It is boring to be present in the moment

[jimrich]

Originally Posted by A human Being

Another good post I was going to suggest to the OP that the next time they feel bored, they should try feeling into the boredom, so they can understand what's at the root of it; and I suspect that you're quite right in what you say, that at the root of it is low-level pain, which isn't noticed when our minds are being distracted by some activity or other.

IMcurrentO, this low level pain is mostly about Shame. Shame is basically a belief or attitude that we get from others, usually our parents, that we are fundamentally DEFECTIVE or just no damned good so we are given a mysterious, nagging sense that something is WRONG with us. It is also considered a spiritual condition in which, the moment we loose our spiritual connection or identity, we are forced to see our selves as limited, wrong, bad, stupid, fearful, endangered, desperate, etc. all because we are no longer ONE with the Divine. Either way, this sense of lack, limit or badness (Shame) causes boredom or pain and needs to be corrected, IMO. Some correct it through a spiritual awakening which returns them to a sense of Wholeness or Liberation but I think it can be corrected with Self Esteem training or psychological means to undo the shame-based beliefs that so many get from their shame-based parents. Shame is a very interesting topic and so is Spiritual Awakening so, take your pick. The bottom line is how to live an exciting and happy life WITHOUT shame and the pain of boredom. How to get back to SELF LOVE - like most babies are born with but then loose at the hands of self-loathing, shame-based adults.

[blackraven]

Originally Posted by Tobi

I get what you're talking about, hellabomer.

But the other day I tried this out. I went to the woods on the most beautiful day, and deliberately didn't focus in the 'moment' but thought of other things....events from 3 years ago....what might happen next week....etc etc
Then I stopped. What had I noticed? Absolutely nothing! Had I appreciated my walk? nope. Where had I just been? Only vague recollections. I hadn't interacted with my environment at all, and it felt slightly bereft.

Then I did the opposite and thought of nothing except what was with me right then and right there -and oh gosh, it was such a different experience! I felt I really lived in the woods and they were a part of me, and cleansed me of twittering thoughts and moods. And afterwards there was such a lovely sweet atmosphere which lingered long after I left that place.

Tobi - The example given above reflects very well just how much one misses in life when too much time is spent worrying about the past or the future. I know this first hand as I fall into anxious worrying about things that are out of my control and don't have anything to do with the present moment and what I'm engaged in.

I think sometimes one can let anxiety and worry become a habitual way of thinking/being because it can feel like a rush of stimulation, even if it's negative in nature. Though if one allows negative stimulation such as anxiety and worry to occupy too much of one's daily thinking, so much positive beauty is missed in the moment. Even brief fragments of time can be the stuff that great poetry is made of.

A good book I just read, The Mindful Way Through Anxiety, was all about getting through anxiety and worry through mindfulness. What it emphasized is to feel what you will and think what you will, but then get so in touch with why the anxieties and worries are consuming and release them. It does allow one to get back to being in the present without letting negative internal talk take one away from fully living and experiencing life.

[Native spirit]

Yesterday is the past ,tomorrow is the future so you have to live in the now, the best way to do it is by being in nature taking notice of the sounds going on around you.
walking along the ocean is another way,

Namaste

[keokutah]

Haha I once asked why spirituality was so boring, and everyone got offended by my question.

I'm pretty sure the answer is explained through introversion and extroversion. Extroverts would find introversion really boring, and introverts would find extroversion really uncomfortable... I think in most cases balance is the best thing to have.

I don't necessarily believe in the whole extrovert/introvert label thing, because I think anyone can be both or can change.

I think extroversion happens when you aren't spiritual in general, because your pursuit of happiness comes from the outside world only, then you need goals, stimulation, objects, relationships and all types of external things to make you happy, because extroverts aren't able to go within to find happiness.

Whereas a Buddhist or a general spiritual person is introverted and they do not need goals, relationships, or anything outside of themselves to find happiness, because they can literally just exist in the moment by themselves and be content, at peace and happy.

I think if you feel the need to always be on the go, to always have goals and plans and things and stuff and people and other things that are outside of yourself, it just means you are an extroverted person that is very focused on the external world.

The practice of meditation and Buddhism teaches you to become more introverted so that you don't have to search for happiness outside of yourself.

Because obviously, all extroverts eventually get to a point in their life where they realize money, sex, relationships, people, objects, artificlal things, plans, success, goals, desires - none of that buys happiness. You can literally spend years trying to accomplish everything in the world and then you'll realize as soon as you have accomplished everything, what next? You're back where you started on the pursuit of happiness.
Real happiness comes from within, not outside.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by hellabomer

... my empty mind rushes back to the worries and anxieties because
they fill up my mind and don't make me feel bored.
That's the main problem!
I stick to my worries and anxieties because they make my life less boring.
How can I enjoy being present in the moment?

Oh, how I loved this post...the honesty...just perfect.

Ah, staying in the moment, yet the mind falls back into an old groove...
like a rutted dirt road a wagon wheel loves to fall into...

Worry and anxiety are about the future that does not exist ....yet.

