In today’s world, enlightened beings don’t look like Buddha. They are very much ordinary, like you and me. They don’t have shining bodies or halos over their heads. They may wear jeans and a T-shirt and roam with sunglasses on. Shopping and even cursing where they want to.

So how would you spot an enlightened being if they cross you at a shopping complex or ask for directions?

In simple words, you can never be sure.

Yet there are powerful ways to recognize these hiding gems. It may not be easy, but it can give you a glimpse of who they really are.

Before talking about that, I must point out that you must be in a state of peace and tranquility. You can’t peep through a cloudy vision. Your heart must be silent to recognize those who otherwise seem so simple.

Many guess spirituality is serious. It can’t be far from the truth.

Yes, the journey inside requires the utmost commitment. It needs serious effort.

But as one progresses, they find a light-heartedness even in dire situations. A subtle joy flows in the undercurrent.

That is why enlightened people laugh openly, like a child. There is innocence in that laughter, which makes it more infectious.

They can laugh at any topic and even at stupid things. It need not make any sense.

Why?

Because they have realized that everything is temporary. There is no point in fretting over expectations and intermingling with desires.

They make the maximum out of this present moment and operate from the infinite joy that flows in their heart.

Life is a mixture of struggle and fulfilled moments. Our reactions tilt depending on the situation we are in.

However, an enlightened person’s reaction is free from situations. They don’t change even if they face something life-threatening.

Why?

Because they are one with pure life, and separation ceases to exist.

Situations are worse or good depending on how one perceives them. And when one is beyond any judgments, ‘what it is’ only exists.

Their mind does not create any commentary or story about anything. They are conscious of any deviation of the mind and know how to deal with it.

This makes them live in absolute freedom.

They freely choose to react or be non-reactive. They can consciously decide to be nosy or carefree. They can choose to be in complete silence or total chaos.

This makes them unique, free from any obligation. They don’t follow society and may be labeled as rebels or mad. Yet they are the most compassionate beings one can ever meet.

Most try to protect what is theirs. Be it their family, money, or ego.

But enlightened beings don’t distinguish between what is theirs and what is not.

My spiritual master has a family and a kid. Yet he treats Sangh as his family. He even built a home for all members to get together and chill out in the hills.

Usually, the mind becomes selfish because we distinguish between ourselves and others.

But for an enlightened person, this whole world is his family. There is nothing special about serving others and being there for them.

Selective attachment is not there in enlightened hearts. He/she treats everyone as their own. They deal every one with great respect, affinity, and humility.

Attachment dissolves, and they exude unconditional love for everyone. That is why people feel compassion and love when they encounter such beings.

Yes, enlightened beings don’t have a halo around them. Not that we can see.

But a person who has experienced even a tiny stillness can feel something different when they meet enlightened people.

Why?

Because these enlightened persons function from utter stillness.

Their mind and heart are in absolute silence. No wave of emotion or thought arises.

And when a meditator meets such persons, they slip into more silence.

Whenever I used to meet my master, I could feel a wave of peace and tranquility enveloping me. I could not explain how it happened.

Everyone might be talking or laughing with him, but all you could feel was absolute silence.

My eyes would get shut and roll up. His presence would trigger my stillness more profoundly. My every question would evaporate, or I could not remember them. Only intense peace would remain.

I’ve spent more time in silence with him rather than any verbal communication. Because both my mouth and mind would get shut in his presence. And in that profound stillness, only bliss flowed.

The presence of enlightened beings hits you when you have encountered inner peace.

Don’t resist it. Don’t force yourself to follow the routines if pulled to the peace. Just be in that silence, and every answer will come to you.

We might meet many people but only remember a few. Our mind only registers those who are very important or leave a deep impression.

The enlightened person’s footprint can leave an undeniable mark on one’s consciousness. You may not register it consciously. But somewhere in your subconscious mind, they have a place for themselves.

The unique humbleness, compassion, and words can do the magic. Or sometimes, their mere presence is enough to shake you from the inside.

You might even forget after some time. But deep down, they might have left a seed of transformation within you.

You are not a problem to solve.

Have I written a slew of articles about Eckhart Tolle’s teachings? Yes. Guilty as charged.

But I make no apologies for it. Why? Because I love the guy. And, more important, because I find his teachings so wise, simple and accessible.

Which brings us to today’s gem from the joyous German. It deals with a fundamental misconception many people have about what their life is all about. Here it is:

What does Eckhart mean by this?

