What It Means To Live In The Present Moment? and How to Do It?
I am sure you’ve probably heard many times the Age-old advice of living in the present moment, Living in the NOW.
We hear it from everywhere because this one practice holds tremendous benefits, and beyond the benefits, it is said that it is the only right way to live.
You might be thinking that this all sounds great, but what does it actually mean to “live in the present moment?” How could we be living in anything but the present? Read on to find out!
What Does it Mean to Live in the Present Moment?
Being in the present moment, or in the “NOW”, means that we are fully aware or conscious and mindful of what is happening at this very moment.
We are not distracted by constant ruminations on the past or worries about the future, but all of our attention is focused on the present moment, centered on the here and now.
The majority of our suffering is rooted in our disconnection from the present moment. The root of the disconnection is the dysfunction of our own abilities that nature gave us for our benefit.
We are gifted by nature with the amazing ability to remember our past experiences and the ability to imagine a future in our minds that has not even happened.
Our ability to remember past experiences allows us to learn from them, grow, and make informed decisions based on our past knowledge.
Our ability to imagine a future that has not yet happened opens up endless possibilities. It enables us to set goals, make plans, and work towards creating a better future for ourselves and others.
The development humanity has reached until now is through the power of these faculties of the mind.
However, Mother Nature probably did not intend that it would also turn out to be a source of misery for us.
For instance, we may constantly dwell on past events or worry excessively about the future, which can lead to feelings of regret, anxiety, or fear.
We may also get caught up in our thoughts and emotions, becoming overwhelmed by negative thinking or getting stuck in repetitive patterns of behaviour that perpetuate our suffering.
When we are disconnected from the present moment, we may also miss out on the beauty and joy that can be found in everyday experiences.
Simple yet beautiful things such as the beauty of a sunset, the laughter of a child, the feeling of rain on our skin — these experiences can only be fully appreciated in the present.
We may fail to appreciate the simple pleasures of life or overlook the positive aspects of our lives.
You may not even realize it, but this tendency to get sucked into the past and the future can leave you perpetually exhausted and feeling out of touch with yourself leading you to an unfulfilled life.
The way out of this condition is what so many people have been saying all along. It is the — Conscious awareness and a commitment to living in the “NOW.”
Living in the present moment is the solution to the problem you may not have known you had because you think that problems — the subtle anxiety, fear, and depression, all are part and package of being a normal human, that it’s natural- It’s Not.
By embracing the present moment, we can discover a different path towards mental well-being and a more fulfilled life.
Why this much emphasis on the present moment, in the NOW? Simply because it’s all that exists.
Life unfolds exclusively in the present moment.
Eckhart Tolle, the enlightened spiritual teacher and author of the book — The Power of Now, (which I highly recommend you read) said,
Not Only Eckhart, this is the wisdom of all sages and realized men of History.
Everything that happens, happens in the present moment. Everything that ever happened and will ever happen can only happen in the present moment. It is impossible for anything to exist outside of it as it is the nature of our existence. The present remains the constant factor.
If we consistently miss the current moment, we’ll miss it later as well. That means we miss our whole life.
Yet, understanding this intellectually is not enough. We must internalize this truth, allowing it to become a natural part of our daily lives.
It’s about transforming our understanding into a living practice.
And NOW, Practice!
This is where the art of mindfulness enters, a practice that has been handed down through millennia, yet remains as relevant as ever.
Mindfulness is the tool through which we anchor ourselves in the ‘NOW’.
It is the act of bringing one’s complete attention to the present experience on a moment-to-moment basis.
It is about being fully present in our actions, fully aware in our conversations, and fully engaged with our current environment.
This can be as simple as feeling the texture of the food we eat, listening to the subtle tones in a friend’s voice or the sounds of our surroundings, or noticing the weight of our body as we sit in a chair, feeling the temperature in the room, or the wind that caress our skin.
It encourages us to observe our breath, our thoughts, our movements, and our senses without judgment or distraction.
Through mindfulness, we can catch ourselves when our thoughts drift to the ‘what ifs’ of the future or the ‘if onlys’ of the past. We can gently remind ourselves to return to the present, to this moment, to the now.
The past is unchangeable, and the future is unpredictable. In the ‘NOW’, we have power — the power to act, to decide, to love, to touch, to feel, to experience.
It’s a simple concept, yet its effects are profound.
When we live in the present, we live where life is happening.
So how do we start? It begins with a decision, a commitment to ourselves that we want to live differently. We want to live fully.
The practice of mindfulness can start small: a minute of deep breathing in the morning, a conscious effort to listen when someone speaks to us, or a quiet walk without our phone.
It can begin the moment you notice your mind has wandered off into the past or future. At that moment, gently guide your attention back to the present. These acts are like seeds that, when nurtured, grow into a garden of presence that can transform our lives.
The beauty of this practice is that it can be woven into the fabric of our daily lives. It doesn’t require us to sit in a meditation posture with closed eyes for hours in a day. It can be practised while washing dishes, cooking a meal, while walking to the bus stop, or while working on a work-related project etc, etc. Each moment is an opportunity to be present.
It’s not about never planning for the future or reflecting on a past event — it’s about choosing when to do so and doing it mindfully with a calm and steady mind.
Moreover, living in the present moment allows us to engage with life’s challenges in a more effective way. Instead of reacting out of fear or habit, we respond with conscious awareness. We become better listeners, more empathetic friends, and more compassionate human beings. We make wiser choices because we are not driven by the unconscious patterns of our past.
Let us embrace the now with the fullness of our being, for it is in these moments that our lives are truly lived. Let us not wait for some distant future to find peace and joy. They are here, they are now, in the gentle unfolding of each moment of our life.
In essence, to live in the present moment is to live in alignment with life itself, it is the art of living itself — and isn’t that what we all seek?
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