In Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, safety generates peace of mind, which, in turn, allows individuals to be present. When you are present, you give yourself more chance of experiencing happiness or ginhawa when it does arrive and it also helps you take full advantage of every moment no matter how ordinary it is. It is difficult to feel happy when one is not present with what is happening.
Presence is also the state where quality of attention is high and numina could happen.
Ancient sages have argued that we only feel pain and suffering when we leave the present moment.
The challenge therefore is how can we be present. Presence happens in several ways:
- Developing skills through mindfulness practice.
- Finding a thing to do that just sucks you into presence.
- Curating your environment (body and surroundings) to make it easier to practice presence.
Contra: analysis
I do not want to minimize analysis. Some off my peak experiences and life-changing occurrences came from coming to understanding through deep analysis.
But I was saved by presence. And to be saved is an entirely different thing. It is more powerful, more potent.
Train yourself to be present now and everything will follow. You’ll have better sensibilities to respond to situations when they occur.
Presence through presence.