Let’s start by stating what it means to live your life as if it were a problem to be solved. At the root, that means looking at your life through the eyes of your ego. What are some examples?

“I need to solve the problem of my body by losing twenty pounds off my butt and thighs.”

“I need to solve my problem of not being successful enough in the eyes of society by getting a more high-profile job with a fancy title.”

“I need to solve the problem of my loneliness by doing everything possible to find a boyfriend/girlfriend.”

The ego is the one driving your car when those pronouncements are made. How do we know this? Because your conscious, true self, the real you, doesn’t care about any of those things. Not your butt, your thighs, your job, your relationship status, your car, your house…None of it.

The bottom line is that YOU are not a problem. You don’t need to be solved.

Unfortunately, this is how many people lead their lives. And it’s frustrating and deeply painful.

Worst of all, it’s a problem that can’t be solved. Sure, we can solve our “problems” in the short term. You get the promotion, the Porsche, the weight loss…whatever. But those good feelings never last.

What we need to do

Fine. So our lives, we, are not a problem to be solved. What the heck should we do?

Remember that true, conscious self I mentioned? It’s beautiful, compassionate and filled with love. In fact, it is love.

Well, it’s inside you. It’s inside all of us.

So what is the purpose of our lives? It is to realize that that consciousness inside us is who we are. At the deepest level. And to identify as that.

You are not male/female, tall/short, athletic/unathletic, dumb/brilliant, beautiful/homely, funny/unfunny…You are that consciousness inside you.

It’s at the heart of all spiritual traditions

Maybe this sounds familiar, maybe it doesn’t. But I can tell you that in all of my studying of the great spiritual traditions, this identifying as the consciousness, the soul, the spirit inside us is the central teaching of most of them.

Whether it’s Ramana Maharshi (whose work I’ve delved into recently), Ram Dass, Buddha or, yes, even Jesus Christ, who said that the kingdom of Heaven is within us, they all taught the same thing. Heck, the name of Yogananda’s extant organization is the Self-Realization Fellowship.

So that’s the name of the game, folks. Realizing that you are that beautiful consciousness within.

Realizing our true selves

How do we do that? We get quiet inside. And we let go of all the attachments our egos have accumulated over the years.

Get quiet. Let go.

Why do we have to do that? Because our egos create so much noise static that we can’t sense that consciousness within.

The jackhammer and Mozart

It’s like a jackhammer digging up concrete on the street right outside your window as you try to listen to the mellifluous notes of a Mozart piano concerto. It’s impossible. Getting quiet and letting go eliminates the jackhammer.

How to get quiet? Meditate regularly. Practice mindfulness. Pray. Walk in nature. Do the things that quiet your mind.

Gradually, you’ll get a stronger sense of that consciousness. It won’t come in words or concepts. It’s a force whose nature far transcends words.

The takeaway

So remember. You are not a problem. You don’t need to be solved.

There’s nothing wrong with you. In fact, there’s everything right with you.

 You just need to get quiet, let go, and allow the beautiful force within you to emerge through you and into the world. 

That’s why we’re here.

An inspirational and profound speech on Duality

The music of life, and How It Is All Happening Around Us from the late philosopher Alan Watts. Original Audio sourced from: “Alan Watts – Coincidence of Opposites” Video Produced and Edited by T&H Inspiration “The problem comes up because we ask the question in the wrong way.

We supposed that solids were one thing and space quite another, or just nothing whatever. Then it appeared that space was no mere nothing, because solids couldn’t do without it. But the mistake in the beginning was to think of solids and space as two different things, instead of as two aspects of the same thing.

Duality refers to two sides of the same coin. If people stretch their imagination sideways regarding anything, they will find advantages and disadvantages. Anything can suffice, but to use democracy as an example, with one hand, it extends freedom and, with the other, takes it away subject to circumstances and human conduct. In this manner, duality represents a discernable fact of life.

One importance of duality is protecting our mental health. People who understand duality can’t be affected by the praises and criticisms of others as they know that there will always be people affected positively and negatively by their conduct. They will unlikely develop neither pride nor self-pity and maintain a healthy mind, body, and soul balance.

Duality is also key to living harmoniously. Once you’ve established that everything in life exists on a continuum with opposite extremes, you have a bird-eye view with which to move appropriately. Understanding duality prepares you for uncertainties because, in any situation, you are alive to the possibility of the opposite happening and can adjust your conduct to prevent fallout.

