When we are caught in psychological problems, such as self-concern, the time factor plays a crucial part in it. ‘Tomorrow’ is obviously imagined. Then, we imagine ourselves (as mind-body appearance) in this fictitious tomorrow. This personal movie about tomorrow (and also yesterday), in most cases, fascinates us. Admittedly, we are the only audience in this personal movie theatre. When we get tired of the drama in it, with us alternating as the hero and the loser, we may yearn to get back to ‘real’ life, devoid of this type of fictitious drama.
The way back is to realise that it is an internal movie only. When this is seen, then the attention will turn again – via the senses – to what’s happening right now and a natural, wordless appreciation for being alive (right now) will take over again. This seems to be easy to understand but most people cling to their dreamlike identification with the hero and occasional loser. The absence of imagined importance that comes with letting go of the hero/loser deters most people from having a less stressful and more fulfilling life experience.
Past
Memory Patterns
The apparent moment is not continuous, it just appears to be continuous because the ‘moment’, meaning ‘momentum’, or movement, replicates itself very often. Say, a stone looks the same as ‘a minute’ ago because the momentary energy waves that result in the appearing of a stone repeat the same wave pattern. There are questions regarding the memory of these patterns. For example: if waves ‘follow’ a certain pattern (say, the stone pattern), is that pattern prior to time? In Eastern esoteric science, the field of memories/patterns is called ‘Akasha’. It is the field of all possible patterns. It is ‘between’ the Absolute/Freedom/No-one and its appearances. Most modern nondual messengers do not touch that subject. Anyway, the message that there is ‘no-one’ still applies. No one (no separate entity) appears as ‘whatever is happening’ or the expressing of patterns.
(in response to a comment on YouTube)
Substance
In response to a question
I can’t confirm that the non-dual has created a substance. I agree that it appears so. The mind tends to believe it. (I don’t.) Everything is really empty but appears to be not empty, particularly if the mind continuously refers to the believed-in past to confirm that there is substance in the presence. These assumptions are projected into a non-existing present as if that present was a section out of time. In reality, the present is timeless, non-dual awareness. If anything could be termed ‘substance’ I’d say it is the timeless that is ’empty substance’. The mind will think that this statement is based on fantasy whereas nondual seeing ‘says’ that believing in matter is based on fantasy.
Worry
Am not terribly interested in philosophy as such. Appearances are happening, that is not a philosophy. That activities come and go is also not a theory. The bondage, one could say, is diverting the attention from ‘whats happening’ to identifying with an action figure in imagined events in ‘the past’ or ‘future.’ Sure, such an identification can also only happen NOW, but the mistake is happening if this is not seen to be the case. There can be a common belief that we ARE the past action figure and that we are a future action figure, and with that belief comes
1. the worry about our body’s future well-being
2. the overlooking of what is happening now
3. the overlooking of what we really are, namely, the looking itself (Francis of Assisi: ‘What’s looking is what we are looking for.’) The looking itself is the natural freedom (not a philosophy 🙂 ! ) The looking is timeless, looking at the dream-like construct of time, not believing it.
(in response to Gail’s question on Facebook)
