by Rev. Bandaraulpatha Gnanawimala Thero of Dhamma Sarana Buddhist Temple, Keysborough
Worrying over the past and expectations over the future destroy your inner peace.
It is a habit of ours to live in the past or in the future.
Most of the time, we spend our lives in these two instead living in the present moment doing the right thing at the moment.
In Buddhism, the Buddha teaches to live in the present moment.
When we face something either pleasant or unpleasant, it is so hard for us to keep our mind out of it.
We always go to that past moment and keeping either being happy or worrying.
When it comes to worry, it is worse.
Thinking the same unpleasant experience again and again we make ourselves sad and worry.
When it comes to the future, we spend too much time on planning and facing future events though it has not come yet which miss the joy or responsibility, contribution of that present moment.
That is how most of us build stress and anxiety which destroys inner peace in us.
That is why the Buddha says “wishing for what has not come, lamenting, mourning over what has already gone is like a foolish man placing a young bamboo stick on a heated rock”.
When you keep a young bamboo stick on a heated rock what happens is it becomes dried and destroyed.
In the same manner, it happens to our mind as well.
It destroys the calmness and peace in the present moment.
Therefore, it is better to train ourselves to be in the present moment other than roaming in to the past or future so that it will help us to keep our mind calm.
When we are in the present moment it also helps us to observe the present moment well so we can make mostly right decisions which will affect in the future as well.
Therefore, living in the present moment is the most joyful and responsible living that can benefit positively in the future as well.
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