Be Here Now!

Sometimes, the simplest things in life are the hardest.

Here’s an example: Be here now!

If you are stressed, anxious, or emotionally triggered, it’s usually because of something you are thinking about.

When we take a vacation from thought, we find ourselves at peace.

Try it, right now!  

Set your phone or tablet down, take a slow, deep breath, let it out, and simply relax for a moment.

Did it work?

If not, it’s probably because letting go of thoughts, especially emotionally charged ones, is really hard! Sadly, a no-cost solution to stress is freely available, yet rather than taking advantage of it, we go on expensive vacations, overeat, buy things we don’t need, and/or consume alcohol or drugs.

Evelyn Underhill was a prominent early 20^th-century writer known for her numerous works on Christian mysticism. I don’t remember where I stumbled upon her 1914 book, Practical Mysticism,  but this little book had a significant impact on my life. 

Underhill defines a mystic as a person who “seeks union with reality.” I had no idea what she meant, but it sounded enticing. 

So what does it mean?

Reality is what is happening in the present moment. Therefore, according to Underhill, a mystic is a person who seeks union with what is happening right now! That didn’t sound very mysterious to me until I tried it. 

Seeking union with the present moment requires bringing our attention to it, which is something most of us aren’t accustomed to. 

Why is that?

The answer is that our minds are filled with thoughts, and thoughts take us away from what is happening around us right now!  Thoughts involve former learnings, experiences, conceptualizations, or future-related plans and anxieties. Thought is the antithesis of presence.

So what’s the big deal about seeking union in what’s happening now?

In the absence of thought, the present moment brings us to the simple feeling of being, in other words, the essence of being alive; something that strangely most of us never fully experience.

Awareness is sticky; it will attach to virtually anything. Have you ever gotten pine sap on your fingers? Awareness works the same way, generating thoughts that bounce around in our heads like a golf ball hit in a marble room.

What if we could rinse those thoughts away? After reading Underhill’s book, I decided to give it a go.

It took far more practice than I expected! In fact, my first experience of completely letting go of thought was accidental. It occurred during a meditation practice, while focusing on a mantra. Bringing one’s full attention to anything takes a lot of practice. Over time, however, I became increasingly accustomed to bringing my full attention to the mantra. One day, without intending to do so, I let go of the mantra, and Viola, I experienced total immersion in the present moment, or in Underhill’s words, “union with reality.” 

Here’s the surprising thing. Accompanied with this accidental union was an indescribable bliss. I’ve read that people who have a near-death experience describe it as approaching a featureless white light accompanied by indescribable peace. Afterwards, they report losing the fear of death. 

Amazingly, this describes my experience of union with reality (minus the white light). It was that peaceful! With practice, I found that I could revisit this experience, not at will, but often enough to make the practice worthwhile. 

The singer-songwriter Shawn Mullen has a lyric that summarizes what I’m trying to get at:

Is it all in my head?

Is it all in my head?

Could everything be alright,

Without me knowing?

My answer is an emphatic yes! I explain this in depth in my new book, “The Secret Within.” There is an embedded, yet often overlooked, wisdom in life. We think we can outsmart it, but that’s a fool’s errand. When we learn to be truly present, our troubles melt away.

Consider this question: Why is pausing and taking a few deep cleansing breaths relaxing?

The answer, I suspect, is that for a brief moment, we divert our attention away from the multitude of thoughts, which, like a flock of noisy birds, take up residence in our awareness. Reality, in the absence of those noisy birds, is bliss.

Tragically, we miss this paradise because of the constant distraction of thought. 

I wouldn’t be surprised if all this makes no sense. If that’s the case, maybe it’s because you’re thinking about it!

Be here now!

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Former blog posts can be found here by subject category and here chronologically. 

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My first book, Towards A Life Well-Lived, can be purchased by clicking this link. Proceeds from sales are donated to Peace In Schools, a Portland, Oregon-based organization that supports mindfulness training in high schools. 

Stay tuned for my new book, The Secret Within, which I expect to make available in time for the Holidays.