“This is the simple secret of happiness. Whatever you are doing, don’t let past move your mind; don’t let future disturb you. Because the past is no more, and the future is not yet. To live in the memories, to live in the imagination, is to live in the non-existential. And when you are living in the non-existential, you are missing that which is existential. Naturally you will be miserable, because you will miss your whole life.”
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
There is an old Indian saying 'nivek' that a Red Indian is never caught in the same trap twice. In life we are told to 'watch our backs' and we only learn that from past experience.
I am afraid that personally I do live in the imagination because I work on 'Controlled Imagination' Incorrect...the past is ALIVE and if you are trained, you can touch a rock and a dozen past images spring to life. Nothing dies (I quote Elephant Man the film) Everything we do or say has it's repercussion and leaves a mark in the present.
There is also an old saying that if you learn by the past then the future will take care of itself.
When we get older, we cherish our past memories because all we have to look forward to is pain and emotional suffering. We cling on to the Happy Days a sto rejuvenate ourselves.
I have been both poor and rich and when I was poor I was happy. There was an aim to move forward by learning from having nothing.
I learn't to 'kick back' because I had to and I am still kicking back to keep the things that I have. This is the problem of moving forward...we reach contentment. To the degree that we just cannot go back to the way things were.
By thinking of the past we become 'street wise' because if we just do not 'watch our backs' we can get attacked as we had gained so much 'ground' The biggest attackers is society because it is them who had studied every aspect of law reinforcement and can twist things around if they ever dislike you? You have to learn the law and how your neighbour thinks.
This I found at my peril by being relaxed and looking forward instead of back.
Of course you become miserable because otherwise you would stagnate and get worse.
Listen...lol...
I went to live in the country to quit the 'Rat Race' ...it don't work!
If you look at the time I make most of my postings, it is early in the morning in the UK. Sometimes 4:00 am.
You know why?
This is because I get absolute peace and quiet. No one driving into my car, postman at the door, rotten emails, no cyclist running me over on the pavement/sidewalk....or kids screaming outside. Worrying about the girlfriend (she is in bed)
None existential ??? The twilight zone.....as the sun is just coming up.
I remember Barry and Doug about 40 years ago when Barry's wife left him for the next door neighbour and we used to go 'clubbing' (they call it clubbing because it was the old caveman style of a club ...lo) As Barry wanted to rekindle his lost love life.
We used to drive Barry home first and he would be mumbling what a bad night he had! He was drunk, no money, no girlfriend and when he saw his ex-wife's car outside his neighbours house, felt suicidal only to listen to Doug singing:- "It will be lonely this Christmas' By Mud and also "Are you lonesome tonight' by Elvis Presley.
We took him in to sober him up a bit...and his usual cry of: "Oh my God...the sun is coming out again'!
When things could not get any worse...he lost his job as a draughtsman and had to help me fix cars for extra money.
We both suffered...I lost my voice nearly and he ended up under under the cars because he was also an A1 mechanic.
Looking back on my life, it was like watching :- 'American Graffiti
To go back again? Oh no! Yet now looking back...they were good times as well as bad.
I miss all the humour. Had many friends and some I still have. Mainly from school.
George