Duality is a concept that illustrates that balance is experienced between two opposing forces. Too much of one breaks the balance, just as the absence of one breaks the balance. This concept teaches that understanding and appreciation of anything (life, nature, etc.) are never complete till the two sides of the proverbial coin and the synergy between their relationship is understood.

Duality is experienced in everyday life. For example, no one would be truly rich or poor if everyone had the same level of wealth, and peace would never be appreciated if wars never existed. Nothing will be valuable if there is nothing to compare its value to.

People often pray, wish, or hope for the best outcome in any situation, but they can only do so because they have either seen, experienced, or heard what the alternative is like. In general, only the elderly appreciate youth, and rarely do we consider good health a blessing until we are ill or bedridden. Just as no one can be happy if they have never experienced a sad moment. The good moments would just be, without holding any value, and would never be appreciated. The bad memories make the good ones appealing, while the good memories make the bad ones appalling.

There is more to this life than we can see with our two physical eyes

Your higher self is not something outside of you. It’s simply a higher, much wiser version of yourself.

Seeing repeating numbers once or twice in your life may just be a coincidence to ignore, but seeing it repeatedly, especially when you’re thinking of things that feed your soul or things that may harm you, isn’t something to ignore. It’s something to think about.

Numbers like 1111, 2222, or 3333 are messages that need to be decoded. Your higher self may be trying to tell you something.

Numbers are the language of the universe. 1 means 1 in America, it means 1 in Africa and it’s 1 in Europe. It means 1 everywhere you go, and it’s never confused for anything else. Because numbers are universal, it is one of the most common and easiest ways your higher self would try to communicate with you.

It’s only the curious and the open-minded that can connect with something as mystical as the concept of the higher self and repeating numbers and it’s only the curious and open-minded that goes down the rabbit hole and their lives are changed for the better, forever.

There is more to this life than we can see with our two physical eyes. The spiritual third eye sees and knows things that are unseen. Fix your eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. When there’s something eternal living inside you, then it knows things you don’t know. It’s heard things you’ll never hear and has seen things you’ll probably never see.

Repeating numbers or angel numbers may appear to you from your higher self as an assurance to keep doing what you’re doing because it’s leading you where you’re meant to go.

It may be telling you to stop wasting so much time and start focusing on more important things and other times, numbers may be telling you to rethink decisions you’ve taken, to break free from certain habits and routines that are keeping you stuck, or to stay away from something or someone that could potentially lead you down the wrong path.

When you find that you keep seeing angel numbers every day and you actually take notice of them as aligned, don’t ignore it. Be as curious as a cat and do some investigation and you may uncover or discover something that changes the course of your life.

Intuition is something we all possess. It’s like an inner compass or guidance system that is installed in us to guide us on our journey here on earth.

When you’re connected to your intuition and all is good, communication is steady and but when you find that intuition is coming in way too often and way too strong, then it’s your higher self trying to get your attention on an urgent matter.

It may be your higher self trying to tell you to pursue a purpose or pay attention to something you aren’t paying attention to.

Intuition speaks in many other ways.

Sometimes it’s a random insight out of nowhere that makes you scratch your head or an intense energy download that keeps you still wondering what it even means. It may be a thought you can’t get out of your head no matter how hard you try or a gut feeling that you can’t seem to shake off. It could even involve physical symptoms like feeling sick all of a sudden.

Intuition could also be something that makes you so excited you feel like you could spread your wings and fly! Your higher self knows you best and will always speak to you in a way it knows you will understand.

 No matter what it is your intuition is trying to tell you to do or warn you against, it will always be calm and subtle. It will never be loud. It will never be negative. It will never freak you out.  Intuition will only make you think deeply or feel something intensely, but it will never make you afraid.

It’s not intuition’s nature to make you afraid. If what you feel makes you even a little bit terrified, you can ignore it and go about your day because your intuition will never use fear to get you to take action. Instead, it will nudge you in the most gentle of ways to get you to get up and go outside, and there you will find someone or something in desperate need of help and you’ll be the one to save the day.

The same way you have a higher self that is higher than you and knows things you don’t know, you have a lower self that is lower than you, thinks it knows everything but knows nothing at all. Just like there are imposters in everything, your intuition has an imposter, and that’s fear.

This lower self fears the ascension process. Evolution is an uncomfortable subject because it implies change. Change is a scary, scary thing for the lower self. It just wants to be comfortable where it is. It’s afraid when you ascend, it might fall and so it will do everything in its minuscule power to sabotage and bring you back down to its level, but the higher self is higher and much wiser and will succeed if you heed its guidance.

