Peace and happiness are only NOW

[Someone here]

The most effective way to get to enjoy true happiness and inner peace in the future is to build the habit of having inner peace and happiness in the present, right here right now.

The vice versa is also true: sacrificing inner peace now for the sake of the imagined future tends to lead to an unhappy future too.

You are always in the present, meaning the here and now. It is only ever here and it is only ever now. Thus, if you build a habit of valuing the future over the now, and thereby choose to lack inner peace in the now, you always lack the happiness of inner peace because you always be in the now.

[Inliytened1]

11 minutes ago, Someone here said:

The most effective way to get to enjoy true happiness and inner peace in the future is to build the habit of having inner peace and happiness in the present, right here right now.

The vice versa is also true: sacrificing inner peace now for the sake of the imagined future tends to lead to an unhappy future too.

You are always in the present, meaning the here and now. It is only ever here and it is only ever now. Thus, if you build a habit of valuing the future over the now, and thereby choose to lack inner peace in the now, you always lack the happiness of inner peace because you always be in the now.

The interesting thing about this is that it lies in direct opposition to survival.  If you notice, survival is very dependent on planning, and imagining what may come to pass in the future.  For example- if you live in the present completely, you may show up to a gun fight without a gun and be shot.  Now, I bring you the ultimate twist:  would you show up like that and be shot? Or is that something you are imagining about the future? What will actually happen?  Or again - is that another question about the future?  An interesting quandary we find ourselves in.  The struggle with being present and survival.   And you're right- but if you take happiness to its totality you will find it must exclude survival. 

Edited April 4, 2023 by Inliytened1

[Vibes]

16 minutes ago, Inliytened1 said:

The interesting thing about this is that it lies in direct opposition to survival.  If you notice, survival is very dependent on planning, and imagining what may come to pass in the future.  For example- if you live in the present completely, you may show up to a gun fight without a gun and be shot.  Now, I bring you the ultimate twist:  would you show up like that and be shot? Or is that something you are imagining about the future? What will actually happen?  Or again - is that another question about the future?  An interesting quandary we find ourselves in.  The struggle with being present and survival.   And you're right- but if you take happiness to its totality you will find it must exclude survival. 

I had an interesting insight kind of related to this.

I was walking while thinking and scratched my arm on a torn.

This led me to realize that when you are conscious, alert, present, nothing can surprise you. It is like you see it coming from a mile away, before it hits you and by the time it hits you you might be already out of the way.

Edited April 4, 2023 by Vibes

[Someone here]

12 minutes ago, Inliytened1 said:

The interesting thing about this is that it lies in direct opposition to survival.  If you notice, survival is very dependent on planning, and imagining what may come to pass in the future.  For example- if you live in the present completely, you may show up to a gun fight without a gun and be shot.  Now, I bring you the ultimate twist:  would you show up like that and be shot? Or is that something you are imagining about the future? What will actually happen?  Or again - is that another question about the future?  An interesting quandary we find ourselves in.  The struggle with being present and survival.   And you're right- but if you take happiness to its totality you will find it must exclude survival. 

All of that is just mental noise and overthinking.  Which veils the unconditional peace of this very moment.

Don't worry. Your body is the most intelligent machine in the universe. You will eat when you need to .you will fight when you need to.  Or maybe you won't.  Why is that a problem?  It's like you're saying we should be all tensed up in A fight or flight mode 24/7 because..Well.. you never know...the boogeyman might eat you while you are sleeping.   I've discovered this insight yesterday after meditating  for 6 HOURS STRAIGHT!. 

 

[r0ckyreed]

Yeah but don’t confuse that realization with justification for hedonism. Ambition is more important to happiness than these fake spiritual Buddhist gurus realize. If your future looks bleak, you will lose hope and happiness in the present moment. The same thing with trauma. Simply saying that peace is only now is the height of Buddhist stupidity. Telling a trauma survivor that their trauma and past is imaginary is not helpful. Happiness and peace hinges on your life story and narrative not just the present moment. It is all the stories on this moment that make you happy or not. You also need ambition, drive, hope, etc. and all that requires imagining something beyond just this present moment.

Edited April 4, 2023 by r0ckyreed

[Someone here]

7 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

Yeah but don’t confuse that realization with justification for hedonism

What is wrong with "hedonism"? The point of life is to maximize happiness and minimize pain. Nothing else matters,really. 

8 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

If your future looks bleak, you will lose hope and happiness in the present moment.

Where have you ever seen a future? The future is just a fiction In your mind. And this very belief in the future is what obscures happiness in the now. Which is the only thing that exists. And the only thing that will ever exist. 

11 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

The same thing with trauma. Simply saying that peace is only now is the height of Buddhist stupidity.

Trauma is In the past.  I would only concern myself with it If we invented a time machine and are Able to go back in time and prevent it from happening in the first place. 

13 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

Happiness and peace hinges on your life story and narrative not just the present moment. It is all the stories on this moment that make you happy or not. You also need ambition, drive, hope, etc. and all that requires imagining something beyond just this present moment

False.  it is the story of the time (past and future) that is preventing you from happiness in the now. 

