Living In the Now - How In This Society No One Wants To Be Where They Are

Lately there has been this notion that the present moment is all we have. Most people don't understand this reality and more-so see it as an abstraction. This notion, however, is indeed reality, the reality and for a more in-depth look into this, check out my previous post Time Is Always Now.

Let's go deeper into this reality of the now. If you are to plan for the future (which this society takes for somehow being more important than your immediate experience) it is only of value to those who can truly live within the moment. For when you get to that future goal, you will continue to be somewhere else, not even present for the experience and joy of your dreams coming into fruition

The internal and external sides of life are one in the same, two sides of the same coin, however, it is sometimes necessary to differentiate between the two and I am going to do so here. Internally, we are living in a world of abstractions, mental labels/boxes that make the external world seem split/separated. Externally, in this society, we are inherently set-up to not want to live in the present moment, which as we have seen, is the only reality there is. Why is this? Because we live in a world where we get paid later for doing things we don't like doing now. Day in and day out we spend our precious time on this Earth for institutions that could give two shits about us. The institutions have come alive and we are the ones feeding these parasitic entities that are taking over like a cancer.

Go to any work environment and almost everyone talks about how they want the day to go by faster, it's going too slow, I want to get home and relax, work sucks, etc., etc. In this way, in this system of control, we don't even want to be where we are! And when we get home to relax, the place we were talking/thinking about all day, we want it to last and so we grasp. We try to grasp the ungraspable. As you can see all around you, a car going by, the words in your head, the water, the clouds in the sky, it all keeps moving. Life is motion and you are that motion. The form changes, as with death, but it is always here, always now, and always one. All ripples within the Self, the fundamental underlying reality to reality, though the two are not separate. But when we hold onto life, hold onto a form of motion, life is terribly frustrated because it always slips between your fingers.

So what to do? We need to live now, a bit redundant for that is the only "time" there is, but we need to bring our awareness back to where we are and from there, or should I say from here, live! Do what you want to do! That doesn't mean screw everyone else and it's all me, no. If you are present with yourself and how "you" are always connected with the world around you, you will see that the Earth you rest upon and the people inhabiting it are just as much a part of you as your finger nails or heart beat. If you see yourself in the right way, you don't have to do anything. You will know what to do, in fact, you already know what to do. You've been doing it this whole time. Life is the drive-less driver, so have faith, trust in it, and let go. Deal with the pollution inside of you first and the rest will follow. Before anything else, before that next step you take, become connected, aligned with who you are, what you are, now. Be with this current experience you are having, in whatever form it is in. Accept who you are, be who you are, act as who you are, see who you are, know who you are, and from there your life will begin; you will be Reborn. 

A Day of Dedication: Breath

Breathing is an essential part of being human. Whether we notice it or not, we do it all the time. We have parts of ourselves that go on without "us" knowing it. Like our heartbeat, our blood flow, and any involuntary actions. And then, there are parts of ourselves that are voluntary, like consciously moving one's hand. The breath is an interesting part about being human for the breath is both voluntary and involuntary. A lot of the time it goes on without our awareness. Only when we bring our awareness back into the body and back into the breath, can we breath fully and truly be in the moment. Most of the time we are only taking "sips" of our breath and are unaware of what is happening in the present.

The word "spirit" is from the Latin word "spiritus" meaning breath. The Father (consciousness), The Son (the mind), and the the Holy Spirit (our breath) is the trinity we are all comprised of. When linked in harmony, deep peace can be felt within. This is our natural state of being. However, in our modern culture we are so used to being controlled by our thoughts that we take this unnatural, disharmonious state as normal. A majority of humanity is in this state of discontinuity with the present moment, partly due to our culture's obsession with "security" in the "future". Although, first and foremost, this is a problem from within; as is all of the problems you see in the world today. There is a crisis in consciousness on the global scale. So, to tackle this problem, it starts here, it starts now, and it starts with you. 

I invite you spend an entire day dedicated to your breath, the awareness of your breath. Start when you wake up in the morning. Slowly, bring your attention to your breath. You will notice your mind will take over you and lead you astray, this is okay. Every time you notice you are no longer focusing on your breath, see this as an opportunity to re-focus your awareness to the breath, to the moment. Notice how you are drawn away from it by a stream of thoughts. Once you get a feel for this, start to watch the thoughts as they arise and as they go. You will see where they come from; nothingness. Indeed, they will come and go, just like a wave or a cloud. If you are not aware of these thoughts and do not accept them, you can and most likely will become lost in their story, seeing yourself as them; this is known as attachment. In this mental fog, you will eventually notice you completely forgot about the breath. You will wonder where you went and how you got there. It's okay, all that matters is that you are aware of the discontinuity with the breath. Simply, bring back your attention to it and repeat this whenever it happens throughout your day. It's fascinating to see how lost we get in thought without the slightest awareness of how. Eventually, you will see the space that the breath will open up for you. This space is who you are. Thoughts will still come and go, but instead of being hypnotized by their story, you will be free in this inner space of stillness; this is known as detachment. Remember, the breath is a fantastic way to come back to the present, and when mastered, life will once again be a gift. 