Fear is paralyzing. You’ll be too afraid to even open the front door to check. Intuition is empowering. It’ll move you to action. Even when you’re in grave danger, you will remain calm as you navigate boldly because it’s your higher self in action.

Intuition is cool, calm, and collected, but underestimating or ignoring it can be dangerous. You may be the only one who can save someone’s life or even your own life. You can save yourself from making a mistake that will haunt you for the rest of your life.

You may not even know what’s calling, but it’s so strong and you feel it deep inside your soul that you answer the call. You obey and, to your surprise; you answer the call and it leads you to the thing you came here to do.

You heed the call and it leads you to your passion, and through your passion; you find your life’s purpose. When you find your purpose, everything changes for the better. You change for the better.

The higher self really does have your back. It wants you to live the life it knows you are capable of living. It wants you to fulfill every single dream and every soul mission. Your higher self wants you to step fully into your power so can help others step boldly into theirs.

When all of a sudden, you feel called; you feel drawn to something or somewhere almost like a magnet is pulling you in that direction and when you get there; you feel so good and settled inside of you, that’s a clear sign that your higher self involved.

Life and its many obstacles and challenges tend to keep us from embodying our true selves and walking in our purpose but if you pay attention, you will hear, feel, or just know when you’re being divinely guided.

If you follow a call and find that your spirit has come alive and your soul is so happy it wants to come out and dance, you’re right where you’re meant to be and you can thank yourself — your higher self — for showing you the way.

Your higher self is the one that signed all the soul contracts. It has all the answers and knows everything that will happen. If you’re searching for hidden knowledge and the most profound truths about life, your higher self is the person to go to. This part of you is eternal and knows you more than anybody. It knows the steps you’ll take before you take them. It already knows the mistakes you will make before you start your day.

When you pay attention, you won’t stumble and fall. Danger will come near your tent but it can’t come in. You’ll gracefully move into action before it can even get close to harming you or anyone you love.

The higher self isn’t just something that keeps you safe on the right path, but it’s also an abundant source of inspiration. The more you can connect with it, the more your soul will evolve and the more successful you’ll be in every you do.

Even though some people learn and evolve, spiritually, way faster than others, the truth of the matter is that we’re all heading in the same direction. No matter if we’re walking, stumbling, jogging, or marathoning through life, we’re all heading home 🙂

What Is a Highly Spiritual Person?

Today I want to share with you 15 of the things that start to happen as you grow and mature spiritually, things that will bring a lot of peace and serenity into your heart and into your life, making you a more humble, compassionate, and loving person.

15 Signs You’re a Highly Spiritual Person

You know that you are ONE with all things, all beings, and all creatures. And because your heart is filled with love and compassion, you don’t feel the need to judge, blame, condemn or criticize anyone. You recognize yourself in the world around you. You see yourself in those who are good, but also in those who are bad; in those who are kind, but also in those who are cruel, and this humbles you a great deal.

The more you realize who you truly are underneath it all, and why you’re here in this world, the more humble you seem to become and the greater the need for sincerity.

Love is who you are. Love is what you were made of. You don’t love to be loved, you love because love is all you have to give.

You know that life’s plans for you are much grander and more complex than the plans you yourself have for yourself. Because of that, you have given up the need to control how your whole life unfolds, and instead, you have learned to put your trust in life.

You allow life to guide you, to lead you, and to take you on the path you are meant to walk upon, and not the path you think you should walk upon.

Your only interest is to realize your true nature by becoming who life created you to be, and not who people think you should be.

The things you know, you know them from your soul; your wisdom is your own. It does not come from what others have written or spoken, but rather from deep within yourself.

Even though you still encounter people who mistreat, harm, betray and disappoint you, you forgive them all, and you forgive them easily. Why? Because you understand that people only express that which they are, as humans, conscious of being.

You give because the need flows out of you all the time, and not because you expect anything in return.  The happiness of those you help is your reward.  No matter how many challenges life sends your way, and no matter how much pain you have to endure throughout your life, your heart is always at peace. You have learned how to be content under all circumstances.

You know that life loves you and that it is constantly guiding you on the path you are meant to walk. And even though this path may not always be smooth, easy, and free of struggle, pain, and darkness,  you embrace all that comes your way with thankfulness knowing that nothing is happening TO you, everything is happening FOR you!  Because you now know that trying to cling to the very transitory nature of life is a cause of great suffering, you don’t cling on to anything or anyone. You live in the world, but you are not OF the world. You love people, you love the world around you and all that it holds, but you don’t create attachments.

