Letting go of past?

[Lavender88]

Sometimes I have a hard time being in the moment and letting go of the past. What can I do to remind myself the insignificance of the past?

[psychoslice]

Just simply by realizing that there is no past, that there is only here, Now. You are thinking here Now, now where is the past in here, Now, you see it doesn't exists , it was in the here and Now continually flowing just like a river, when you step into the river you will never step into the same place because the river is continuing flowing.

So your really trying to grab the flow of life, but you can't, what tries to grab life is the mind, it tries to make mends of something that is gone, the only way to make mends is to realize that you cannot make mends of the so called past. You can only make things better here Now, in fact if you are in the Now, there is no past or deamt future, just try it.

We are accumulation of our pasts..

Hence the reason why we try to search ourselves in the past.
Past is where we find the answers about who we are and why we are...

When we do not know ourselves, it is hard to move on and to be effective “in the moment”.

However, we should not dwell in the past with regrets and what ifs.

We should look back briefly for lessons and reasons.

Using these understandings from the past, we live today and prepare for the future.
- Just as we study the history of mankind in order to understand where we are heading as humans.

I pretty much agree with psychoslice's post - the past is gone, nothing can keep it, change it or bring it back. It is gone and if you are "holding onto it" then you are....

.....What?

Looking for something you once had and want back? Something you want to correct or change? Something or someone you feel you will be "betraying" by letting go and moving on, as you should be?

Perhaps the past "haunts" you because you still have something to learn from a particular event or outcome. Frankly, that is the only use the past has for us now. See if there is some lesson calling to be learned... then let it all go.

And move on so that you can fill your hands anew.

Good Luck with it, too.

[Lynn]

Originally Posted by Lavender88

Sometimes I have a hard time being in the moment and letting go of the past. What can I do to remind myself the insignificance of the past?

Hello

To let go of the past one must first face that past head on and work on clearing the lessons there, the ordeals there and finding peace in that past. To many times we are told forgive and forget but we do not we bury it and up it comes again and again along life's path. When we can clearly see what the past is we can more clearly see what the future holds.

Lynn

Originally Posted by Lavender88

Sometimes I have a hard time being in the moment and letting go of the past. What can I do to remind myself the insignificance of the past?

Yes, sometimes it is very, very hard to be in the Now, but that is all that we really have..Life is a series of now's, but the only important one is Now....sounds silly, but so true..The past is not insignificant--it made us all what we are today, but it is over and gone.....Tolle says to "watch" your mind and "catch it as it wanders from past to future and bring it back and focus on the Now... Tibetan Buddhism also stresses the importance of focusing on Now....So just focus with your whole being on whatever you are doing at the moment......pay attention to every detail--live it--enjoy it--be it.....

Originally Posted by Lavender88

Sometimes I have a hard time being in the moment and letting go of the past. What can I do to remind myself the insignificance of the past?

I think I'm just summing up whatever else has been said here...

The past made you, conditioned many of your thoughts and perhaps even gave you the idea that you ought to let go of the past and that the past is insignificant.

In this way, looking to the lessons missed in the past and questioning or deconstructing the things you've learned, that no longer serve you, enables you to live more freely and see the world in a new way.

I would go with the flow of your own life, not try to follow somebody elses doctrine of belief. You have your own inner voice to ttrust, and perhaps it is asking you to look at something from the past because that is what you need right now.

[Lavender88]

Thanks everyone! All of you had good things to say and I agree that I should confront it more and see what the important lessons are. If I keep clinging on to the past, then I'm the same person. However, I've been working hard to uncover the baggage to see who the real me is.

Again, thanks for posting guys. Psychoslice, that was a nice analogy you shared about a flowing river.

[Emmalevine]

I don't believe the past is insignificant, it makes us who we are today. But it's important not to dwell on it or re-visit it unnecessarily. I try to be mindful of how I'm functioning in the present because that is where unresolved past issues will manifest - which of course is obvious, since the now is all there is. If you notice difficult feelings, thoughts or reactions in the present it can be helpful to explore where they may have originated from. Let the present be your guide.