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Of Course I'm Sure!
Here's a couple of examples of why we believe in the concept of time--memories and predictions.
If we didn't remember that it hurt when we touched a hot stove, we might do it again. And say we were still hunter/gatherers--if we didn't plan to be at a certain place when the turnips ripen we might starve. Even in the modern world, if I didn't get up and go to work now, later I wouldn't get paycheck and then I wouldn't be able to afford food and shelter. So it has to do with survival of the species. Lots (all?) of our behavior does.
At first, I thought being in the now meant rejecting the past and the future, but you can think about the past and be present or plan for the future and be present.
I know that time does not exist the way we think of it, but, still, if I want to see the Simpson's Movie tomorrow, I better know what time it is and keep an eye on the clock!
If we didn't remember that it hurt when we touched a hot stove, we might do it again. And say we were still hunter/gatherers--if we didn't plan to be at a certain place when the turnips ripen we might starve. Even in the modern world, if I didn't get up and go to work now, later I wouldn't get paycheck and then I wouldn't be able to afford food and shelter. So it has to do with survival of the species. Lots (all?) of our behavior does.
At first, I thought being in the now meant rejecting the past and the future, but you can think about the past and be present or plan for the future and be present.
I know that time does not exist the way we think of it, but, still, if I want to see the Simpson's Movie tomorrow, I better know what time it is and keep an eye on the clock!
Comments
Even when we're aware of the folly of past certainty, we cling firmly to current certainty. We don't realize that it is certainty itself, not just mistaken certainty, that is problematic. And so in the battle between reason and emotion, emotion wins every time. The only way to extinguish that fire is to [chref=64]deal with it while it is still nothing[/chref]. How do we deal with something while it is still nothing? Adopt a [chref=15]tentative, hesitant and murky[/chref] approach to life by facing - even embracing - uncertainty and change. [chref=21]Following[/chref] the river of life as it ebbs and flows and adjusting to change which is an inevitable and unknowable mystery. Of course all this has been clearly laid out in the [chref=43]the teaching that uses no words[/chref]. Although, the more sure we are in our beliefs, the harder it is to listen to that teaching.
Of course, our beliefs support (i.e., rationalize) our underlying emotional needs and fears. We feel stronger, and therein lies our difficulty in [chref=43]resorting[/chref] to [chref=40]weakness[/chref] and letting go. As chapter 78 puts it: [chref=78]That the weak overcomes the strong, and the submissive overcomes the hard, everyone in the world knows yet no one can put this knowledge into practice.[/chref]