You have reached a point in your life where you no longer base your purpose, meaning or fulfillment on anything external to you. The outside world can no longer fulfill you, and your only true fulfillment now comes from deep within yourself.

You know that the body is only the vehicle transporting the soul in this physical world and that even though you have a physical body, you are not the body.  You are the soul within the body.  You delight yourself in quietness and solitude, and the sound of silence helps you connect with the deep side of you where all life’s wisdom rests, and where all the secrets of the world are hidden.

And these are 15 of the many signs of a highly spiritual person.
Which one of these 15 signs resonates most with you?

~love, Luminita💫

One hears a lot about the power of now and the value of living in the present.

To achieve this state of awareness requires a major change in everyday life.

This much is clear, but producing such change is confusing and frustrating. When people seek personal change in their lives, they often don’t get very far. Even in this day when online advice is bewilderingly abundant and self-improvement books are at our fingertips, change eludes us. One way to remedy this is to start from the ground up. Normally, we feel compelled to start where we are right now, and that’s a tremendous problem.

No matter how different people are, each of us woke up this morning to the same situation. We are constantly involved in thinking, feeling, and doing. No one starts this activity afresh. Instead, we are heavily invested in habits, beliefs, opinions, hopes, dreams, and fears collected from the past. So our thinking, feeling, and doing is entangled with the past even when we want something new, better, fresh, and different.

You can’t always use will power or desire to cut the ties that bind you to the past, but you can do something that will lessen the influence of the past: You can start to see yourself clearly. With that one intention, you are starting from the ground up, because seeing yourself clearly happens here and now. You detach yourself from your story, which is the accumulation of your past. You take a fresh look at what is generating all this thinking, feeling, and doing. The process has to have an origin, a source, a wellspring that sets the active mind going every minute of the day.

Normally, if we try to see ourselves clearly, we are actually looking through a lens. We filter and arrange our experiences. Some experiences we reject, ignore, judge against, or censor. Other experiences we encourage, value, appreciate, and allow to enter our minds. The lens you choose is critical, yet people often don’t realize they have a choice. It doesn’t strike them in the first place that they see themselves — and everything around them — through a lens.

The lens you see through can also be called your mindset, worldview, or simply your state of awareness. Your perspective, on life, family, relationships, work stem from it. Things become confusing because we are caught up in the conflicting stories, explanations, and belief systems that everyone gets exposed to. This confusion can be sorted out once you start to see yourself clearly. Cutting through all the clutter, you discover that you actually know what’s going on. Deep inside, you are fully aware already.

According to Anoop Kumar, my fellow M.D. and an excellent writer on consciousness, there are three lenses you can view life through, configured as Mind 1, 2, or 3 at this moment.

The leading indicator of Mind 1 is the sense of localization within the body. As a result of being limited by the body, Mind 1 can only detect a world of localized things. As we see ourselves, so we see the world. You localize yourself in your body, and as a result you see a world of separate things. Other people live inside their own bodies, which gives them their own sense of separation.

In Mind 1 you provide fertile ground for the ego. “I, me, and mine” become all-important. This makes perfect sense, because your agenda as a separate person is all about the experiences of pleasure and pain that emanate from the body. Even a mental state like anxiety is rooted in the body, because what you fear comes down to a painful feeling “in here.” In every respect Mind 1 is dominated by yes and no to the experiences that come your way. To achieve peace, you must successfully compete in the arena of separate people and things, experiences and events.

Mind 1 seems totally right and natural in the modern secular world. Mind 1 is reflected in science’s total focus on physical things, from microbes and subatomic particles, from the Big Bang to the multiverse. A bestselling book from 1970, Our Bodies, Ourselves, applies to all of us in Mind 1.

It isn’t necessary to see yourself confined to the physical package of a body. In fact, this mindset can be turned on its head. In place of isolation there is connection; in place of things there is process; in place of hard facts, there is an easy continuous flow. You relax into the flow of experience rather than slicing life into bits that must be judged, analyzed, accepted or rejected.

Mind 2 lets you see yourself more clearly, because in reality the mind-body connection is a single continuity. Every thought and feeling creates an effect in every cell. You can consciously create change in the whole system through a switch in awareness. Mind 2 is subtler than Mind 1 — you have moved deeper inside who you really are, and those aspects and abilities that were filtered out by Mind 1 begin to come into view. You are the one who experiences, observes, and knows.

