20) and it seems as though things are always going in the opposite direction that I would wish them. Depression is probably the correct word to describe my life for the last 5 years as things seem to hit all at once. I have always been very interested in meditation and the like but have never been able to sit down and actually try it. However, while I currently have no experiences of my own to share, I just wanted to say thanks for sharing yours.

reply to post by bringthelight


Eckhart Tolle lives just down the road from me here in Vancouver. Though I've never met the man, I understand that he was in a terrible state in his life at one point and was on the verge of committing suicide, until the idea struck him, that a part of him was aware of this suffering part which wanted to off himself, and since he had nothing to lose, he simply decided to identify himself instead with the observing self, the transcendant ego, and his suffering began to diminish and then disintegrate in the presence of the simple awareness of being. When I read his recent book "A New Earth" I felt that it was the most inspired work since "The Road Less Travelled" by M Scott Peck, and I'm glad that it became a run away best seller.

He likes to meditate on a stump out at Spanish Banks Park by the ocean. I think I'd like to visit him and talk to him if I have the opportunity. He's a very interesting little man.

Just today, I did the thing he speaks about, when I was waiting for the elevator, and suddenly, I noticed the grain in the wood panelling around me, and it was beautiful, and what struck me, was that I hadn't noticed it before.

For those of us who are ex-druggies, this awareness thing is a total buzz, way better than any drug. The beingness of life in all manifestations, even the inanimate, IS beautiful. To me, it appears, everything, to be somehow "cute", that's the way I describe it. It's cute and friendly.

Here's a link to four good videos of an exchange with Tolle

unity.org...

[edit on 10-6-2009 by OmegaPoint]

Originally posted by inval
Hello, I have been a lurker here at ATS for years now and this thread inspired me to finally sign up just so I could thank you for posting this information.

My life has been a really hectic one so far (I am currently 20) and it seems as though things are always going in the opposite direction that I would wish them. Depression is probably the correct word to describe my life for the last 5 years as things seem to hit all at once. I have always been very interested in meditation and the like but have never been able to sit down and actually try it. However, while I currently have no experiences of my own to share, I just wanted to say thanks for sharing yours.

Hi Inval, glad you decided to take the plunge! There is a lot of good information and people on this site.

As to your situation, the first thing to do is realize those thoughts that you say aren't going in the direction you would wish them, are not coming from you. You are not your thoughts! They are something completely separate from your higher self and you can realize this by becoming the observer.

When you start having those thoughts that you dont want to be a part of...

1. Take a deep breath into the depths of your belly. You should see your belly expanding and not your chest.

2. Try to feel your body. Do this by placing your awareness on what your body is actually feeling.

3. Become the observer. Watch your thoughts as if they are a radio program and dont become attached to them. Watch them rise up and let them float on by because they are not you. Thoughts can't ruin your day and make you depressed if you dont latch on. This is essentially what you do in meditation, let the thoughts float on by until the mind eventually calms itself and you are in a state of stillness and relaxation.

I was in your boat 2 years ago and used this method to stop my thoughts from turning into negative emotions. It is very freeing once you have mastered this technique. Start small even if you catch yourself once a day be happy! Dont get down on yourself, because being present for 5 seconds of each day is more than most people can say.

Good luck and feel free to U2U me or write back in this thread with any questions.

reply to post by OmegaPoint


You bring up a very good point about the NOW acting as a little high. It can actually feel like a drug is taking over your system at times as all of your perceptions become completely altered for a period of time. Everything seems more alive and you become filled with energy. Its almost addicting because you want to get "high" more and more once you realize that thats what life can be for you as you live in the moment more and more.

Also that's very cool about ET living so close to you. I dont know what I would do if I came across the little man meditating on a tree stump in the middle of a park. I dont know if I would want to disturb him but I would like to hear more of how he came to realizing the great truths that he has written about. If you ever run into him be sure to share!

Thanks for the video I am definitely going to check it out tonight.