A Simple Practice In Being Present
We are either being present in the moment or we are lost in a story.
Being Present
By Jim Dreaver
The beauty of a simple practice in being present is that there are no special eyes-closed meditation, yoga or other exotic body movements, restrictive diet, chanting, sacred rituals, or esoteric rites.
It is just a matter of whenever we find ourselves lost in or getting distracted by a thought or “story,” or are having an emotional reaction to someone or something, that we can remember to come down out of our heads and back to the present moment. We come back to experiencing life without a “story” in the way, interfering with our clear perception of what “is” at this moment.
To help us embody this, make it real in our lives, we can affirm the liberation mantra: “We are a pure presence.” Then we take a few deep, slow breaths down into our belly, unlock our knees if we are standing, and feel our feet on the ground. Be alert, yet relaxed, and feel the living presence in our body, the fact that we exist, here, now.
Do the stepping-back practice if it helps. Step back a few inches above and behind our heads, which is more the real us that is pure awareness. Then notice how everything in our awareness, thoughts and stories, the “I” with its endless worries and concerns, and our feelings and emotions comes and goes yet we are always here.
We become aware of our true nature as awareness itself, the conscious existence in which all sounds, sights, sensations, thoughts, stories, even the most personal of stories, come and go, arise and disappear.
We realize and feel ourselves to be the awareness in which everything happens, in which everything comes and goes, shifts and changes. This includes all our thoughts, beliefs, stories, the “I” and ego related thoughts, as well as our emotional reactions.
If the ego “I” is especially persistent in our awareness with its judgments, criticisms, expectations, and negative self-talk, it is easy enough just to step back and love it as opposed to resisting or struggling with it, which only makes it stronger.
Then see how it comes and goes, and let it fade into the background. After all, it’s not the real “us,” the beautiful, powerful people we are. It’s just our reactive ego doing what it does.
If we do this practice enough throughout the day, then eventually we will have the big “ah ha!” We will know ourselves as a pure existence, an awareness in which everything comes goes. We will be awake, at least at this moment, to the love and freedom of our true nature.
Remember too, the more we see how our thoughts and stories come and go, and realize that we are always present, the easier it is to let go of them. The more present we are, the more our thoughts and stories drop away, dissolve, on their own. We don’t even have to let go.
As we learn to see every situation, we find ourselves throughout the day without projecting any story or belief upon it. Any problems or challenges we may face will reveal themselves to us as they are. We will see them with more clarity and insight and will intuitively know what to do about it. At the least, we will have a better idea of the next step we need to take.
We are seeing with the eyes of the universe, and this, above all, is the source of our supreme confidence and trust in life, and our ability to handle whatever challenge may arise. It is just as William Blake, the 18th Century British poet and mystic said:
“If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, Infinite.”
A good reality check is to ask ourselves a specific question at the end of our day. “How present was I today? Did I see things essentially without any story, or was I in my head, identified with and obsessing about this or that?” As we look back on our day, we will notice times when we were present, living in awakened consciousness, versus those when we were lost in thought, in our story when the voice of judgment, expectation, or some other distracting thought was taking over.
Acknowledge what was so, and then come back to just being present, open, and loving at this moment now. Just this moment now. We are either being present, or we are lost in a story.
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About the Author
Jim Dreaver, a native of New Zealand, teaches the art of awakening to the ease, harmony, and flow of our true spiritual nature. He is the author of End Your Story, Begin Your Life, and has taught at Esalen Institute and elsewhere for many years. His own awakening happened in 1995 after a 20-year search, and his guide was European nondual master, Jean Klein. Visit www.jimdreaver.com.