For most people Mind 2 begins to dawn when they meditate or do Yoga, finding access to the quiet mind that lies beneath the surface of the restless active mind. With this discovery comes a way to see beyond the separate ego’s fruitless search for “perfect” pleasure, power, or success. As a deeper vision of self and life soaks through all experience, Mind 2 is established.

It is a radical redefining of what we mean when we use the indicator “I.” It places you in an infinite field of pure awareness, where all things exist as possibilities. This is not only a clear view, it is clarity itself, because there is no thing or process to obstruct your vision.

Boundaries don’t exist. There is no past or future. Even the idea of a present vanishes. the clearest view you can possibly have, because there are no boundaries to limit your vision. You are awake, you see things without any filter, your past no longer holds you captive, and therefore you are free, which is why Mind 3 has been known for centuries as liberation. There are no more “mind-forged manacles,” as the poet William Blake memorably called our self-imposed limitations.

Mind 3 is open to everyone, but there is a large obstacle that must be overcome, which is this: We are convinced by the lens we see things through already. Each mindset feels real and complete. You identify with physical things in Mind 1, the most important thing being your body. In Mind 2 you identify with your field of awareness as it brings experiences and sensations that rise and fall.

Because it takes an inner journey to reach, Mind 2 isn’t where the mass of humankind is, yet without a doubt anyone can go there. Mind 2 is a more natural fit than Mind 1, in fact, because if you see yourself clearly, you cannot doubt that thinking, feeling, and doing is constantly on the move, ever-changing, ever renewing itself.

But Mind 2 has its own peculiar limitation. “I” lingers and holds its own by experiencing “my” thinking, feeling, and doing. There is no need for this. Everyone alive, with the fewest exceptions, has been indoctrinated into Mind 1. In Mind 2 you escape this crude, second-hand, socially approved indoctrination.

But there is a subtle indoctrination that replaces it, which sees the spiritual life as higher, better, and more valuable than ordinary life. This leads to a subtle clinging, a desire to keep the spiritual goodies coming your way and a self-image superior to those people who have not yet seen the light.

The subtle tendency to possess any idea, however fine that idea is, keeps the ego going. Letting it go entirely feels threatening. Who will I be if there is no I anymore? But if you stand back, this fearful worry only exists because the ego is asking it. Of course “I” will never agree to its own demotion. “I” is about self-preservation. The shift into Mind 3 occurs when you see that there are countless moments when you did without your ego.

Every experience of joy, love, compassion, beauty, peace, and service sets the ego aside. You go beyond “I” in a simple, natural glimpse of who you really are. You are the field of awareness itself, unbounded and free. Every possible experience originates here, before the whole interference of ego, society, family, school, and painful memories even begins.

 That’s why Mind 3 has been dubbed the first and last freedom.  It is the freedom you attain when you realize that you had it all along. Clear away the clutter, and it is simply there. Mind 1 and Mind 2 are creations, while Mind 3 is uncreated. It is the womb of creation, and when we arrive there, the inevitable feeling is that we’ve returned home at last.

It’s about how you relate the present to past and future

When he was 29 years old, Eckart Tolle found peace overnight — literally.

After years of troubled living punctuated by episodes of depression, Tolle went to bed plagued by his usual, haunting late-night thoughts. This time, however, he began questioning them.

“Why does my life feel unbearable? Why do I keep having these thoughts?” The answers came to him in the form of a powerful, internal epiphany. “Resist nothing,” his inner voice said. He fell into a deep sleep, and when he awoke, he felt “no more fear,” in his own words.

He spent the next day walking around, wandering, observing, fully engaged in the present moment — a state he continued to exist in for several years. Only when people asked him more and more questions did he begin to feel a sense of duty towards sharing his new, mindful approach to life.

Eventually, he became a teacher and, ultimately, codified his knowledge in The Power of Now, a global bestseller of over 20 years. Whether you believe in such spiritual awakenings or not, there are good lessons to be learned from what Tolle describes as the separation from his “I,” the ego-centered, thought-driven entity we all form in our minds.

Here are three that will help you live in the most beautiful place in the world: the present.

Two of the strongest, most common bad feelings that affect our lives negatively each and every single day are regret and worry. Why is that?

Every waking minute, we’re engaged in a constant stream of consciousness. Every second, one thought follows the next in our head, and those thoughts mainly relate to two things: the past and the future. This is where our big preoccupation with regret and worry comes from.

When you wake up ten minutes late in the morning, what’s your first thought? “Crap, I overslept!” This thought will likely be followed by, “I’ll probably be late for work,” and voilà, you’ve dedicated your first two thoughts of the day to the past and the future — in other words, to regret and worry.