Contentment and being happy in the 'Now' is the enemy of the egoic-mind...(that we all have).
So, the ego mind's job it to make us see the present moment as boring or whatever.
THAT is it's job (Christian's call this aspect of the Mind, satan.)...
the job is to take us away from what is happening right now in the Reality of Existence.

I have been on this Path for over 40 years and let me tell you there has not been one boring moment...
The interior battles, the razor's edge that our hearts, minds and souls walk is the most exciting game out there!

It seems to me your Goal has not been experienced as yet...so the 'now'
means nothing to you, really.
Am I right...it is a concept you have read .

When your 'now' is filled with sensual, calm, steady depth that each moment holds....
filled with profound satisfaction in, oh, so many ways...
when you have gotten to the Center of Reality that is only in a timeless place that is 'now'...you will find...every
single thing you have ever wanted or is your soul's desire...
love, joy, confidence, wisdom, ecstasy ...at a depth to which can almost not be imagined.


Boredom? No....you will be on a Path with a reward no thing, event, person, riches could compare to.

Read writings and poetry by those that have touched this eternal moment inside themselves....to keep you inspired.

[Sarian]

When my daughter in law went into labor a month early, I tried my hardest not to be filled with worry and anxiety and it was a horrendous battle. There were issues but my grandson was born and seems to be doing fine. Such a wonderful blessing he is too. :-)

And tonight and for days now, my mind keeps going somewhere I do not want it to go. I wish I could say it's to keep me from getting bored but I would like nothing more than to STOP this chatter in my mind. I know thinking the things I do make it worse but yet it doesn't stop and I feel so fatigued trying to stop my thoughts...it's a battle every second. I think I stop it only to find I'm thinking it again. Sigh.

It's keeping me awake too. That and/or the full moon or what's left of it.

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by jimrich

IMcurrentO, this low level pain is mostly about Shame. Shame is basically a belief or attitude that we get from others, usually our parents, that we are fundamentally DEFECTIVE or just no damned good so we are given a mysterious, nagging sense that something is WRONG with us. It is also considered a spiritual condition in which, the moment we loose our spiritual connection or identity, we are forced to see our selves as limited, wrong, bad, stupid, fearful, endangered, desperate, etc. all because we are no longer ONE with the Divine. Either way, this sense of lack, limit or badness (Shame) causes boredom or pain and needs to be corrected, IMO. Some correct it through a spiritual awakening which returns them to a sense of Wholeness or Liberation but I think it can be corrected with Self Esteem training or psychological means to undo the shame-based beliefs that so many get from their shame-based parents. Shame is a very interesting topic and so is Spiritual Awakening so, take your pick. The bottom line is how to live an exciting and happy life WITHOUT shame and the pain of boredom. How to get back to SELF LOVE - like most babies are born with but then loose at the hands of self-loathing, shame-based adults.

Shame's a big part of it, I think, yeah, and more generally it relates to that sense of inadequacy and lack, as you say - so in essence, our illusory, separate sense of self casts a shadow over us, because, as you say, we're unconscious of our true nature.

This illusory sense of self is comprised almost entirely of pain and suffering, I think, and I feel this pain and suffering simply has to be met; boredom is, I think, symptomatic of an unwillingness to simply stop running and face the darkness within ourselves, and it points to a lack of emotional maturity, I feel. In my case, it took me until the age of thirty to become completely disillusioned with, and exhausted by, the seeking of distractions, and to finally acknowledge that I was running - from myself. I think that's the way it is for the majority of us; it's only when we feel like we've been backed into a corner and there's no escape that we finally stop and face what we've been trying to avoid for the longest time.

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by Sarian

When my daughter in law went into labor a month early, I tried my hardest not to be filled with worry and anxiety and it was a horrendous battle. There were issues but my grandson was born and seems to be doing fine. Such a wonderful blessing he is too. :-)

And tonight and for days now, my mind keeps going somewhere I do not want it to go. I wish I could say it's to keep me from getting bored but I would like nothing more than to STOP this chatter in my mind. I know thinking the things I do make it worse but yet it doesn't stop and I feel so fatigued trying to stop my thoughts...it's a battle every second. I think I stop it only to find I'm thinking it again. Sigh.

It's keeping me awake too. That and/or the full moon or what's left of it.

This brings to my mind that Carl Jung quote, with which I'm sure you're familiar - 'what you resist, persists'. Don't treat as a problem the worries and anxieties that arise, as - as you've found out for yourself - this will only exhaust you and make you suffer more. I know that to struggle in this way seems to be the most natural thing in the world, but what good does it do? Does it ever produce change for the better?

At the same time, I'm not suggesting that you deny your worries and anxiety, either; neither indulge, nor deny (indulgence and denial might seem like opposites but in fact they're both ways in which we struggle with what is, they both represent ways in which we refuse to accept our present experience). So my advice is simply this: the next time you feel like you're becoming overwhelmed with anxiety and fear, make conscious the tension and contractions in your body, breathe slowly and deeply, and relax. That might seem like dumb advice, because I think we unconsciously feel that we must struggle, that to not do so would be callous, and also that if we don't struggle, that things will go to hell. But actually, to indulge our fears, to imagine various awful scenarios, is itself hell, and it does nothing but cloud our judgment, stress us out, and make our action reactive rather than proactive - as I say, it does no good whatsoever.

