Presence

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom”. I love this quote because I have always been fascinated by knowledge, wisdom, life and people. As someone who has admittedly been a constant planner, most of my life, I have spent much of it somewhere in the future or often thinking of the past, realising that I was never fully living in the moment. As I practice more Yoga, read, learn, experience life through each decade I see more of who I am than I ever have.  I am more authentically me because I know myself better than I ever did. So, “knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom” I truly relate to.

Learning more about ourselves  often requires us to ask questions, to observe ourselves and be open to what we find or see.  Are you someone who is always focusing on the next step, the future, rather than the step you are taking now? Or are you focusing on what was in the past, looking back at better times, a younger you, past mistakes?

Do you ever allow yourself to be present? Right here, right now? Our practice over the last 5/6 weeks has been about trying to cultivate presence. Of being in the here and now, this very moment. By being more present in day to day living you will actually become more aware of yourself. To notice certain things, you may not have noticed before.

Honing your presence skills brings to mind the D.O.T Theory.

Do

One

Thing.   Be all in, focus on the presence you give, when you do one thing.

When we do this, we are moving from thinking, to feeling to being. Moving into the timeless.

Here’s 4 tips to develop Presence

1. Frequency – how often during the day do you remember to be present? The goal is to shorten the between times of that presence once you get yourself doing it.
2. Duration – how long are able to stay present? Start of small with a very short duration.
3. Intensity – means the quality and energy of your will to be present. The way of the Buddha was the way of alert relaxation. Make like the Buddha and put some energy behind it.
4. Depth – the degree of stillness and clarity of our presence. The more you practice the better you will get and your life will light up in ways that are so simple but beautiful.

So, start small, add presence into something that you already do daily eg. eating a meal, brushing your teeth, making coffee/tea, and go through the above process.

Some great quotes from class over the past few weeks

“Wherever you are be totally there”

“Stop measuring days by degree of productivity and start experiencing them by degree of presence – Alan Watts

“If you are making tea, then make tea. If you are washing dishes, then wash dishes.  If you are spending time with those you love, then just do that”

“Most humans are never fully present in the now because unconsciously they believe that the next moment must be more important than this one. But then you miss your whole life, which is never, not now”. Eckhart Tolle.

“When think about life remember this………….no amount of feelings of guilt can solve the past. No amount of anxiety can change the future. Set yourself free by being present, in this very moment”.

“It takes sadness to know happiness, noise to appreciate silence, absence to value presence”

And as always, thank you for coming to class.

K xxx