The Day of Dedication blog posts will be a series of posts, so look for more in the future. :)

Photo Credit: Satori

7 Ego-Shattering Videos Everybody Should Watch

Sam Harris -

It Is Always Now

Abby Martin - 

The Artist's Task

Graham Hancock and Joe Rogan - 

The Precious Gift

Terence McKenna -
The Evolution of Reality

Joe Rogan & Bryan Callen -

Earth Suits Engage

  
Alex Jones (Surprisingly spot-on) -
Waking Life Excerpt

The Joe Rogan Experience -
The Wake Up Call Documentary

A Short Insight On Anxiety

To deny or resist your current state of being, in whatever form it is in, is fear. If you are stuck in a state of fear/resistance/anxiety, simply notice this. See if it is possible to watch the entirety of yourself, with all of your different thoughts and feelings, without any judgement. Seriously, I invite you to try this now. Don't try and examine yourself, just let everything sit and move on its own. Just watch... that's all you have to do. The universe does not need a central "I" to push it. The world will keep turning, your heart will keep beating. Thoughts will appear and disappear in different forms. Just watch it all go by. This is meditation.

How do you allow resistance? How can you love fear? By allowing the fear to take over you. By doing so you are entering reality, accepting it as it is; from panic to freedom. However, this cannot be taught. This is something one needs to do on their own. It cannot be "put off" either. Throwing it into the fog of the future and letting it swim in the mist of potentiality will do nothing. Come back to where you are now. To be at peace, to love yourself, to be with reality, you have to be with yourself. To be with yourself you must be aware of what is happening. Remember, everything is always in motion, always vibrating, all you have to do is align with it.

Do not try and deceive yourself about your current state. It will not work for you are already experiencing it. There is no getting around this. We can put a mask on the moment, play a little game with it, pretend it is what it isn't, but in the end it all comes back to what is.

Photo Credit: Satori

5 Mind Blowing Alan Watts Quotes

Content of blog post now on my new website. Click here.

The Return To Where You Are - Finding the Ground of Being

"Nirvana is right where you are, as long as you don't object to it."

Alan Watts

The modern view of economic, political, or even individual growth is based on a false premise of reality, a false sense of self. Currently, most of humanity is attached with the surface, material realm of existence. The majority of us are fixated upon the idea of ourselves in the apparent "outside" world that we experience on a day to day basis. Rarely does one go within and actually look. But this is what is needed, a return to the Ground of Being, a return to where you are.

Go beneath, go within, feel the emptiness. This emptiness is which gives birth to the surface. To identify with the surface is due to a resistance with the entirety of being. The entirety of being is undefinable, which is why mystics and Buddhists may refer to it as the Great Void, nothingness. Define nothing, define emptiness. How? There is nothing to identify with. The surface reality can be picked apart and played with, but in truth it is only a mist that "sits" upon the ground of being. It is an expression of you. 

The denial of the eternal, internal emptiness within is the way we operate on an individual and in-turn global level. Since we deny this emptiness, we try to fill it with anything and everything. Even Buddhists can fill this hole with the achievement of enlightenment. We almost all try to fill this void with the apparent acceptance from others, which is why trends occur in society. We all try to be accepted by others and so we act like others. Rarely is someone truly being themselves, the entirety of themselves. This requires acceptance of oneself and if one is preoccupied with being accepted by "others" "externally", this internal acceptance cannot be done.

The feeling of being trapped inside yourself and your thoughts can bring tremendous pain and suffering. Of course, it can bring happiness but it is always impermanent and soon leads back to suffering. But how can "you" suffer if there is no central, static you? If internally we are empty, then all flows through. If this is realized, not through thinking but through being, then the you that you thought you were, is no longer boxing you in. It is no longer all of you, but simply a part of the whole of experience. It becomes a voice, wisping by with everything else.

Through this connection within, you can feel the connection with the whole. You are entering your body. This includes your physical, biological form, the environment it interacts with, and the source within. It is already here. Always return to the Ground of Being, the void within. You will rise back to the surface, very easily at first. The more you return, the longer it will last. You will know when you get there, you will feel it. And when you feel it, go deeper. This is the inevitable ecstasy. All you have to do is return to where you are, be where you are, it is that simple.