Conversely, to truly relax at stressful times is to let go of control. This is something that we, as a species, have a hell of a time with, because we think that wrestling for control is the only way we can ensure our survival - so to relax is an act of faith.

[jimrich]

Hi, I like this post a lot as it seems to sum up many "issues" for many folks.

Originally Posted by A human Being

Shame's a big part of it, I think, yeah, and more generally it relates to that sense of inadequacy and lack, as you say - so in essence, our illusory, separate sense of self casts a shadow over us, because, as you say, we're unconscious of our true nature.

In studying "shame" while in therapy, I could see, but mostly FEEL, that I once was whole and complete in the beginning of my life but, by about age 4-5, I could feel the sense of: lack, fear, doubt, endangered, limitation, incompleteness and a huge range of uncomfortable feelings and ideas emerging from within me but did not notice that most if not all of it was coming from my shame-based parents and 1 yr older brother who were already caught in the grips of shame and were unconsciously dumping it onto me. 4 years after me, we did the same thing to our little sister! The psychological answer seems good enough and the solution is to get rid of this shame and return to our original innocence with mental/emotional tools and techniques which I've found a little helpful but not complete. I can build up and improve my self esteem BUT something is still missing in here. A sage, Gangaji and her husband say "Just stop!". Just stop trying to improve your self and get somewhere as a person! Just stop and let go. Just stop - you are enough and need no more improvements or accomplishments, etc. I've tried both therapy and the "just stop" practice and find that to "just stop" works better than any psychological technique - SO FAR!

The spiritual answer says that I (as a child) was slowly losing my connection with divinity and so I became vulnerable to their shame plus was developing my own shame by becoming more and more "human" and less and less "divine". This analogy is not absolutely correct but will do for now.
It could also be said that all of these occurrences along with our shame was just the natural and necessary process that Reality or Divinity was and still is conducting for whatever purpose it has. In other words, I, as the Divine, set this whole thing up (me, my brother, my parents, our lives and circumstances) for what ever I wanted and that's just how it is, was and will be! I, Divinity, did, do and will be doing whatever happens in the universe/creation and may never consciously know why or how I've done it! I simply am! This is it! What will be, will be! It's all my own, personal play or show because I, god, want it this way!

This illusory sense of self is comprised almost entirely of pain and suffering, I think, and I feel this pain and suffering simply has to be met; boredom is, I think, symptomatic of an unwillingness to simply stop running and face the darkness within ourselves, and it points to a lack of emotional maturity, I feel.

IMcurrentO, boredom is a signal to examine my self and my current intentions and goals to, perhaps, notice that I've somehow lost my connection with god or Reality/Happiness and have somehow sunk into the mire of self or limit. It's interesting that boredom is not extremely painful or filled with fear yet it serves to help me notice my unhappiness and dissatisfaction with: life, my self, my environment, my frustrations and many other "personal" problems all because I don't like my self, my life and my world at that moment. Boredom is a kind of opportunity to "just stop" and see if I'm OK just as I am provided Shame does not cause me to feel crumby!

In my case, it took me until the age of thirty to become completely disillusioned with, and exhausted by, the seeking of distractions, and to finally acknowledge that I was running - from myself.

LOL, I'm 79 and just now coming to grips with boredom, shame and chasing my own tail to "find" peace and happiness! It's close though!

I think that's the way it is for the majority of us; it's only when we feel like we've been backed into a corner and there's no escape that we finally stop and face what we've been trying to avoid for the longest time.

May I ask what it is that you have been trying to "avoid" with all of your running, searching, trying and doings over 30 years? For me, it's been trying to get rather than avoid but maybe it was trying to get a "feel good" and avoid the "feel bad" in life. I can't say I've been wrong, mistaken, foolish or SINFUL. I've just been on this path that I, divinity, set up and it's taking me (and everybody else) to where I (divinity) want it to take us for whatever reason or purpose I (divinity) intend. In a sense, nobody and nothing is or ever was "wrong". It's just a path. For some, it's a ball while for others, its a curse. Its just me (divinity) doing my thing! I created boredom to help me remember that this isn't quite "it" and to help me get back to what truly is "it" - Divine Being or Consciousness. The joke is that nobody or nothing has ever left or been separated from Divinity. This is Divinity in disguise. I am Divine and so is everyone and everything - even if we/they don't currently know that!
(Speaking as Jim) OK, I get it now!

[Ciona]

Originally Posted by jimrich

I created boredom to help me remember that this isn't quite "it" and to help me get back to what truly is "it" - Divine Being or Consciousness

*speechless and stunned by the depth of the Wisdom of this comment*

Hi there, I'm Moon lol. :) Nice to meet you.