Just for today I learn only to be contented
Home >> Reiki Articles >> Just for today I learn only to be contented
Living in the moment has become a very popular phrase, but what is it really about, how do we live in the now?
Today we live in a fast-paced society. The pressure is on to have a successful and fulfilling life. We rush from goal to goal, pay packet to pay packet. Never stopping to look around, to see just how much of life is passing us by. Now, seven years into the millennium, we have become aware of the distractions of the material world, and the search to get in touch with our spiritual self begins again.
Getting in touch with your spiritual self, does not mean that you have to be a deeply spiritual being or devoutly religious. It is simply discovering your true nature, and living life in harmony with that. When we focus on the moment, we can really start to connect with who we are, and begin to live life to the full.
My inspiration has come from two very simple phrases, connected with different strands of Buddhism. I have spent the last six years teaching Reiki. One aspect of Reiki is the precepts, a set of guidelines to live by. For me, the most inspiring part of the precepts is the phrase ‘Just for today…’ This gives us a convenient period to work with. When we focus on a small section of time, we have a greater chance of success, contentment and peace. If we give each moment our full attention, our best shot, we will live life knowing we did the best we could. Knowing we made the most of every moment, leaving behind no regrets.
The second phrase resides at the heart of Zen Buddhism, ‘I learn only to be contented.’ When we consider this, together with the phrase, ‘Just for today…’ living in the moment becomes much more achievable. I have realised that living in the now, does not require great spiritual mastery, big sacrifices or other grand gestures we may think of. It is simply to know who we are and what we want form life at any one moment. Therefore, instead of saying, what can I achieve in my lifetime? We need to consider only what we can achieve at any one moment. What will it take to make me happy right now? ‘Just for today, I learn only to be contented.’
Now is not a lifetime, a month or a week, it is now, right now. You only have to be all that you want to be, right now. Tomorrow you may want something else. Tomorrow you may not be here. The moment you start to focus on the past or the future, you are missing life. Now is all we have, the past is gone and the future does not exist, it is all here and now. We can only really achieve the most from anyone moment if we commit 100% to that moment.
As a frustrated actor, several years ago, I said to myself, “What can I do right here, right now to increase my chance of work.” I had already done all the usual things and was feeling desperate. I turned to my spiritual beliefs for inspiration. This is when I realised that I did not have to move mountains, just commit to the moment. The one thing I had not done for some time, was a work out, an actor’s tools are their body and voice. I decided to do my exercises. Before I had managed three star jumps, the phone rang and a whole stream of events and strange coincidences, lead to an audition, which in turn lead to a role in a feature film.
“Whatever you can do or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
To live in the now we have to take one moment at a time. Focusing on what is possible, doable and achievable in that moment, instead of focusing on ‘what if’ and ‘if only’. It does not matter if you are eating ice cream or wanting to be the next Catherine Zeta Jones. If you focus your mind 100 % on the moment, the moment itself will be more rewarding and you will be sure not to miss any opportunities, which could propel you closer to your goals or dreams.
Home >> Reiki Articles >> Just for today I learn only to be contented