Ever wonder about the meaning of being fully present and in the moment? Is this an attitude or a concrete element of awareness? Is this something everyone can experience, or is it limited? Find out the answers to these and other interesting questions.
Are You Present?
One of the most critical questions on the path of self-development concerns our state of awareness, our abiity to be present. Presence is an essential ingredient of awareness. The quality of “Presence” enables the real you to show up instead of allowing the ego to run the show.
“The eternal and the temporal meet in harmony when we are present. The Observer is front and center, which enables us to experience life to its fullest. ” — Guru Tua
Experiencing life to its fullest is one great reason to engage our awareness in “active presence.” From this vantage point, it heightens both external and self-observational ability. It’s the way we are intended to live. So, yes, it is available to everyone. We need to know how to set aside the default machinery of awareness and take back the wheel.
The Real You
Who or what are you? We understand that our ego is just a tool that connects our consciousness to this marvelous instrument of our bodies. This machinery is comprised of our personalities and instincts.
Many people identify so deeply with these aspects of the ego that they think “they are their personality,” but this isn’t true. If you have a personality disorder, it will take over your thinking. However, most people can learn to disengage this autopilot and take back the steering wheel.
Our internal dialogue is a clue to who and what we really are. The person listening to your thinking is what some call the Observer. In spiritual traditions, it’s known as the Spirit or Soul.
“The soul is the Observer who interprets and makes choices in a confluence of relationships. These relationships provide the background, setting, characters, and events that shape the stories of our lives.” — Deepak Chopra
Being “present” indicates that the Observer is in the driver’s seat of awareness. People will ask, what does it feel like to have the Observer in control of awareness?
The Meaning of Being Fully Present in the Moment
Being present is a concrete state of awareness; it is not just an attitude. The quality of presence is a tangible frame of reference.
“The real you, the inner you, is pure, very pure. It’s loving, and it’s magnanimous. It understands. It has patience. It is tolerant-it will wait forever while your ego trots all over everywhere trying to figure life out. It is pleasing to remember that back home there is a friend who’s waiting for you to stop being silly, who’s waiting to welcome you with open arms if and when you show up.” — Stuart Wilde
The meaning of being fully present and in the moment is to be deliberately aware. We are aware of our Being, our external senses and internal resources, our sixth sense, intuition, and emotions. Our minds are exquisitely designed. They can simultaneously expand and hold all these elements.
There is a point of harmony between the eternal and the temporal; it is the sweet spot of awareness we call presence. See how to stop living your life on autopilot and move into the beauty of presence.
How to Reach Presence
There is more than one way to be present. A traumatic event, meditation, or even a glimpse of a fantastic sunset can jolt you into the present.
Almost any experience can be a doorway to presence. These are the calling cards of our Observer. It’s trying to tell us to pay attention. It’s asking us to wake up! It’s asking the question, are you present?
Presence reveals the beauty of our true inner nature, and it has a way of allowing the best aspects of ourselves to come to the surface. Many people feel a sense of harmony with others and nature when they are present. It’s an almost undefinable simple joy. It’s the state in which everyone should live.
The experience of this level of awareness is different for everyone. We are all unique. We can observe the same thing with others, but our inner experience differs. So,” the meaning of being fully present in the moment is the joy of being the Observer. We’ll talk more about this perspective in a moment.
So, the question is, are you present? If you aren’t living with a sense of harmony and joy, there’s a problem.
Most adults don’t think they are beautiful. However, if you ask a child, they will tell you, “Of course I’m beautiful.” Something happens to change their self-image between early childhood and adolescence. And that something is the culture. Many stereotypes and negative social programming distort our perception of who we are.
The Problem — Living on Autopilot
Why do we live most of our lives on autopilot, missing these opportunities? Our soul seeks and craves these moments when we live in the present. However, our mind wants to maintain control, so it presents counterfeits to keep us busy.
Our mind substitutes counterfeit superficial desires for the soul’s needs, which is precisely why material possessions often seem empty when we finally get them. It’s known as buyer’s remorse.
We feel the ache in our spirit when we’ve tried to substitute the temporal for the eternal. We can experience reality with less interference from personality and instinct when we are present.
Being Present in the Moment is the Solution
How do we move beyond this cycle of being led by the mind’s counterfeit desires? How do we gain control of the vehicle rather than just riding in the backseat? We can take back control by learning about ourselves through a systematic process like the Enneagram of Personality. This process uses a scientifically validated questionnaire to identify our personality and instincts. In doing so, we learn these Ego mechanisms are just tools of consciousness.
So, it’s easier for most people to rely on the default mode of living to distance themselves from the values they place on themselves because of the negativity. We aren’t attractive enough, smart enough, or rich enough to meet the unreasonable standards of an unhealthy society.
These mechanisms of personality are tools. They are NOT who we are. The mind wants to maintain control because it is temporary and not eternal. So, it presents the elements of ego, our personality, and instincts as substitutes. The mind knows it is not infinite.
The Observer is the Real You! It’s that person you talk to inside your heart. It’s who is experiencing life. The ancients called it spirit, soul, and Observer. It’s a universal perspective that takes us beyond temporary circumstances.
The Observer is the thread of consciousness that makes us real. Our childlike innocence comes from the uncluttered connection with this Source. The meaning of being fully present in the moment” allows the real you to show up. It makes us happy for no reason. It’s not circumstances but our beautiful presence that comes forward to observe our lives.
There are many theories about who we are and why we are here. Many ancient traditions tell us these basic questions prompt us to take the Hero’s Journey, which encourages us to explore the unknown. To do this, we need to take back the steering wheel. We need to take back control of our awareness. We need to learn what triggers our emotions and what it takes to calm the mind so we can be in the driver’s seat.
When We Are Present
There are several ways we can connect with the pure consciousness that is the essence of our Being. Meditation is the most direct way to experience the silence of bliss consciousness. We can bring some of this awareness into activity by bringing our attention to our bodies and breath.
Being present isn’t hard to do. We just need to make it a good habit. So, here are some simple but effective ways to increase your presence. Use a kitchen timer. Set it for 3 hours. Put a sticky note on the refrigerator reminding you to “be present.” Move the timer to different places in your house. Place sticky notes on sites that you will come across during the day. The value and meaning of being fully present in the moment will become an asset.
Best of all, if you are not at home but have a smartphone, set a reminder on your smartwatch every 3 hours. In the reminder, write the three-word question: are you present?
You can use a simple form of beginning meditation to bring awareness to the present moment. It will also keep you “present” and aware for several minutes after the mediation. Being present makes you feel better. It encourages rational versus emotional thinking.
We are not new to discovering the value of presence. Many ancient traditions developed techniques for achieving and maintaining it.
In Conclusion
You want the real you to show up every day; that’s how you get the most out of life. There is a point of harmony between the eternal and the temporal. It occurs when we find the sweet spot of awareness we call presence. It’s what the world is waiting for us to discover.
Our soul desires to live in this beautiful place, which happens when we are present. Showing up isn’t that hard. All we need to do is remember to do it. Set a reminder prompting you to ask, are you present? Allow the real you, the Observer, to show up. Make the meaning of being fully present in the moment a reality.