Thread: Living in the Now

If one truly lives in the moment, does one still have thoughts, or is it a state of thoughtless awareness? From what I understand, living in the moment is to clear your mind of the distractions of thoughts and just experience everything around you with all your senses. But without thoughts, how would you plan things? Or I could be wrong and living in the moment also involves thoughts. Maybe you consciously direct your thoughts while living in the moment. I'm just thinking out loud, but what's your opinion?

Hmmm. Interesting idea... but I don't think anyone can totally live in the now. As you journey through life, your experiences imprint on your psyche and influence your choices/perceptions. I think your definition of "living in the moment" is probably more like "clearing your mind" - like during meditation - and when you do that, yeah you don't really plan anything or think really...

Could you clarify what you mean though?

When else are you living?

I was thinking of if someone were to completely live in the moment 100% of the time, and the implications that might have. But I think my view of living in the moment is too far on the meditation side.

What are you doing right now?

Well, if you lived 100% in the moment, then you'd retain no memory, so you'd have to run entirely on instinctual behavior. You'd only know to eat, sleep, and move, and not very well at that. You wouldn't have any memories or speech... it's be sort of lame really...

Originally Posted by Taosaur

When else are you living?
What are you doing right now?

You could be existing in the moment but so caught up in your thoughts that you are unaware of a lot of what is going on around you. I wouldn't call this living in the now. Right now I'm trying to find a way to stop all these bugs from causing a ruckus at my window as they try to claw their way through the screen.

Originally Posted by bcomp

Well, if you lived 100% in the moment, then you'd retain no memory, so you'd have to run entirely on instinctual behavior. You'd only know to eat, sleep, and move, and not very well at that. You wouldn't have any memories or speech... it's be sort of lame really...

That brings up a question for me: How much can someone live in the moment and yet still accomplish things? It seems to me that living in the moment is something you shouldn't do all the time.

Originally Posted by Schmaven

If one truly lives in the moment, does one still have thoughts, or is it a state of thoughtless awareness? From what I understand, living in the moment is to clear your mind of the distractions of thoughts and just experience everything around you with all your senses. But without thoughts, how would you plan things?

its just the opposite as you have described it

you have described living in the moment as a thoughtless state, as a state where you drop all thought

but living in the moment is a very thoughtful state, where your thoughts are always shouting "WOW!!". because you experience every moment, every moment is new and exciting.

most people on this forum have experienced living in the moment, if only for a brief moment - it normally happens the first time you experience a real vivid lucid dream.

plan ahead? the future is mostly a human concept. a being living in the NOW isn't concerned with the future. the only time that matters is..RIGHT NOW. the truth is, we spend most of our lives for this concept of the future, rather than truly living right now.

" Well, if you lived 100% in the moment, then you'd retain no memory, so you'd have to run entirely on instinctual behavior."

living in the moment simply means you are only concerned with..THE NOW. it doesn't mean you don't retain memory. the idea that you retain no memory is really your own idea, based on nothing. but we have all lived in the moment at some point in our life. and actually, its those moments we remember the most. those moments are the most vivid, the most real. because only when you are aware of all that is happening around you, do you really REMEMBER.

if a being is living in the moment, the NOW, you have to remember our human concept of time is really an illusion. the only time that is existing really, is the time we are experiencing right now. if someone living in the moment thinks about the past, they are essentially reliving the past as if its happening right now. time becomes completely subjective.

"It seems to me that living in the moment is something you shouldn't do all the time."

on the contrary. we should all learn to live in the moment. when we live in the NOW, we realize how much of our daily routine is pointless and meaningless. you no longer wait for a future time to accomplish a future goal. when you are living in the now you want to accomplish your desires, NOW. you stop thinking "ill do it tomorrow". you do it today instead, because only today matters. very successful people, have all lived in the moment, and still do.

losers on the other hand, don't live in the now. they live in some distant past, or living for some imaginary future. life completely passes them by, because they aren't living right now.

living in the moment, or the NOW, is not the same as meditative state of being. in the most meditative state, you are not concerned with the past, future, or even right now. the most meditative state is more about letting go. while living in the now, is really about living and experiencing and doing. the two states can lead to one another though, back and forth.