There is absolutely nothing wrong with your life right now. But if you think about it.. There is. Therefore, stop thinking. 

[Inliytened1]

26 minutes ago, Vibes said:

I had an interesting insight kind of related to this.

I was walking while thinking and scratched my arm on a torn.

This led me to realize that when you are conscious, alert, present, nothing can surprise you. It is like you see it coming from a mile away, before it hits you and by the time it hits you you might be already out of the way.

Yes.  You are in the zone.   But yet - we need to plan for the future and think ahead in this realm, else we are doomed.  To his point, this doesn't have to conflict with happiness.  But ultimately, imagining what could be - it does conflict with your happiness, because you aren't living in the present.   The key is to keep it at a minimum.   The same goes for the past.  Live for the now.  Except - if you notice, the now will always escape your grasp.

[Inliytened1]

29 minutes ago, Someone here said:

All of that is just mental noise and overthinking.  Which veils the unconditional peace of this very moment.

Don't worry. Your body is the most intelligent machine in the universe. You will eat when you need to .you will fight when you need to.  Or maybe you won't.  Why is that a problem?  It's like you're saying we should be all tensed up in A fight or flight mode 24/7 because..Well.. you never know...the boogeyman might eat you while you are sleeping.   I've discovered this insight yesterday after meditating  for 6 HOURS STRAIGHT!. 

 

Indeed.  But you cannot survive off just being.....in this realm, thinking cannot be escaped- thus establishing a firm veil over reality.

Edited April 4, 2023 by Inliytened1

[Someone here]

5 minutes ago, Inliytened1 said:

Indeed.  But you cannot survive off just being.....in this realm, thinking cannot be escaped- thus establishing a firm veil over reality.

Of course you can't stop thinking permanently. You can't stop thinking even for one minute. But thats not the point. It is not that you have to stop thinking. You have to create a gap between thoughts and awareness. If you put a distance between the intrinsic silence of your awareness (which is the natural state of mind, just like when you are sleeping) and thoughts, then you notice that thoughts are just gibberish. You are allowed to think when you need to. This happens automatically. You are not even the thinker of thoughts. 

[r0ckyreed]

9 hours ago, Someone here said:

What is wrong with "hedonism"? The point of life is to maximize happiness and minimize pain. Nothing else matters,really. 

Contemplate what the problems of hedonism are.  The purpose of life isn't maximizing pleasure.  There are things more deeper to reality and much more meaningful than pleasure/pain.  Spirituality is the pursuit of those things deeper than pleasure/happiness.

9 hours ago, Someone here said:

Where have you ever seen a future?

The future is not something you see but something you imagine.

9 hours ago, Someone here said:

The future is just a fiction In your mind. And this very belief in the future is what obscures happiness in the now. Which is the only thing that exists. And the only thing that will ever exist. 

Your taxes are also a fiction in your mind too, but you still gotta pay them.  Your happiness hinges on certain things like that. Don't lie!

It depends on the texture of your belief in the future.  If you are depressed now but have a hopeful and positive future to work towards, you will be much happier with the idea of the future than being stuck in the now.  What do you think dreams and passions are?  If you are always in the present moment, you are going to limit your potential in life.  Happiness is found in the present moment (because that is all there is) but a trap is thinking that we should never have dreams and plan for the future.  Consciousness is capable of dreaming the future, so you might as well explore that since it is part of reality.  

9 hours ago, Someone here said:

Trauma is In the past.  I would only concern myself with it If we invented a time machine and are Able to go back in time and prevent it from happening in the first place. 

Everything happens in the Now.  Even trauma happens in the Now.  You should concern yourself with it if you have it because if you don't process your traumas, they will prevent you from being happy.

9 hours ago, Someone here said:

False.  it is the story of the time (past and future) that is preventing you from happiness in the now. 

There is absolutely nothing wrong with your life right now. But if you think about it.. There is. Therefore, stop thinking. 

Depends on what your story is and what story you want to create.  As long as you are alive, you will have a personal identity and ego of some kind, which means you will have a life narrative in background awareness.  It is about creating your life in alignment with what kind of person you want to be.  Some people will never be happy meditating in a cave for 20 years and some people do.  

It is important to challenge the religious/philosophical ideologies on happiness because they are all biased to various degrees.  A Buddhist will tell you to stop thinking, but you need to seriously contemplate whether that is just another form of spiritual bypassing and sweeping the problems under the rug.  True happiness to me comes from using my mind in creative and insightful ways that expand my curiosity, wonder, creativity, insight, play, contemplation, etc.  The idea of shutting down the mind and stopping all thoughts seems very toxic because most people have not even begun to develop their minds.  

Edited April 5, 2023 by r0ckyreed

[M A J I]

If you can hold and carry a specific vibration throughout the day that will eventually become the dominant energy/reflection/experience.

Edited April 5, 2023 by M A J I

[OldManCorcoran]

There must be a lot of people SERIOUSLY suffering, trying to find solace in whatever spiritual shit.

[Someone here]

19 hours ago, r0ckyreed said:

Contemplate what the problems of hedonism are.  The purpose of life isn't maximizing pleasure.  There are things more deeper to reality and much more meaningful than pleasure/pain.  Spirituality is the pursuit of those things deeper than pleasure/happiness.