According to Tolle, the only important time is the one we think about the least: the present. Everything happens here. Everything you feel and sense takes place in the present. That’s all life is: A series of present moments.

The past is nothing more than all present moments that have gone by. The future is just a collection of all present moments waiting to happen. Hence, living in any moment other than the present is useless — even if your current task is oriented towards the future.

Let’s say you have a paper to hand in in two weeks. You can regret the time you didn’t use to work on it, but that’s not useful. Neither is worrying about the big load of work that is yet to come. The only good way to get the job done is to focus on what you can do right now: Calm down, sit, think, define the problem, come up with an outline, and start writing.

Life is a series of present moments, and the only one of this moments that you can really use is the one happening right now.

Some 2,000 years ago, the Stoics already developed a philosophical interpretation of suffering: The only pain you really feel is the one you create inside your own mind.

Or, in emperor Marcus Aurelius’ words: “If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.”

Tolle connects this idea of “perspective is power” to his distinction between past, present, and future. He suggests all our pain is the result of resisting what we cannot change, and guess where the things we cannot change lie? They lie in the past and the future.

We think about the past and the future. What made us happy. What made us sad. What would make us happy, and what might make us sad. However, we control none of the events of either time; we can only live in the present.

It is when we fill the gap between the two — past and present or present and future — with resistance to what might happen or has happened, that we experience pain, be it psychological or physical. Your anger might take the form of a painful stomach or an irrational decision, but either way, it leads to more pain despite having originated only in your head.

Don’t wish back the past. Don’t resist the future. Accept life as is, and you’ll feel a lot less pain — particularly the imagined kind.

If staying in the present was easy, most of us would already do it most of the time. Redirecting your focus to the now takes consistent effort.

Tolle recommendsworking on two habits:

The first technique borrows its concept from physics. Quantum particles are always in transience. We can for example determine where they are or when they are but never both at the same time. The only way to keep such a flurry system in its current state is to constantly observe it. Only then do its properties remain fixed. This is called the quantum zeno effect.

When it comes to mindfulness, asking yourself “What will my next thought be?” will delay your next actual thought, thus giving you valuable space to realize how much time you spend on autopilot. You’re interrupting your mind to separate yourself from it. You’ll also pick each thought more deliberately.

The second technique is more classic zen. It’s about listening and accepting without acting. Observe the nagging thoughts like “I should have woken up earlier!” but don’t let them take hold in your mind. Wave at them as they pass by. Notice, see, accept — but don’t give in to your mind’s regretful and worrying tendencies.

In separating your physical, observing body from your restless mind, you’ll reduce the friction between present, past, and future, and thus reduce the pain you feel about everything you can’t change.

Summary

The Power of Now reveals every minute we spend regretting the past or worrying about the future is a minute lost. The only moment we can truly live in is the present, which is why the book delivers actionable strategies to live every minute as it occurs.

To rememberits powerful premise and spend less time regretting and worrying, here are 3 lessons worth keeping in mind:

A kindred spirit is hard to come by, but you can find them in the least expected places.

If you feel like you connected to your new friend on a deeper level, they may be a kindred spirit. This relationship will be positive and supportive, and you’ll have a deep, meaningful, and mutual connection with them.

There will be positive energy between the two of you, and you’ll always be encouraging to one another. Your views of the world may also be similar. You won’t be the same as your bestie, but they will have similar thought processes and values.

Many people reference energy when discussing kindred connections. Some believe that your bestie will have the same frequency as you. This synchronicity results in energy matching and a deep connection. It is the reason you get along so well with them, and the reason you understand each other so well.

Ten Signs That Your New Friend Is a Kindred Spirit

Having a relationship with a kindred spirit will allow you to learn and grow positively. This relationship will have the same effect on your friend, too, as it’s all about a mutual connection. To ease your curiosity, these signs will help you know if your new friend is a kindred spirit.

When it comes to the more important topics, your values tend to line up pretty closely with your friend’s values. This is regarding religious or political beliefs, as well as things like beliefs on raising children.

Because of this similarity, it will be easy to discuss ideas about the world around you. It’ll also be easy to be in their company even when the conversation shifts to a serious topic. Keep in mind that you may disagree on minor things, but the most critical issues will be similar.

Part of having a kindred connection is that you learn from one another. They will give you new perspectives on life, and you will do the same for them. You will always help each other grow and move forwards positively.

