Time is an illusion of the mind

Past and future exist only in thoughts

Time is a projection of the mind. (Psychological time) It does not exist, it is only an illusion. Both the past and future are created by thoughts.  Only the present exists and the present is not part of time but part of eternity. Past and present are both non-existential because we cannot live in a past or the future other than in our thoughts. The past is only a memory and the future is only imagination. Both of them are constructs of the mind and are always being accessed from the present alone. The past is created because we cling to memory and the future is created because of desires to be fulfilled. The future is needed like a screen for the mind to project its desires. The truth is psychological time subordinates the present moment to the past or future by keeping us preoccupied to the memories of our past or to our plans for the future

The fact is that the mind needs the past and the future to survive. The more the time the mind has the more it can play around and make many desires and dreams and live in them. Time also helps the mind in another way – the pressure for change is lifted off as there is still time available for change. In this way the mind can remain the same. Postponing is the base for continuing in the same way. This is the deepest trick of the mind. The reason for postponing change is because you do not want to do it now. As long as time is available the possibility of postponing change is available and in the hope that what is difficult today will become easier tomorrow. But tomorrow never comes.

Timeless space of the Eternal Now

“A person who thinks all the time has nothing to think about except thoughts. So he loses touch with reality, and lives in a world of illusion” – Allan Watts. The thing that we have to realize is that the aim of the mind is always to keep us engaged with the past or the future. This results in us losing touch with reality.  Meditation is the way to disengage from the pull of the mind and to experience reality as it unfolds to us. Meditation is not about quieting, manipulating or focusing the mind. On the contrary it is to let the mind keep on doing its thing and instead of identifying with it to just be, knowingly, its awareness.

You are that through which thoughts are flowing. It doesn’t matter where it’s going or what they’re doing. They’re always doing one of two things: they are either going into the past or the future. Just let them go, let them make the journey, but you never take the journey with them. That is meditation, just to know yourself as this ever-present, imperturbable light of awareness. When we know this we enter the timeless space of the eternal now and  begin to experience our reality..

 

Balance is the key

The life of every living creature depends upon breathing. Breath is the union of two – inhaling and exhaling. Breathing in and breathing out are not two opposites but two parts of one process that are organically connected and cannot be divided. It is these two functions that that maintain the balance of life. Choosing only either one of these functions will actually suffocate us. Now this is also true with regard to our dealing with thoughts feelings and emotions. Unfortunately we are conditioned only to attach ourselves and identify with every thought, feeling and expression.

Attachment is only one part of the process. There is also the function of detachment. If we choose only either one part of the process it will definitely disrupt our balance. This is where meditation plays an important role. Meditation is the time and space we create to detach ourselves from all thoughts, feelings and emotions. Once we master the art of detachment we transcend both attachment and detachment and we begin to act from a place of stillness, peace and balance. Balance then becomes as natural as breathing and goes on even without our knowledge. It is when we become mindful, aware and one with totality. That which we are searching for will then be found. Let every breath remind us of this.

Ranji Varughis

 

 

Awakening from the dream

Life has is always in the now. Even the past and future are only ideas in the now. Both are imaginary and keep us in the dream state. Our forays into the past or future are actually a misuse of mindfulness. We are using it to create an illusion which carries away into a dreamland. This dream keeps us in a state of fear, anxiety and suffering. The secret is to become mindful of the dream. When we become mindful of the dream, we are awakening. The past and the future no longer control us. We are lead to be in a state of equanimity.  Slowly we begin to remain present in the now. The ripples in the mind now begin to subside. We find the clarity see the beauty of life and enjoy its bliss.

Ranji Varughis

 

 

 

Say YES to life

 

Living in the moment

Mindfulness is more than being conscious of thoughts, feelings and actions. In fact we are conscious all the time and are aware of everything that we experience with our senses. But the difficulty is that we are not willing to accept the present moment as it is. Mindfulness is the faculty to remain as a witness to whatever it is that is appearing in the moment.  It is to be able to remain in the present. Unfortunately our life conditioning since childhood is always to pursue a goal that is always in the future. To use the words of Alan Watts, “you are always living for some where you aren’t”.  While it is of tremendous use to look ahead and plan for the future, it is of no use planning for a future which when you reach you’ll be looking forward to some other future. Unless you can live the present moment fully you cannot live it all.