Look up the novel, Being There by Jerzy Kosinski. Although no one could really live like the main character; he presents the sort of attitude that I think you are trying to describe and can be learned from.

In reality though; I do agree with Taosaur. You are living 'in the moment' since 'the moment' or the present now is all the really exists. I think what you are trying to describe is detaching oneself mentally from the non-existent past and future and becoming fully aware only of what is real (now).

I feel, living in the now largely consists of knowing what the idea of "Now" actually is...

An eternal moment... of which you are eternally a part... Of course, our "realities" and "scenery" inevitably change and fade away as all illusions do... but the eternal moment will never fade...

Trapped within the misidentification of linear time you think that consciousness arose as an effect from the cause of reality and lose sight of your true self... but in the moment you realize cause and effect are also concepts of mind... which means reality, too, is a concept of mind... which means mind, or the ghost in the machine complex, is all there is...

It's that connection which brings with it the awe and goosebumps, for me. It's when you dissociate yourself from all those bubbles of thought, desire, and distraction that keep you from truly identifying your real self in the now... that one's vision becomes clear... lucid...

Thats what truly living in the moment means.

Well Schmaven, you'd probably need to find your own personal balance between living "in the now" and thinking about your previous experiences and your future. It's all an internal struggle really, to find balance and inner peace...

Hey Juroara, I think Schmaven is defining "living in a moment" slightly differently than you are. Your moment where you have heightened awareness comes with self-discovery... if you lived in that instant entirely (like Schmaven says), you would never be able to compare your surroundings to any previous events, you would be hopelessly trapped in one continuous point in time: "the moment." I like your philosophy though, it's similar to mine.

Here's a more detailed exploration:

Great video Taosaur

Originally Posted by juroara

but living in the moment is a very thoughtful state, where your thoughts are always shouting "WOW!!". because you experience every moment, every moment is new and exciting.

plan ahead? the future is mostly a human concept. a being living in the NOW isn't concerned with the future. the only time that matters is..RIGHT NOW. the truth is, we spend most of our lives for this concept of the future, rather than truly living right now.

I think I get it now. One time I was walking to a few miles to friendly's from work, and for the majority of the walk I was just in awe of everything around me. I was conscious of each step I took and of the feel of the wind on my arms, and of everything I saw and smelled. I got goosebumps a few times just from how amazed I was at everything. But I still knew what my destination was.

But you have to have some plan for the future, like a goal or something. For instance, going to college. To decide to go to college requires some planning ahead. I guess when you are planning to do things, you are planning them in the now, so that doesn't require not living in the now.

Originally Posted by juroara

living in the moment, or the NOW, is not the same as meditative state of being. in the most meditative state, you are not concerned with the past, future, or even right now. the most meditative state is more about letting go. while living in the now, is really about living and experiencing and doing. the two states can lead to one another though, back and forth.

My definition of living in the now was flawed.

Integration

I like this thought, and my opinion is this.
Yes when you are living in the moment you are thinking, but you might not be thinking reasonably.
But also not thinking straight can turn out good, and it could turn out BAD.

I like living in the moment, I am not the type of person who plans shit.
I just do it.

Life turns out better, when you act instead of thinking (reasonably)before.
You have more interesting stories to tell your mother, but maybe you would want to edit them if you thought like me...!

To live in the moment is to not.

Originally Posted by Schmaven

My definition of living in the now was flawed.

I'll play fair here and say, there is more than one thing being discussed in this thread!

So I think, there is a difference between living in the 'moment' and living in the NOW *capitals, like I AM*. and maybe this would answer the question of how can a being that lives like this moment be able to measure the experiences, or 'plan' ahead

how does a person living in the moment move forward if there is no measure of what came before? I don't believe there is no measure of what came before. I believe they do and are able to remember, and are able to project what they desire to do next. I think the answer is, reality isn't just limited to what is happening outside of yourself. there are two realities in a way. this duel reality gives them a 'measure' of the moment they are experiencing.

The two realities would be the reality you perceive outside of yourself, or that waking life, and the reality within yourself, that dream like world.