I didn't say "pleasure" because that's obviously a trap. You Can become a Cocaine addict If all you care about is getting a dopamine high or getting intoxicated. 

I said Happiness. Happiness is the end and ultimate goal of life. If spirituality doesn't make you happy then you are doing It wrong. 

There are no problems with hedonism if define as the the pursuit of happiness. For some people praying to God produces more happines than having sex or eating an ice cream. 

19 hours ago, r0ckyreed said:

The future is not something you see but something you imagine.

Exactly. That is my point. 

19 hours ago, r0ckyreed said:

but you still gotta pay them.  Your happiness hinges on certain things like that. Don't lie!

It depends on the texture of your belief in the future.  If you are depressed now but have a hopeful and positive future to work towards, you will be much happier with the idea of the future than being stuck in the now.  What do you think dreams and passions are?  If you are always in the present moment, you are going to limit your potential in life.  Happiness is found in the present moment (because that is all there is) but a trap is thinking that we should never have dreams and plan for the future.  Consciousness is capable of dreaming the future, so you might as well explore that since it is part of reality

What will happen will happen. And What happened has happened. You cannot change the outcome, but you can make sure the memories of the outcome don’t control your present-day life. It takes persistence, fortitude, and practice, but it can be done.

Please remember this: What happened in the past and what will happen in the future isn’t who and where you are today. Live in the present. That’s the best advice I have, I’m afraid. Hope it helps. 

19 hours ago, r0ckyreed said:

Depends on what your story is and what story you want to create.  As long as you are alive, you will have a personal identity and ego of some kind, which means you will have a life narrative in background awareness.  It is about creating your life in alignment with what kind of person you want to be.  Some people will never be happy meditating in a cave for 20 years and some people do.  

It is important to challenge the religious/philosophical ideologies on happiness because they are all biased to various degrees.  A Buddhist will tell you to stop thinking, but you need to seriously contemplate whether that is just another form of spiritual bypassing and sweeping the problems under the rug.  True happiness to me comes from using my mind in creative and insightful ways that expand my curiosity, wonder, creativity, insight, play, contemplation, etc.  The idea of shutting down the mind and stopping all thoughts seems very toxic because most people have not even begun to develop their minds.  

Just monkey mind. I'm trying to show you a paradigm shift.. There is a whole new dimension of uninterrupted peace and serenity in just taking a moment to become still. And you are all over the place "ya but this ya but that". It's never gonna work. You have to try it to know. 

[r0ckyreed]

56 minutes ago, Someone here said:

I said Happiness. Happiness is the end and ultimate goal of life. If spirituality doesn't make you happy then you are doing It wrong. 

Do you care more about Truth or being happy? What are you going to do if the Truth is gonna hurt you? Spirituality is not strictly about happiness. But rather happiness is a side effect or outcome of doing proper spirituality. Spirituality is all about Truth-Realization and your existential connection to reality. Spirituality should challenge you deeply if you are doing it right. Don’t expect the same kind of happiness as playing a video game. The happiness for spirituality is much more mature. Spirituality is about truth not strictly happiness.

I am familiar with the paradigm you are describing. I am trying to show the flaws and ways you can bust through the Buddhist dogma. The only way you are really gonna be truly happy is by having independence of mind and leading your own path. But I guess I can only speak for myself here.

Edited April 5, 2023 by r0ckyreed

[Javfly33]

On 04/04/2023 at 6:10 PM, Someone here said:

The most effective way to get to enjoy true happiness and inner peace in the future is to build the habit of having inner peace and happiness in the present, right here right now.

The vice versa is also true: sacrificing inner peace now for the sake of the imagined future tends to lead to an unhappy future too.

You are always in the present, meaning the here and now. It is only ever here and it is only ever now. Thus, if you build a habit of valuing the future over the now, and thereby choose to lack inner peace in the now, you always lack the happiness of inner peace because you always be in the now.

That's gold man. Very good said. 

Its better said that done but yeah that's definitely the way.

I think we lacking tools in all this work overall.

People all talking about awakening and such but they are not blissful, joyful inside. At the end their body will hit the soil like any other and where do they expect to 'exchange' all that 'profound understanding' anyways?

44 minutes ago, r0ckyreed said:

Do you care more about Truth or being happy? What are you going to do if the Truth is gonna hurt you? Spirituality is not strictly about happiness. But rather happiness is a side effect or outcome of doing proper spirituality. Spirituality is all about Truth-Realization and your existential connection to reality. Spirituality should challenge you deeply if you are doing it right. Don’t expect the same kind of happiness as playing a video game. The happiness for spirituality is much more mature. Spirituality is about truth not strictly happiness.

With all due respect: You guys are so full of shit man. 

 

 

[Yimpa]

On 4/4/2023 at 11:10 AM, Someone here said:

You are always in the present, meaning the here and now. It is only ever here and it is only ever now. Thus, if you build a habit of valuing the future over the now, and thereby choose to lack inner peace in the now, you always lack the happiness of inner peace because you always be in the now.

I’m totally lost.