Enjoying every moment: battling depression and anxiety through spirituality

Enjoying every moment: battling depression and anxiety through spirituality

The present moment is all we ever have. Everything else
is secondary. 

In a recently released video, depicting a conversation between the two famous spiritualists - Eckhart Tolle and Deepak Chopra - Mr. Chopra told us all to follow a new formula for generating presence in ourselves. This presence, for the uninitiated, is equivalent to peace. And the formula is easy to remember and follow. It's simply -  STOP! Here,

S - Stop (your current activity)
T - Take three deep breaths (conscious breaths, to be more precise)
O - Observe (whatever you're doing at present)
P - Proceed

It's quite simple, as I said earlier. And it essentially captures the true spirit of Eckhart Tolle's teachings. I don't know much about Deepak Chopra, which is quite unfortunate considering that both of us are from the same country. But I'm genuinely interested in learning what he has to say. Nonetheless, he's an enlightened person, as evident from the validity and utility of his messages.

Eckhart teaches us to be present, intensely so, at this moment. This presence is simple, you just need to stop worrying about the past and the future, and focus on what you're doing, where you are placed, or what the current moment presents you with. Yesterday evening, I was taking my evening stroll as usual. And I decided to put this formula into action, to see how useful it actually is. And I was surprised to see that it actually works!

A few words to follow - before the beginning

Eckhart Tolle, whose works and words inspired much
of what I've written here. 

Before beginning to explain the matter in terms of my own personal philosophy (which is heavily derived from Eckhart's teachings, those of Bhagwat Geeta and other spiritual sources), let me once again make it clear that I view all these things through the lens of model-dependent realism. Now, as per this elegant philosophical doctrine, a theory or model can't be called true or false in the absolute sense of the terms. Instead, we need to see how convenient a model is. This is also quite similar to Bentham's philosophy of Utilitarianism, although there are some subtle differences.

If it works, don't fix it - This, I believe, is a universal truth. And it does apply to life. The interpretation of the matter, that I'm going to put forward to you, is at best a model. This model aims to explain why we experience unrest while doing routine jobs, and also attempts to answer the ever-important question - How to be happy. But it is a model, and thus it can't be called true or false. Instead, you may apply it to your own life, and see whether it is convenient or not, that is, whether it works for you or not. If it doesn't, simply leave it and resume your search. If it does, keep on applying it. This is the gist of model-dependent realism.

Losing yourself in your mind - dwelling in the past and future

In his wonderfully written book A New Earth, spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle tells us the importance of observing and experiencing every moment. The vitality of life is, in a sense, rejuvenated when you take a moment to pause all your thoughts, and experience the current situation in a state of full alertness. This might sound alien or too complicated to do, but believe me, once you get to do it, it becomes quite familiar and easy.

There's a wonderful saying, possibly by Lao Tzu - "If you're depressed, you're dwelling in the past. If you're anxious, you're dwelling in the future. If you're at peace, you're dwelling in the present moment". It's quite logical, and self-explanatory. Most of the time, our mind goes on rambling about various things in the past or future. It doesn't know the future, and thus all it creates are models of the future, which might turn out to be valid or invalid. Likewise, it can't change the past, and all it does is simply bring back memories, which themselves are nothing other than thoughts. And in this process, we gradually begin to lose ourselves.

For example, during my walk yesterday, first my mind began to wonder "What am I going to eat for dinner tonight?". It was followed by "Huh, it might rain tomorrow. Then how am I going to take my mother to that trip to the renovated Hoogly Riverfront I promised her?". And thus went on the long train of thoughts. In a few moments, the mind turned its attention to the past. "If only I had been a little more cautious, I wouldn't have broken my favourite coffee cup last week", and so on. But then again, I knew that no matter how much I worry about the future, I won't be able to change or even know it. And similarly, no matter how much I blame myself over the past, I won't be able to change it either. So, the only option is to stay present.

What is presence?

In Buddha's words, being in a state of constant presence
is actually another form of salvation, the end of Dukkha.
In his famous Silent Sermon, Buddha is believed to have
demonstrated this very teaching. 

Presence is a state of full alertness, when your mind ceases all its thoughts about the past and the supposed future. To achive it is to stop your train of thoughts. It does sound difficult, but it's not so. In the state of presence, you're fully alert about all surrounding activities, and you can literally feel one with the surroundings. There are many different ways to achieve this state of joy, and one of the most effective among them is to take a few conscious breaths, and then keep on watching your own mind.