We've talked about that wow experience when you live in the moment of something happening outside of yourself, like when you go for a walk. but what causes this moment? a heightened awareness of all that is happening, a higher consciousness right? What if we take this heightened consciousness and place it in the inner experience?

a normal person thinks about their future, as a thought somewhere fuzzy in the back of their mind.

but a person living in the moment of their thought about their future, experiences it as a dream like reality, happening right now in their head. they see, feel, hear, and experience their desire as clear as day.

what about a memory? our memories are these fuzzy things too happening somewhere in the back of our mind. but what if you lived in the moment of that memory, experiencing it to the fullest, as clear as day? then projected your thoughts to the present time, experiencing the reality happening OUTSIDE your being. then a moment later project your thoughts to the future, the dream inside your mind?

what kind of concept of time would this person have? when they can relive the past and visit their dreamed up future?

me and you can both be in the same room, watching the same show, eating the same dinner, but even then our realities are still different. I think this is important to remember when talking about living in the moment. Your reality is unique, and existing more in your head than anywhere else. After all, even science agrees. Reality at the end of the day is really what our brain experiences.

I think this is where I see a difference in living in the moment, and living in the NOW. You can say, a stupid animal lives in the moment as far as time is concerned. A stupid animal with no concept of the future. The animal just thinks "I'm hungry. I want food now. I need to pee. I want sex now." everything is about right now. The animal doesn't worry over past experiences, or really dream of a future.

But were also talking about a heightened consciousness, not just time. In this case I would say, living in the NOW is living in the moment of your own consciousness. Or rather, being conscious of your own consciousness. Or rather, just BEING. This can happen anywhere, anytime. It can happen in the waking life, while walking.

You see a tree, become aware of all of its leaves, the pattern in which it grew. Then you become aware this is a living thing, I mean, really, really you become aware there is a living thing right now in front of you. Even instantaneously imagining every moment this living thing has gone through, from being born from a seed to growing old. And in the wow experience of becoming conscious of a tree, you become conscious of your own consciousness.

And if you don't quickly shake off this moment and re-enter normality. Then being conscious of your own consciousness would eventually have you drop your human ego all together. Because compared to consciousness, the ego is just an artificial mask we put on. The ego lives in the past, and it lives in the future. But your pure consciousness, YOU, you only exist RIGHT NOW. The ego doesn't live or even exist in the NOW.

And if you were to ask yourself, who am I while living in the NOW, there is only one answer, "I am!"

Have you ever woken up one morning and saw a strange arm on your bed. And you picked up the arm wondering whose arm it was? Then you realized, ohhh..its your arm! It was so asleep you could have sworn it wasn't yours.

Should you ever reach that moment of simply being, it can be frightening, because suddenly everything you thought you were would cease to be. And you can stare at those memories. Examine your whole life. And its no longer 'you' or even 'yours'. Like waking up and seeing that arm. Instead of asking whose hand is that, you would ask whose thoughts are these? Because all there is in the NOW, is You. And everything belonging to the ego becomes foreign, strange, and alien to you, even your own name.

I think that would be the difference between living in the moment, and living in the NOW. One still has a human ego, the other has completely let go of it. But I see a common factor in both, both are about BEING and being conscious. Whether its being conscious of life, or yourself.

I've experienced what you have too, Schmaven. Wouldn't it be nice to experience it every day? Makes life funner yes?

But also I've experienced what SolSkye was talking about. Well the first time, I was just a kid playing with toys in my bedroom. Suddenly for some strange reason, my entire ego was dropped, just BAM dropped. Of course, I'm just a kid, never even heard of an ego before. I asked "who am I?". Then I searched through my own past thoughts, desires and memories, and when the answer wasn't there *because the ego isn't in the now* I became really scared!! Who was I then, if every past memory isn't me, when my own face in the mirror isn't mine? And before I reached the answer you get when the ego is dropped, I screamed NOOOOO!! and snapped myself out of it.

Originally Posted by juroara

And if you don't quickly shake off this moment and re-enter normality. Then being conscious of your own consciousness would eventually have you drop your human ego all together. Because compared to consciousness, the ego is just an artificial mask we put on. The ego lives in the past, and it lives in the future. But your pure consciousness, YOU, you only exist RIGHT NOW. The ego doesn't live or even exist in the NOW.

