It is always now and you are always here. This is a truth that we forget, over and over again. We choose to live in the past or in the future over the experience of what is happening right now, right here. Yes, we have to learn from our past mistakes, but that does not mean that we have to obsess and live there. It is important to delve into your past, with purpose. We must come to know who we are and where we have been so that we can move forward with ease and peace. Yes, we must plan for our future. The plan may be as simple as what we eat for dinner, or as complex as travel.
“The past is a memory. It is a thought arising in the present. The future is merely anticipated. It is another thought arising now. What we truly have is this moment.” — Sam Harris
The fact of the matter is that the past has already happened and the future never arrives. There is only one moment in time that can exist and that moment is now. Can we truly say that we are living here, now, in this moment? When was the last time that we stopped thinking about the past or the future to experience the now? The ancient Yogis tell us yes, we can experience the now. The whole goal of yoga is our liberation from the past and future. The process of liberation takes patience, commitment, discipline, and courage. It starts and ends with the practice of meditation.
The video above is a distillation of a longer talk from Sam Harris regarding the reality of existence from an atheist’s perspective. I encourage you to take an hour out of your day to listen/watch.
