The Power of Now

“If you want to reach a state of bliss, then go beyond your ego and the internal dialogue. Make a decision to relinquish the need to control, the need to be approved, and the need to judge. Those are the three things the ego is doing all the time. It's very important to be aware of them every time they come up.” ~Deepak Chopra

I just got a copy of the book THE POWER OF NOW. Its the companion to A NEW EARTH, the book I wrote on before. Its message is simple yet "infinite in its depth and efficacy." It explains that there is power in living in the present moment. This power comes from letting go of the past and not worrying about the future. It's the power to overcome the weaknesses of the human brain that relies on past for it's identity and future for it's fulfillment. This is an identity created by our thoughts.

So you might say that our thoughts make us who we are. Well, maybe but that also implies that your  thoughts control who you are. If that's the case then you have no choice on the matter. You are not in control, but your thoughts control you. However,  for the most part, our thoughts are involuntary, repetitious, and irrelevant. They come from a conditioned thought process of personal past, as well as, part of a collective conditioned mind-set which includes every human being and the past events of our history.

A Brief History
Our history as the species, Homo-sapiens, has been one of tragedy. We have killed each other for centuries. Terrible tragedies of hate, greed, and misunderstanding. From the Spanish Inquisition to the Holacaust, from Slavery to the Crusades. The number of our own species that we've killed is in the hundreds of millions.

"It is estimated that during the 20th century between 167 and 188 million humans died as a result of war."


Because of this, there is pain and fear that are apart of our subconscious psyche, emotional scars of the past. We are the children of war and suffering, of hate and violence, of fear and ignorance. It's not our fault at all, but nevertheless, its apart of our psychology.


From the viewpoint of a mind conditioned by the past, we look towards the future and worry. We worry because what's happened in our past. We know what we, as human beings, are capable of doing to each other. We see it on the news everyday, reminding us to be afraid, and never to trust anyone. This conditioned viewpoint gives, and has given way to mass executions of other human beings justified by fear. We see suffering constantly. Broken families, ended friendships, injustice and loneliness. We worry about being called dumb, fat, ugly, or not good enough. We worry about what people think of us, as if something they think might take away from who we are.

“How can I be myself?” is, in fact, the wrong question. It implies you have to do something to be yourself. But how doesn’t apply here because you are yourself already. Just stop adding unnecessary baggage to who you already are."




THE MESSAGE

The message that is so vital to recognize and understand, is that we can be in control. It may not be possible to control our thoughts, but we can control how we react to them. We can see them for what they are. Thoughts, not reality, only perception. We can follow them and find the root of the problem. Where is this anxiety or hostility actually coming from? What is really causing this pain? Is it the situation itself or just our thoughts of the situation? Is it coming from the present moment or from similar past experiences that have caused pain? Are we offended because of what happened or because our intelligence was questioned? When we realize that we can observe our thoughts from the outside looking in, we become aware of Being. Its a type of awakening. We awake to the truth that we are not our thoughts. We no longer need to be held captive by our conditioned dysfunctional mind-set, which is mostly negative, but capable of recognizing the ego for what it really is and overcoming it. 

The word CONDITIONED is defined as:

•  brought or put into a specified state
• determined or established by conditioning

Our minds have been "brought or put into" a state of conscious unconsciousness "established by conditioning." We are awake and aware, but most of our thinking is on a subconscious level. Its where our deepest fears are found. The fears of inadequacy, meaninglessness, loneliness, death, and suffering. 

It puts us in a constant state of fear called worry. There are varying degrees of worry, but to have no worry whatsoever would imply that you don't think about the future and everyone does. It would also imply a letting go of the past. If this does happen and you achieve a state of "No Worry," then you are no longer living in the past or future, but are living in the present. Now. 

“Many of us crucify ourselves between two thieves - regret for the past and fear of the future.” ~Fulton Oursler

These "thieves" rob us of the present moment. It steals from us the opportunity we have to be happy right now in this very moment.  

If you pay close attention, you can hear your thoughts. If YOU are aware of THEM, then who are YOU if not THEM???? If you aren't your thoughts then who are you?? You are the awareness that is aware of the thoughts. This is your true self or spiritual self, essence or being, the consciousness that inhabits the body. The life that you are separate from thought. 


"The ultimate truth of who you are is not I am this or I am that, but I Am."


"The ego is the thinking that thinks it is you. You accept this thinking as your identity because it is all you know. To extricate yourself from the ego you must first see that YOU are different from the thinking."

"Every thought implies a perspective, and every perspective, by its very nature, implies limitation, which ultimately means that it is not true, at least not absolutely."

Upon Further Examination
When you examine your thoughts you notice that most of what we think about ourselves and others comes from erroneous perception and misinterpretation. We only see others on the surface, the rest is made up in our mind and most of it is false. We see ourselves as a reflection of how others perceive us. Maybe that person is thinking bad things about you. Maybe they aren't. Even if they were. Do they know who you are? Maybe on a superficial level or even a little deeper, but not the infinite depth of who you are. The true you. Not the "you", you think or they think you are, the "you" you really are.


The mind is imperfect and thoughts will continue distract us. We can't not think, it's impossible, but we can focus all our thinking on the present moment. Notice the things around you. Notice your breathing. Notice your thoughts as they come into existence. Where do they come from? Why are they there? What brought you to that thought? It's usually another thought. Follow the trail and see where the fear begins.

