Welcome to Thursday Tidbits, choice bits of information that celebrate our oneness with one another through our unique perspectives. It is how we connect, how we have always connected but in the 21st century, the connection is more immediate than it has ever been.
As I continue to explore detachment—or not trying to control the outcome of a moment—it seems to be a matter of attention and intention, which Deepak Chopra says are the two qualities of consciousness. In other words, through attention and intention we create the reality we live:
“Intention combined with detachment leads to life-centered, present moment awareness. And when action is performed in present moment awareness, it is most effective. Your intent is for the future, but your attention is in the present. As long as your attention is in the present, then your intent for the future will manifest, because the future is created in the present” (Seven Spiritual Laws of Success).
But what follows is not quite as easy, at least for this human:
“You must accept the present as is. Accept the present and intend the future. The future is something you can always create through detached intention, but you should never struggle against the present” (Seven Spiritual Laws of Success).
Often, not struggling seems like giving up or not standing up for one’s beliefs but I suspect that is where detachment lies. We immerse ourselves in the moment and not its possible outcome. And if we feel stuck in the moment?
In Pema Chödrön’s quote for the week, “The Sensation of Bliss,” she relays a time in her life when she was feeling quite overwhelmed, anxious and the more she “settled into” the feeling the more it consumed her.
She consulted one of her teachers who told her that he, too, had experienced a similar feeling and then asked her to describe her experience, including all of the physical sensations she felt. Here, she relates what her teacher told her:
“… He brightened up and said, `Ani Pema…That’s a high level of spiritual bliss.’ I almost fell off my chair. I thought, `Wow, this is great!’ And I couldn’t wait to feel that intensity again. And do you know what happened? When I eagerly sat down to practice, of course, since the resistance was gone, so was the anxiety” (Pema Chödrön’s Quote of the Week).
Somewhat similar was my own feeling regarding Cooper’s death. Fearful of his having another seizure, I lie awake, watching him sleep, yet as Christmas Eve became Christmas morn, the anxiety and resistance to his impending death left me. They never returned.
What has filled me is an immense gratitude for being, and with it, joy. And yes, it still amazes me. “Past and future are born in the imagination; only the present, which is awareness, is real and eternal. It is” (Law of Intention and Desire, Seven Spiritual Laws of Success).
The Deepak Chopra video is a how-to on the Law of Intention and Desire, in particular on what to focus your attention so your intention may go to work for you.
Recent Inspiring Posts:
Heartflow 2013: Made for These Times
Everyday Gurus: A Split Second To Peace
Barbara Kingsolver excerpt: Small Wonder
Taoist Path: Attention and Intention in a Hectic World
KM Huber's Blog 
Karen,
You have the amazing ability to take very complex ideas and explain them with relevant examples from both spiritual guides and your personal experience. Thank you for sharing this valuable insight into attention and intention.
I think that resisting the present includes pondering/wishing for a different outcome of a past event, which I was doing this very morning. Amazing how I read your post right when I needed it the most.
{{{Hugs}}} Kozo
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Yes, Kozo, what an excellent point about the past; thank you for that. To me, any time we are swinging the pendulum to the past or the future, we are not present and creating, we are not in what is real. Thank you for the lovely compliment.
Karen
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Great teaching, Karen! I love Pema’s experience… and thanks for linking my post.
Namaste’, Tomas
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Thank you, Tomas for your kind words. Your lovely post is one I revisited today for it is so filled with love and peace.
Karen
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Thank you, Karen! That warms my heart to hear!
Tomas
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“Detached intention”–I have to think about that for awhile. It’s the same as trying to force our own will on something. I’ve found that I’m always disappointed when I try to force the outcome according to what I think should happen. It rarely goes as I expect. When I relax and let things unfold, I’m often surprised with better results than I thought possible. Thanks, Karen!
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Yes, Diana! My experience is the same. If I will not cling or control the outcome, I am always amazed at the results, many of which I had not even considered.
Karen
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I think I resonate with this — there is something about, when I’m experiencing anxiety, focusing my attention entirely on the anxiety, or “turning toward it,” as opposed to “turning away” by trying to distract myself with something else. I get the sense that this practice is quite a source of growth.
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I, agree, Chris. By immersing myself into what is–no matter the anxiety–I will experience it completely, meaning I no longer resist and thus, there is no anxiety. Practice is what is essential.
Karen
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I am still working on this! Love the Barbara Kingsolver link – she is another favourite author.
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Aren’t we all, Diana?!? Have just begun reading Kingsolver’s “Flight Behaviors” but think my favorite is “Pigs in Heaven.”
Karen
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Fabulous post Karen, I love Deepak Chopra as you know and I needed to hear his words today, Thank you for sharing.
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He’s been a favorite of mine for years. Glad you enjoyed the post.
Karen
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