On being present

I once read somewhere that presence means complete merging with the object of our actions. In other words, we immerse ourselves so deeply in what we are doing that we forget about time and even about our own existence. We can call this complete presence or the flow experience. Intellectually, I have understood this statement for a long time, but putting it into practice has been much more difficult. As a multitask queen, I was constantly juggling multiple things at the same time, so I couldn't imagine focusing just on one.

I met the concept of meditation about twenty years ago, when I participated in a guided group meditation. I was unable to stop thinking at first, and the continuous chains of thoughts led me to frustration, then complete disappointment. Years passed before I attempted it again, this time with breath meditation. Shifting the focus from my thoughts to my breath proved to be successful, and I felt a kind of inner calmness. The following decade I spent studying various meditation forms, from Zen to TM. However, it was only about a year ago that I realised that the essence of meditation is not about sitting with crossed legs and wait for relaxation to begin. Meditation can be practiced in every minute of the day. Being present in my own life, observing with tranquillity, or completely immersing myself in an activity are the most complete forms of meditation.

But how can we be present in every minute of our lives? How do we start being present when we already lead a busy life? In my experience, when I do something with joy and excitement, I’m able to immerse myself completely in the activity and time seems to accelerate. It means that it's easy to focus on one thing when experiencing joy and fulfilment in it. But how can we transfer this to other aspects of our lives? The joy of curiosity and discovery can be great help. It's like using my childlike sense of awe and wonder as I’m doing an activity. It may seem strange at first, but it has worked for me. Brushing my teeth, peeling potatoes, or folding clothes become entirely different activities from the state of conscious presence. I’m not saying that this is how I live every moment, because that’s not true. But I try to approach everyday activities with less automatism, and I feel that through presence, I am more deeply involved in my own life. And that is definitely a good start.

Three books that I wholeheartedly recommend on this topic:

Eckhart Tolle: The Power of Now

John Kabat-Zinn: Wherever You Go, There You Are

Thich Nhat Hanh: The Art of Living