The Present Moment

Detached from reference to the past, expectation for the future, and live in every present moment. You have been told numerous times that this is Zen. But can you do it?

When I first read the Zen text published here in the US, I have been exposed to one central idea — living in the present moment. The past has gone — let bygones be bygones. The future has yet to come — no need to construct fantasies. This is true, and I believe many readers have benefited from it.

They say, this practice is the key to liberating all sufferings. They also say, a Buddha, as living fully in the present, when he is looking he is all eyes. When he is listening he is all ears.

This however remains an elusive idea until I met the Zen Master. He demonstrates the true living in the present moment. So gracefully, effortlessly, and naturally, without any sign or intention of demonstration. He shows that living in the present is not mentally draw your attention to the present moment. He shows that it is not a mental game. He shows that it is the whole entity of you when you are purified in body and mind.

A dedicated attention to each of hundreds of pictures in the album blurs the boundary between time and timeless. There is no need to hurry, no need to be impatient. His focus on everything and every moment presented to him is moving.

Every encounter is a unique encounter by itself. Every question asked is a unique question by itself. He answers each question as it is, without conjecturing the intention beyond this question, or who asked this question.

Numerous instances in just two days, quietly present what living in the present moment is, for those who are careful enough to notice.

Too many books on the present moment, too few on how to actually achieve it. The theory is always more intellectually entertaining. You can write hundreds of pages on what the present moment is, in various contexts of daily experiences. But you probably need only a dozen of pages to teach people meditation techniques and methodologies. The rest is beyond words, and it’s very personal experience.

We need a book on methodology, not theory anymore.