And if you were to ask yourself, who am I while living in the NOW, there is only one answer, "I am!"

Last night I definitely dropped the ego for a while and was conscious of the 'now' It was incredible. At first it scared the shit out of me, but then I just let it happen kind of like it was a dream and I was just seeing where it would take me. There was no past, no future, just what was around me (really similar to dreaming in a way) I could think of the past, but I couldn't visually think of the past, the present was too real and distracting, taking 100% of my attention. Everything around me just seemed way too real. It was then that I realized I was living in the 'now'

Originally Posted by juroara

Have you ever woken up one morning and saw a strange arm on your bed. And you picked up the arm wondering whose arm it was? Then you realized, ohhh..its your arm! It was so asleep you could have sworn it wasn't yours.

That's happened to me a few times. Sometimes it freaks me out, like when my hand is fully asleep and on my face, and I wake up thinking "wtf, who's hand is on my face?!?" and throw it off, only to have it swing over and hit the wall.

Originally Posted by juroara

Should you ever reach that moment of simply being, it can be frightening, because suddenly everything you thought you were would cease to be. And you can stare at those memories. Examine your whole life. And its no longer 'you' or even 'yours'. Like waking up and seeing that arm. Instead of asking whose hand is that, you would ask whose thoughts are these? Because all there is in the NOW, is You. And everything belonging to the ego becomes foreign, strange, and alien to you, even your own name.

I never examined my life in that state, but my body did not feel like it was a part of me. I identified myself best as consciousness. And when I'd look around at people, I felt like I saw them for who they really are, none of the physical stuff mattered. I also felt connected with everything, almost in a dream kind of way.

Originally Posted by juroara

I've experienced what you have too, Schmaven. Wouldn't it be nice to experience it every day? Makes life funner yes?

Definitely

Has anyone tried living in the now, in the dark? Like walking down a road at night with a perfectly clear sky, and music in the distance.

Originally Posted by Schmaven

If one truly lives in the moment, does one still have thoughts, or is it a state of thoughtless awareness? From what I understand, living in the moment is to clear your mind of the distractions of thoughts and just experience everything around you with all your senses. But without thoughts, how would you plan things? Or I could be wrong and living in the moment also involves thoughts. Maybe you consciously direct your thoughts while living in the moment. I'm just thinking out loud, but what's your opinion?

There is nothing but the moment. So everyone, whether the believe it or not can only live in the moment. The Past is gone forever and the future does not exist. Time is an illusion, and life is a joke.

Originally Posted by grasshoppa

There is nothing but the moment. So everyone, whether the believe it or not can only live in the moment. The Past is gone forever and the future does not exist. Time is an illusion, and life is a joke.

Technically, you can only live in the moment, but psychologically, you can zone out, dwell on the past or future, just be lost in your thoughts, or live in the moment. I would call living in the moment, fully experiencing everything with all your senses. You can't really do that when you're zoned out.

Originally Posted by Schmaven

Technically, you can only live in the moment, but psychologically, you can zone out, dwell on the past or future, just be lost in your thoughts, or live in the moment. I would call living in the moment, fully experiencing everything with all your senses. You can't really do that when you're zoned out.

Your objections hinge on the proposition that your psychology, your thoughts, and your preoccupation are somehow separate from the present moment: a nonsense proposition. Yes, we're stating the obvious when we say that you cannot help but live in the moment.

Let me state it again: you cannot help but live in the present moment.

What we are talking about is, how to realize this everlasting moment.

Originally Posted by Taosaur

Your objections hinge on the proposition that your psychology, your thoughts, and your preoccupation are somehow separate from the present moment: a nonsense proposition. Yes, we're stating the obvious when we say that you cannot help but live in the moment.

Let me state it again: you cannot help but live in the present moment.

Too obvious, but these nubs keep making the same thread.

Originally Posted by grasshoppa

Too obvious, but these nubs keep making the same thread.

Sorry, not all of us can just magically know everything without asking anyone like you.