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Remember Where You Are

It is important to be within reality, to be grounded, to be here fully with your environment. A veil, an image of our own selves and our world has been cast upon us. We need to watch this illusion, see it play its game, and return to what is, return to the Earth, and return to ourselves. Be comfortable with being uncomfortable, with being out of control, and accepting what takes place. Once this is done, can we finally open our eyes to the world for the first time. To see into our very nature. For you are your environment and your environment is you, is us, and if we internally shut-off to ourselves, we externally shut-off to our environment. The next stage for humanity, the next stage of your personal evolution is to unite with yourself internally and your universe externally. Know that this is you, it is all you. This starts with Earth, our home, our planet, our life-source, it starts now.

On a daily basis, humans struggle with their environment as if it is a hostile, separate entity that they are not in control of. Be with that feeling. Let it happen, surrender to it, surrender to yourself, surrender to fear. The world is you and you are it. Become one with yourself, with your environment, the Earth, and your experience. Your thoughts, your feelings, is the universe knowing/experiencing itself. Your entire life has been on this Earth, has been within the Universe, been within the realm of this. Be where you are, now. Be with the Earth, your home, this now mechanical jungle spinning through space. This is where you live, this is who you are; with everything on it, with all of the "happenings" within the singular, extended eternal "happening".. all right now. Be present with your body, breath, mind, and connection to the so-called "outer" world. Notice how you label it, pick it apart, and try to understand it, but all attempts are futile. To know life is to be with it and to let it go. Life is always on the move, so move with it. That is faith, true faith. Through this knowing of the unknown, you see that you are always connected and always were connected. This is understanding at the deepest level; not intellectual understanding, but a certain intuitive presence.

You grew out of it and it continues to grow out of you. Feel this connection, feel gravity upon you, keeping you locked to the earth like a magnet, feel yourself falling deeper and deeper into whatever connects you to the Earth, to whatever you rest upon. Go deeper and deeper into this. This is who you are. Everything you experience within this experience that you are currently having at this very moment is you. Nothing can escape that. Whatever is is, and yet, we live our lives as if what is is somehow lacking. We are in a constant struggle, always needing to be "there" instead of "here". And yet, here is all we have and ever will have. You can never be "there" for once "there" comes, it will then be here, and then another "there" appears, out of nothing, out of the void, out of you. This idea of there being a "there" is causing the unnatural shift humanity has taken upon the planet. This idea of obtaining something in the future for one's own self worth and mental image is an illusion so persistent that it has taken root in our world and is slowly destroying it. You are what you experience and what you experience is the totality of the universe, spontaneously shifting from within itself. Please, watch it happen for yourself. Do not take mine or anyone else's word for it. It is all apparent, no need to strain to see it, simply surrender to it.

We are still animals within the jungle. The jungle, the woods,the earth, has just been "upgraded", modernized, developed, hurt. The external world ripples from the internal and vise-versa.  The separation of the inner and outer, the game of which we play, is just that, a play, an act, an illusion. But the most glorious illusion. And to that, we surrender to it with awe. Still we think that the external world is somehow more powerful, more important, than the internal. That it pushes us around, like we are a puppet with no strings. The Earth needs us to be there for it. If we provide for it, it will provide for us. Look around you. The trees and creatures are all still here (for what remains). You are still here, you have been here this entire time. Since the spawn of your existence you have never experienced anything else besides this. With all of the humans, all of the creatures, all of the awe-experiencing, loving beings; all of the different perspectives of the same thing, all taking place upon this organic, breathing rock, floating in the cosmic sea. We are a pebble, tossed with its brothers and sisters into an endless, bottomless, eternally flowing river, with no destination insight. We are now given an opportunity. It is our choice to follow the path of nature, to re-unite with our true selves, face our fears, and restore the Earth to a more natural, harmonious, beautiful place that we all know in the depths of our hearts is possible. Or we can continue on this current path of "progress", where more is somehow considered better on a finite planet. A path of nearly schizophrenic, fear mongering behavior through this current cultural medium that we all blindly follow. Everyone follows and all you do is follow too, so really, no one is following through. Be a beacon of light. Be that spark of change that we so badly need. Voice your concerns, say what you feel, and do what you love, always. Do not let others regiment your life. You are life, so live it.

“We have to create culture, don't watch TV, don't read magazines, don't even listen to NPR. Create your own roadshow. The nexus of space and time where you are now is the most immediate sector of your universe, and if you're worrying about Michael Jackson or Bill Clinton or somebody else, then you are dis-empowered, you're giving it all away to icons, icons which are maintained by an electronic media so that you want to dress like X or have lips like Y. This is shit-brained, this kind of thinking. That is all cultural diversion, and what is real is you and your friends and your associations, your highs, your orgasms, your hopes, your plans, your fears. And we are told 'no', we're unimportant, we're peripheral. 'Get a degree, get a job, get a this, get a that.' And then you're a player, you don't want to even play in that game. You want to reclaim your mind and get it out of the hands of the cultural engineers who want to turn you into a half-baked moron consuming all this trash that's being manufactured out of the bones of a dying world.”

Terence McKenna