One of the reasons you can both learn from one another so quickly is because of the similarities you share. Your matching energy allows you to learn from them and to receive information, helping you to become a better you.

The things you learn from your friend will be ones that you remember for the rest of your life. Each moment you spend with them, you’ll be gaining meaningful insights. Plus, things you were confused about will begin to make sense.

In this friendship, you always feel respected. Likewise, your friend still feels respected by you. Even when you don’t agree on something, you’ll both be respectful during the discussion. This is partly due to the deep level of understanding you have of one another.

Having this mutual respect also means respecting one another’s boundaries and accepting their flaws. You can’t just pretend the differences don’t exist, but you can continue to show respect and support.

As mentioned before, but it’s essential to explain it in more detail. You are likely on the same energy frequency as your friend, meaning they will spark your spirit. Despite the length of the friendship, matching energies will make you feel like you’ve known them forever.

To explain matching energies in more detail, it means that you are both exhibiting the same strength. With a kindred spirit, the vibe is always positive and supportive. On the other hand, you can also match angry, loving, or sad energies, as well as any different feeling.

This is why you draw close to people who are similar to you. You attract what you put forth, and you are attracted to others with your same vibe. In return, when you exhibit these positive qualities, you are more likely to attract a kindred spirit as a friend.

When you have a connection like this, they will always bring value to your life. They will make you feel happy, and you will still enjoy spending time with them. When you are with them, you’ll feel relaxed, accepted, comforted, and like your life is meaningful.

Even without seeing one another, you may know something is wrong with your friend. Likewise, they may see when you need some support or comfort.

When you can see them, you’ll be able to read their body language to know that they need something. Sometimes, they’ll try to explain something while you are present, and you know they mean something completely different. They will be this person for you, too, knowing what you mean and what you need.

When you are connected to someone on this level, you are always honest with each other. You won’t have to worry about them lying to you, because they always tell the truth.

Another thing you won’t have to worry about is losing the friendship when you are frank with them. They appreciate and want honesty, no matter what the situation is.

Whether you are wondering how an outfit looks or you want their opinion on something else, they will tell you. They don’t want to hurt your feelings if they say something you didn’t want to hear, but they respect you enough always to be on the up-and-up.

In return, they will expect you to do the same for them. It leads to further understanding and comfort between the two of you. This quality is always present during a kindred connection.

Since judgment comes from misunderstanding people, you don’t have to worry about it here. In this type of relationship, you understand each other so well that there is no judgment.

You will be able to relax and be yourself without the worry of being judged. This allows for happiness and a sense of well-being, which is something everyone needs in their lives. You can show all of your weird characteristics, and be honest about what you like and don’t like.

Even when you have made a mistake or did something silly, your friend won’t judge you. They will likely be the one who is there to help you through this time, not the one judging you. Because of this, you will always feel supported and wanted.

No matter the situation, your friend will have your back through it all. It won’t matter what time of day it is or what the circumstances are. They will be there for you. They will help you through your problems and help you find a solution.

They will stand up for you when the situation requires it, and they won’t let anyone do you wrong. You can always feel sure that you have someone to support you and be there for you no matter what.

This comfort that you feel when you are with your friend is something you should cherish. You can be yourself without worry, and they can do the same. Unwinding at the end of a long day will be comfortable with them, as they won’t expect you to entertain.

If you aren’t in the mood to talk but still want to spend time, that’s fine, too. You will be so comfortable with this person that silences will not be awkward or uncomfortable. No one will feel the need for small talk or empty words.

On the other hand, there will be times when you can talk for hours at a time. You won’t run out of things to talk about when you are in the mood to communicate.

You will feel so comfortable with them that you’ll feel like you’ve known them forever. This comes from the fact that you don’t have to explain yourself or your past to them. They just get you, even if they weren’t there for all of your life events.

Final Thoughts on Signs Your New Friend Is a Kindred Spirit

Having a friend who is a kindred spirit is something that not everyone will experience in their lifetime. If you have this person in your life, cherish them and show them how much they matter to you. Your bestie deserves to know how much you love them and how much you value your relationship.

When you have a kindred spirit in your life, you’ll know it based on the signs explained above. You’ll feel comfortable with them, have similar values, and they’ll always have your back. They will also always be honest with you, encourage and support you, and they’ll respect you no matter what.

All of those signs and the many others that mentioned will allow you to recognize this person. You probably already understood the deeper relationship you share with them. Now, these signs have confirmed your thoughts that this is something more unique.