If you've read Eckhart's books, or any of my previous articles on the true nature of ego and the human mind, you're aware that the mind is not the true self. Instead, it's only a tool that has been presented to you by nature. And it's a very powerful tool, in that regard. But in a way it has somehow taken control of man. This is to be reversed if we're to achieve peace.

Follow this simple set of activities to achieve the state of presence, even if for a few moments. It might not work for you right in the first attempt, but gradually you'll definitely get to sense the state I speak of.

Generating presnce - a simple exercise

1. Close your eyes. Sit or lie in a relaxed position. Now, take a few deep breaths. These breaths will tell your body that everything is okay.

2. Now, watch your thoughts for a few minutes. The mind will go on thinking, but remember that you're not your mind. This is the most important thing to be aware of.

3. Watching the mind is quite simple. Just ask yourself one simple question - What will my next thought be? And the moment it arises, no matter whether it's a good thought or a bad one, recognize it to be just a thought, a construct generated by the mind.

4. After you've seen your thought, be sure NOT to judge it. If it's good, let it be so. If it's an erotic fantasy, let it remain as such. Don't feel guilty of your thought, and proud of it either.

5. After repeating the steps for a few minutes, take a few more breaths. Now, in a relaxed state, keep on listening to every sound you can hear. Don't judge the sound, just hear it. It's somewhat like coordinate geometry, just imagine that you're the origin of the 3D coordinate system, and each sound comes from a source, a point. This source or point might be a moving (dynamic) one, such as a moving bicycle. Or else, it may also be a fixed (static) point, such as a radio belonging to your neighbour.

The can be many different exercises to generated presense.
The main thing is, such an exercise should have the
effect of transferring attention from the past and future
right to the present moment. 

6. Without opening your eyes, or moving from your relaxed position, start playing a game. Try to determine the direction and distance of the source of the sound from your position. And if possible, it's very good to identify it, such as "Ah, that's the alley cat purring!", or "Yes, the neighbour's radio is playing". Always remember, there's no winning or losing in this game, it's just a pastime.

7. By this time, you'd already have generated enough presence, to loan a few words from Eckhart. But if you're willing to calm your mind further, you may follow the last step.

8. This step is a bit critical to apply, but don't lose your heart. It's quite easy to follow once you've practised a bit. This step, in Eckhart's words, is primarily aimed to make your feel your inner body. This inner body, in my own interpretation of Eckhart's teachings, is essentially the bioelectric field that is synonymous to life itself. And since YOU = LIFE, this bioelectric field is, in a way, your true body. Feeling the bioelectric body is easy, with the help of one simple question that you're going to ask yourself. The question is - Is my right hand alive? Now, without moving or even attempting to move or see your right arm, try to feel the presence of life inside your arm. It might seem funny, but it's perfecty possible. You might feel a slight tingling sensation as you repeat the exercise. Once it's over, try to feel your left arm, and so on. Once you get to do it allover your body (mind you, that's the tricky part), you're fully present.

How to be present while working 

You might be asking - How can I remain present as you say, while, say I'm walking outside? The trick lies in what I like to call a conscious walk. A conscious walk is simple an evening stroll, or a morning walk, whatever you like. While walking, try to be fully alert, savouring every sensation without judging it. A bird might be singing on a tree, simply listen to its tunes. Likewise, you may hear sounds of urban ambience or nature's lullaby, on the basis of where you live. Without judging any sound or sight, simply let them be as they are. And all this time, remain fully alert, conscious and aware of your present moment.

The present moment, Now as Eckhart calls it, is that ever-dynamic point that links your past and future. Like a point journeying along a line, it moves from past to future. Once you begin to focus your attention on it, your mind stops thinking about the past and future, thus erasing depression and anxiety.

The same goes for every other activity. Always remember, the STOP formula is one of the most effective tools in erasing anxiety and generating presence in yourself.

Ok, so was it pesudoscience or some crap? 

You have to decide for yourself. As I already said at the beginning, it's just a model, a set of ideas linked together through an internal logical consistency. Now, this logic might be utter bullshit, or the very song of true wisdom, we don't know. And we don't have to know. What's more important is, does it work for you? If yes, then follow it. If no, feel free to discard it. That's the beauty of spirituality and personal philosophy.

See you in the next post.

Credits 

A New Earth (Eckhart Tolle)
Shri Krishna's monologues, Mahabharata (Star Plus)
Personal Experience
Google Images for the images