Vince Vaughn in Wedding Crashers actually gives a great example of how the ego and thought pattern protect him from fears of rejection or awkwardness. It's hilarious, but true how our thoughts keep us from even trying a lot of times. I couldn't post the video for some reason, here's the link to YouTube. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPIsb5Agbjs&feature=related

Consider this example of a possible thought process in a relationship:


"Julia is such a great girl. I love the way she makes me feel. I would hate to loose her. [Fear is introduced with the thought of lose] All the guys gotta think she's hot. They must fantasize about her all the time. Bastards! That David guy is always checking her out. I'd kill that guy if he ever touched her. He IS better looking than me. Julia might think so too. Whatever! I know what I'm worth. I mean she's great but nothing I can't replace. [Notice how the ego goes into defense mode]  I mean Allison has a crush on me too, and she's just as hot. If Julia ever cheated on me, I could just get with Allison. Who knows! Julia could be a money grubbin' whore. I mean maybe. Can't trust anyone!"


The mind has already accused Julia of cheating because of the fear of the pain that comes with being cheated on. Being cheated on it's like a direct attack on someone's self-worth and adequacy. It is subconsciously perceived as if someone were to look at you and say, "You're not good enough!" Also, when we are in relationships, that relationship can become a part of our ego identity, so when it's lost, its feels like part of us is dying. There is suffering in this.  


Now distrust is established and, through false perception, may lead to jealousy, anger, abuse (verbal, emotional, and physical) and finally separation. It all starts with a single thought, one single worry that doesn't go away when you constantly think about future events that haven't even happened. 


Fear is a defense mechanism
So he went from "great girl" to maybe a "whore," all because he protects himself from pain. By worrying he unconsciously makes up possible scenarios of the future. These scenarios will subconsciously play out in his head over and over again giving fuel to the worry and resulting in more negative false perceptions of the actual reality of the situation. The fear of cheating also comes from an establish history of failed relationships and affairs. When your mind is conditioned in a society who knows, from past experience, that 50% of marriages will fail then you expect it to happen. Our media is saturated with images and stories of betrayal and unfaithfulness. Cheating is excepted as a norm of society, so it is also excepted as a norm in our psyche. 


It's like a self-fulfilling prophecy.  
"The self-fulfilling prophecy is, in the beginning, a false definition of the situation evoking a new behaviour which makes the original false conception come 'true'."


We mis-define a situation, such as: 


"Why was Joe talking on the phone with the door closed? He never closes the door. Is he talking to another woman. Maybe Amanda from work. What if he's having an affair?" These thoughts occur naturally, originating from past experiences and deep inner fears. Its ok to have them, but not to react to them because they may cause problems that didn't even exist. 


"Who were you talking to sweetie?"
"Oh my brother, Scott."
"Oh ok, How is he?"


Maybe you believe him, maybe doubt remains. It probably was his brother. Either way fear has been introduced. The ego already began making it's preparation to defend itself from pain. You may even imagine the entire scenario unfold in our mind.


"Although the body is very intelligent, it cannot tell the difference between an actual situation and a thought. It reacts to every thought is if it were a reality."


Once the thought is there, our emotions, which are our reaction to thought, take over. We feel the pain of abandonment and inadequacy all at once, as if the scenario has already transpired. This emotional pain is quite real. You can feel it rush through your body like an anxiety attack would. Now your behavior begins to change around this person. You may misinterpret situations and make accusations more hastily and often. These accusations could lead to fighting and more false perceptions. He may now perceive you as someone you're not. He may think:


"She doesn't trust me. If she can't trust me, then how can I trust her. I can't. I can't really trust anyone. Could she be afraid of me cheating because she knows she's capable of it? She might be cheating on me right now. How would it know? I wouldn't. Well if she does cheat, screw her!" 

Now both of individuals are infected with fear, which could possibly end with both of them cheating and/or separating. Again, it all started with a thought. A pointless random thought about a future that is NOT and a past that is NO LONGER. 


You might be saying right now, "Well that's just the world we live in." or "Welcome to reality!" Just because it is doesn't mean its supposed to be. If you think about it, things are the way they are because we've made them that way, not because they are that way. Reality is obscured by the mind and a conditioned past. The reality is that there exists a reality outside of what we have been conditioned to perceive. 


Some ego behavior is so subtle that you don't even notice it unless you are paying close attention. You may even think yourself free of the ego, more spiritually advanced then others. Our own spirituality can become a stumbling block for us, if we are not careful.  "If I'm right, then someone else has to be wrong." When we see everyone else as wrong, it automatically and subconsciously divides us. It affects how we act around, think about, and talk to other people. Our fear keeps us from loving one another. Instead we judge others. I am guilty of it constantly and even consciously at times. I see how it plays out in my head. Most of it that does happen, happens subconsciously. 


Its always two sided. No one erroneously perceives someone else without being erroneously perceived by that person in return. It happens constantly. From a well known acquaintance to someone you smile at on the street. Even if your encounter only happens for a brief second on a busy sidewalk, within seconds your mind can make up perceptions into the identity of the person. The brain can process data with lightning fast speed, and thoughts run rampant! 


READING
The Power of Now and A New Earth are both available for a few dollars @ Amazon. Here's the link. I'm learning just like everyone. I constantly mistake perception for reality. I've done it for a long time, and it's caused quite a bit of emotional pain in my life. I have felt a much deeper, more real sense of inner peace since I discovered the ego. It's allowed me to see others and myself in a new light of intensified awareness. I'm trying to focus of the present more. I can tell it's helping me overcome the worries I have about an unknown future. Feel free to read along with me and comment.


“The possibility of stepping into a higher plane is quite real for everyone. It requires no force or effort or sacrifice. It involves little more than changing our ideas about what is normal.”
~Deepak Chopra