Ranji Varughis

 

Links : Mindfulness Coaching Online

 

The Quantum Leap

 

The Gift

 

A SMALL GOLDEN LIGHT!

I hope that in the future they invent a small golden light that follows you everywhere and when something is about to end, it shines brightly so you know it’s about to end.
And if you’re never going to see someone again, it’ll shine brightly and both of you can be polite and say, “It was nice to have you in my life while I did, good luck with everything that happens after now.”
And maybe if you’re never going to eat at the same restaurant again, it’ll shine and you can order everything off the menu you’ve never tried. Maybe, if someone’s about to buy your car, the light will shine and you can take it for one last spin. Maybe, if you’re with a group of friends who’ll never be together again, all your lights will shine at the same time and you’ll know, and then you can hold each other and whisper, “This was so good. Oh my God, this was so good.”

~ Iain Thomas, “I Wrote This For You”

 

Remembering who we are!

What is to be remembered here is that the silence that is alluded here is the most natural thing. In fact it is the very core of our ever-present, eternal being. All sounds appear from and disappear within silence. These appearances are fleeting and temporal but what they appear in and to never changes! Unfortunately due to the years and years of conditioning and fascination for things that are perceived by the senses these appearances are accepted as the reality. The mind also has a role to play in making the real, unreal and the unreal, real. If we look deeply we realize that its not the appearances and forms that are real but the silence from which they emanate. But we can never find silence, which is our true self, because it is transparent and empty. Hence we imagine that we are a cluster of thoughts, feelings, sensations and perceptions. With that imagination an illusory self made out of thoughts, feelings and sensations comes into apparent existence. When this apparent self is unhappy it seeks happiness in conventional objects like, relationships, activities and so on. When these fail it seeks it in unconventional activities like meditation and so on. Through meditation we attempt to silence the mind which is a tremendously difficult task. It brings about temporary relief but we do not succeed in getting what we want – lasting, undisturbed peace. Ironically it is the most easiest thing in the world, easier than breathing as it does not require the mind or any particular set of circumstances. Silence is nothing other than the aware presence that is unchanging and everpresent. In otherwords just be as you are. Realizing our true selves as this silent aware presence frees us from the need for any particular set of thoughts, feelings or sensations to experience peace. This silence is who we really are and brings us the peace that transcends all circumstance and is infinite and eternal. Namaste!

Ranji Varughis

 

Opening to Love

The most powerful force in the universe is Love. It is also our natural state of being. Our relationship to the world and how the world relates to us is based totally on how we experience ourselves. In fact the world we experience is an accurate reflection of our consciousness. The ability to unconditionally love and free ourselves from the unloving conditioning around us enables us to create more successful, rewarding, enriching and harmonious loving relationships. Discovering that love is what or who we are helps us to tap the power of love for good in our lives.

We need to see that love is ever present and inherent in our being. By understanding this we stop looking for love in the wrong place. The right place to look for it is the place in us that is prior to the mind, prior too the feelings. Love is the ever present awareness in which everything appears and disappears. To take our stand there, to know what we always are, is to know true love.

We seek love because we are unaware that we are the love that we long for. It is the longing that prevents us from seeing it. Once longing is dissolved in understanding we are able to see that we are the very thing we are looking for! This presence that we are and which we share with everyone is what is truly lovable. When we experience ourselves as the open, welcoming, ever present loving Presence our mind and body realign themselves to this experience. All the unlovable awkward characteristics that seem to thwart love get ironed out by love itself, and the mind and body are slowly refashioned into a shape that is in line with love. We then find ourselves expressing and celebrating this love in our relationships.

Namaste!

 

When you introspect you will find that no matter what the contents of your mind, the most basic `I’ is something different. Every time you try to observe the `I’ it takes a jump back with you, remaining out of sight.